Full Name
Debra Sanchez
Job Title
Senior Vice President, Educational Media and Learning Experiences
Company (Please input the full name of your organization)
Corporation for Public Broadcasting (CPB)
Speaker Bio
Debra Sanchez is Senior Vice President, Educational Media and Learning Experiences at the Corporation for Public Broadcasting (CPB). She develops and oversees children's and youth content investments, educational initiatives and works closely with local public media stations to enhance their educational services.
In her current position, Deb has designed and led numerous initiatives to leverage public media’s content, distribution and local community-based work to address critical needs in education today. Including the American Graduate Initiative where local stations, national producers and community-based organizations have partnered to raise awareness about the importance of high school graduation, post-secondary opportunities and preparing young people for the changing workforce.
Deb has also led the development of a new initiative at CPB focused on media by, with and for youth (children ages 8-18). This initiative funds the Joan Ganz Cooney Center at Sesame Workshop to investigate the media habits of children ages 8-18 and identify how public media can reach young people and adapt to their evolving media practices.
Since 2005, CPB, in partnership with PBS, has been awarded funds through the U.S. Department of Education for the Ready To Learn (RTL) grant, which leverages public media’s esteemed collection of educational content like Peg+Cat, Odd Squad and Molly of Denali to help close the achievement gap for children in low-income communities.
Also under Deb’s leadership, CPB has supported innovative, digital approaches to bring content and resources to teachers and students through classroom-based and project-based learning programs like PBS LearningMedia and the PBS NewsHour Student Reporting Labs.
Prior to joining CPB, she was Vice President, Government Relations, at the Association of Public Television Stations (APTS). In this role, she was the primary education policy professional for the public television community and provided strategic counsel on pursuing Pre-K to postsecondary federal initiatives.
Before joining public broadcasting, she was a special education teacher in Arlington, Virginia and Highland, Indiana. She was a high school athletic coach, facilitated a Natural Helpers leadership academy for high school students, and was a private tutor for at-risk students. She earned a Bachelor of Science degree in Special Education from Indiana University.
Today, she is an active leader and volunteer in her community and in her children’s educational and extra-curricular endeavors.
In her current position, Deb has designed and led numerous initiatives to leverage public media’s content, distribution and local community-based work to address critical needs in education today. Including the American Graduate Initiative where local stations, national producers and community-based organizations have partnered to raise awareness about the importance of high school graduation, post-secondary opportunities and preparing young people for the changing workforce.
Deb has also led the development of a new initiative at CPB focused on media by, with and for youth (children ages 8-18). This initiative funds the Joan Ganz Cooney Center at Sesame Workshop to investigate the media habits of children ages 8-18 and identify how public media can reach young people and adapt to their evolving media practices.
Since 2005, CPB, in partnership with PBS, has been awarded funds through the U.S. Department of Education for the Ready To Learn (RTL) grant, which leverages public media’s esteemed collection of educational content like Peg+Cat, Odd Squad and Molly of Denali to help close the achievement gap for children in low-income communities.
Also under Deb’s leadership, CPB has supported innovative, digital approaches to bring content and resources to teachers and students through classroom-based and project-based learning programs like PBS LearningMedia and the PBS NewsHour Student Reporting Labs.
Prior to joining CPB, she was Vice President, Government Relations, at the Association of Public Television Stations (APTS). In this role, she was the primary education policy professional for the public television community and provided strategic counsel on pursuing Pre-K to postsecondary federal initiatives.
Before joining public broadcasting, she was a special education teacher in Arlington, Virginia and Highland, Indiana. She was a high school athletic coach, facilitated a Natural Helpers leadership academy for high school students, and was a private tutor for at-risk students. She earned a Bachelor of Science degree in Special Education from Indiana University.
Today, she is an active leader and volunteer in her community and in her children’s educational and extra-curricular endeavors.
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