Film series wins award, airs on KLRU-TV

The American Trustees Project, a statewide program from the Annette Strauss Institute for Civic Participation at the university, has won a Chris Award from the Columbus International Film and Video Festival for its series of short documentary films to help young people become better citizens. The documentaries used in the project also will be featured in the community journalism series “Docubloggers,” produced by KLRU, Austin’s PBS station, throughout January and February. A bronze Chris Award in the education and information category was awarded to the Strauss Institute and University of Texas at Austin Radio-TV-Film Professor Nancy Schesari, who directed and produced the series. To inspire youth and improve educational outcomes, the American Trustees Project produced a unique collection of 12 six-to eight-minute documentaries and a complementary set of online instructional materials about ordinary citizens making a difference in their communities. Seven of the 12 American Trustees Project documentaries will be featured in the Emmy Award-winning Docubloggers, a new weekly community journalism series creating a collaborative collage of life in Central Texas. They will air at 7:30 p.m., Thursdays through Feb. 21 on KLRU-TV, channel 18, cable channel 9. The program includes an interactive blog, where anyone can post video or present a written glimpse into life in the Central Texas community. More information is available online at: http://www.docubloggers.org/.