WXXI awarded grant from the Golisano Foundation for Move to Include initiative 

The Golisano Foundation has awarded WXXI Public Media a five-year grant totaling $1.65 million in support of the continuation and expansion of the Move to Include (MTI) initiative.  

WXXI and the foundation joined forces in 2014 to launch MTI, an initiative that uses the power of public media to inform and transform attitudes and behavior about intellectual, physical and developmental disabilities.  

The grant will enable WXXI to continue and strengthen the core MTI content and productions including WXXI-produced documentaries, primetime and children’s TV programming, social media and special events. It will also support the Inclusion Desk, a multi-platform reporting effort by WXXI News dedicated to consistently reporting on disability issues and stories of inclusion.  

The grant will also allow WXXI to hire a dedicated project manager to oversee productions, monitor the brand and work to increase audience reach.  

WXXI’s investment over the next five years totals $1.1 million.  

“We are grateful to the Golisano Foundation for its generous support that will enable us to focus more effort on expanding MTI content and outreach,” said WXXI President Norm Silverstein. “Move to Include is an important part of our mission to ensure that a diverse set of voices is heard on our air, online and in digital and community spaces.” 

In 2020 The Corporation for Public Broadcasting recognized the importance of Move to Include and awarded WXXI a grant to expand efforts to five additional public media stations, which include WFYI (Indianapolis), OPB (Oregon), WGCU (Southwest Florida), WCNY (Syracuse) and Iowa PBS.  

With the support of the Golisano Foundation, WXXI has a goal to partner with 40 new PBS stations nationwide to implement MTI in their communities.  

“We are pleased to partner with WXXI and continue our support for Move to Include, which has become a catalyst for inclusive programming in New York and several other states,” said Ann Costello, the Golisano Foundation’s executive director. “With the proposed expansion to even more stations across the country, we look forward to an exciting new era of inclusive programming and public education that will increase engagement and impact on issues, experiences and perspectives of the disability community.”  

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