“Cognition” Digital Literacy Courses & New Broadcasting Studio

29 May “Cognition” Digital Literacy Courses & New Broadcasting Studio

Telluride TV launches ‘Cognition” digital literacy courses and new Mountain Village broadcasting studio. Station celebrates opening with studio tours and Cognition class discounts. Introduction to SEO takes place Wednesday, June 1. For more information and to register for Cognition, go here.

Wondering how to get your website to rank higher during Internet keyword searches?

Once someone clicks on your website, how do you engage and keep them there?

How can small organizations with tight marketing budgets put their web advertising dollars to best use?

Telluride TV plans to answer these questions and more during its new digital literacy learning series: Cognition.

Cognition, which launches with five real-time, interactive, online classes in web development and online marketing, kicks off on Wed., June 1, with an Introduction to SEO (Search Engine Optimization), 6 – 9 p.m.

“A few months ago, I needed someone to format our website and to bring more viewership to our on-demand videos,” said TTV executive director Katie Karow. “I was considering sending our Studio Coordinator to Denver for training and realized that there are likely many others in our community with similar needs.”

Cognition comes to Telluride by way of TTV’s new partnership with Boulder Digital Arts, a highly regarded, professional resource organization that has provided top-quality training in high-demand topics for people who create things for over a decade.

“I called Bruce Borowsky, co-founder of BDA, whom I had met two years earlier when I toured his vibrant facility as a potential model for expanding education at Telluride TV. We discussed streaming classes to Telluride and decided to partner to do a beta test this summer with the intention of adding more instruction going forward,” Karow added.

“Even though much of the material we teach is available online, many people still prefer to be taught by an in-person instructor, where they can simply raise their hand and ask a question,” said Borowsky. “Unfortunately many of Colorado’s mountain communities are too far a drive from Boulder to make it cost-effective, so we’re very excited to bring BDA directly to Telluride.” 

Classes will be live-streamed to Telluride from BDA, while a Google Hangouts Chat computer will capture questions from Telluride and relay them to the instructor.

“It will be a totally interactive class, and it is very exciting because we foresee this collaboration becoming a model for education in rural communities,” Karow said.

All Cognition classes will be held at Telluride High School.

• Introduction to SEO, Wed., June 1, 6 – 9 p.m., $75
• Getting Started with Google Analytics, Tues., July 5, 6- 9 p.m. $100
• Getting Started with Google AdWords, Tues., July 12, 6- 9 p.m., $100
• Copywriting for the Web, Thurs., Aug. 4, 6 – 9 p.m., $100
• WordPress for Beginners, Tues. Sept. 20 and Thurs. Sept. 22, 1 – 4 p.m., $250

To celebrate the launch of Cognition, TTV is offering students 25 percent off Introduction to SEO. Students who purchase the transferable Cognition Class 4-Pack (does not include WordPress for Beginners) pay $325 for a $75 savings.

Cognition ushers in an exciting era at TTV as the community access station brandishes an updated image and broadcasting capabilities. Both are encompassed by the station’s new broadcast studio located in the heart of Mountain Village on the lower level at the Inn at Lost Creek.

Understanding the benefits to visibility achieved by housing the studio in the Mountain Village core, the Telluride Ski & Golf Company generously made the space available to TTV.

“Telluride Ski & Golf recognized that Telluride TV had the opportunity to expand its media platform and community outreach, and we wanted to be a catalyst by providing increased visibility in a new studio and office located in the Mountain Village commercial core. TSG is proud to collaborate with the Town of Mountain Village and the Town of Telluride to make this opportunity a reality,” said Bill Jensen, CEO of Telluride Ski & Golf.

At the same time, the Town of Mountain Village sponsored build-out of the new studio.

“The brand and promotional value of broadcasting from Mountain Village is significant and very consistent with our community’s position as a world-class, thoughtful, and engaged community,” said Mountain Village Mayor Dan Jansen.

“We welcome Telluride TV in the Village and want to help them achieve their important mission,” he continued.

The Town of Telluride sponsored TTV’s new broadcast server, which improves the station’s work flow efficiency and website interface, and allows it to broadcast emergency crawls notifying viewers of weather and other safety situations.

“The Town of Telluride was pleased to fund Telluride TV’s upgraded broadcast server, enabling the station to remain in step with industry standards. As technology continues to impact and enhance nearly every aspect of our lives, Telluride TV’s new facility keeps Telluride in touch and on par with the rest of the world,” said Telluride Mayor Sean Murphy.

The studio features a permanent, talk show-style set decorated with modern furniture and art highlighting the station’s signature orange and white colors. And while passersby can glimpse tapings through the studio’s broad glass doors whenever they occur, the facility will be open for public tours during its official opening on Wed., June 15, timed to coincide with the Telluride Bluegrass Festival’s FirstGrass show at Sunset Plaza.

With its new studio, TTV can now provide live network television broadcasting services as well as radio, podcast, and Skype broadcasting services through a high-speed, fiber-optic, internet connection. Its new and enhanced capabilities mean that that TTV studio is suitable for use anytime a satellite truck or ISDN audio broadcast is requested.

“The new studio offers high-profile people a convenient way to live in and visit our region, while remaining connected when they need to be,” said Karow.

Karow clarified that with the addition of a second facility, the TTV Media Center at Telluride High School will continue to be used for media arts education programming for school-age and adult students, as well as new digital literacy and business courses for the community.