Tag: Friends With Paws

WVPB Production Team Receives Three Anthem Awards

WVPB announced they have received three awards in the 3rd Annual Anthem Awards. This year’s Anthem Award Winners were selected from a pool of over 2,000 submissions from 44 countries by the International Academy of Digital Arts and Sciences (IADAS).

CHARLESTON, WV: WVPB announced they have received three awards in the 3rd Annual Anthem Awards. This year’s Anthem Award Winners were selected from a pool of over 2,000 submissions from 44 countries by the International Academy of Digital Arts and Sciences (IADAS).

Congratulations to our staff:

  • Read for the Record is the Bronze Anthem Winner in Education or Literacy Platform
  • West Virginia Public Broadcasting’s Annual Writers Contest is the Silver Anthem Winner in Education or Literacy Program or Platform
  • Communities in Schools: Friends with Paws is the Bronze Anthem Winner in Film, Video, Television or Show

WVPB Director of Production Chris Barnhart says the team is honored to be recognized for another national level award. “It’s always special when the award is the product of multiple departments working together,” said Barnhart. “The award-winning shows were collaborations between the education, newsroom, digital and production teams.”  

Launched in 2021 by The Webby Awards, the Anthem Awards honors the purpose and mission-driven work of people, companies, and organizations worldwide. By amplifying the voices that spark global change, we’re defining a new benchmark for impactful work that inspires others to act in their own communities.

The Anthem Awards honors work across seven core causes: Diversity; Equity & Inclusion; Education; Art & Culture; Health; Human & Civil Rights; Humanitarian Action & Services; Responsible Technology; and Sustainability, Environment & Climate.

Anthem judges are intellectually diverse leaders from across the impact industry with expertise that spans across the Anthem cause areas.

17 Therapy Dogs Now In W.Va. Schools Through ‘Friends With Paws’ 

Skye is the seventeenth therapy dog to be placed in West Virginia’s public schools through Friends with Paws. The program began in April 2022 with the first placement at Welch Elementary.

A school in the Eastern Panhandle is the latest recipient of a therapy dog through the Communities In Schools: Friends With Paws program. 

Berkeley Springs High School in Morgan County received its very own therapy dog this week named Skye. First Lady Cathy Justice made the announcement in a press release Wednesday.

“I am very happy that we were able to place Skye in beautiful Berkeley Springs,” she said in the release. “I think this will be a great home for her, and I can’t wait to hear about all the ways that Skye’s presence will make a positive impact on students’ lives. This is a day of celebration!”

Skye is the seventeenth therapy dog to be placed in West Virginia’s public schools through Friends With Paws. The program began in April 2022 with the first placement at Welch Elementary.

The therapy dog program, according to the governor’s office, was launched as a way to alleviate some of the social-emotional effects of poverty, addiction and other at-risk situations in the state’s Communities In Schools (CIS) counties. 

Gov. Jim Justice also noted at the time of launch that the program would help to combat the emotional effects of the coronavirus pandemic. 

Therapy dogs, according to the National Institutes of Health, provide a benefit in the classroom by increasing a positive mood and providing anti-stress effects on the body.

West Virginia Public Broadcasting (WVPB) last year produced a documentary on the Friends With Paws therapy dog project under the same name. It can be viewed for free on WVPB’s YouTube channel or through PBS Passport.

“Berkeley Springs High School is very thankful for this opportunity through the Friends With Paws program. We are extremely excited to have Skye with us to support and comfort our students,” Principal Mitch Nida said.

Friends With Paws is a partnership between the governor’s office, West Virginia Communities In Schools, and the West Virginia Department of Education.

Fifty-three of the state’s 55 counties are part of CIS.

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