Bard College Associate Dean of Civic Engagement Brian Mateo Elected to Board of Directors of BYkids

Brian Mateo, associate dean of civic engagement and director of strategic partnerships for the Bard Globalization and International Affairs Program, has been elected to the board of directors of BYkids. Started in 2007, BYkids is a global movement that uses storytelling through film to inform, engage, and inspire action. BYkids provides kids around the world with the training and the video cameras to make short documentaries about their lives. Renowned filmmakers mentor these young people in the art of filmmaking.

“I am very excited to join the Board of extraordinary talented individuals and help the BYkids organization strategize their goals for the next ten years and also the next generation of young filmmakers and its viewers,” says Mateo.

Brian Mateo also serves on the board of trustees of the Carnegie Council for Ethics in International Affairs, and as a term member on the Council on Foreign Relations, a security fellow for the Truman National Security Project and a climate reality leader trained by former U.S. Vice President Al Gore through the Climate Reality Project.

“We are honored to have Brian’s international and educational expertise and welcome him as we expand our impact of this powerful films as a way to promote cross-cultural conversations,” says Holly Carter, BYkids founder and executive director. “We have done a number of screening and conversation events with his students and Bard colleagues, and it is always a rich experience.”

BYkids is a non-profit organization pairing master filmmakers, including Albert Maysles and Ric Burns, with youth (ages 8-21) from around the world to create short documentaries that educate Americans about globally relevant issues. By giving kids the tools and mentoring to make documentary films about their lives and packaging those films for a wide American audience, BYkids gives voice to youth from diverse cultures, and encourages international understanding and engagement by giving viewers concrete ways to respond.

BYkids films air on PBS with a supporting curriculum for students and teachers and are distributed through PBS LearningMedia, Discovery Education, and PenPal Schools. The organizations holds film screenings and panel discussions at schools, film festivals, Lincoln Center, the United Nations, and SXSW. We engage on social media. Each of our young filmmakers creates empathy touching 248.6 million viewers. Our instructional webinar, hosted by WNET and accessible to all educators, is promoted to more than 170,000 educators worldwide, including middle, junior, and high school librarians, social studies, and world history teachers. To learn more about BYkids, please click here.(2/15/21)
 

Post Date: 02-15-2021