Partners

Central Carolina Community Foundation (CCCF) and the John S. and James L. Knight Foundation are the organizations primarily responsible for the BGTIME project.

Central Carolina Community Foundation is a nonprofit organization serving 11 counties in the Midlands by distributing grants and scholarships and linking the resources of donors, nonprofits and community leaders to areas of need. Its mission is to promote, facilitate and increase philanthropy to create a sustainable impact on our community through responsible giving. The Board of Trustees supported this project because they believe strongly that it provides tremendous benefits for the seniors who participate, for the students who work directly with the seniors, and for the entire community that would be enriched with the wisdom and insights shared by seniors.

The John S. and James L. Knight Foundation promotes excellence in journalism worldwide and invests in the vitality of 26 U.S. communities where the Knight brothers owned newspapers. The Knight Foundation issued the Knight Community Information Challenge, a $24 million initiative to help community foundations find creative ways to use media and technology to keep communities informed. The BGTIME project is one of 21 winners nationwide in the Knight Community Information Challenge.

The University of South Carolina (USC) --through its College of Mass Communications and Information Studies, Ifra Newsplex South Carolina, and the Office of Information Technology--is a major contributor to the BGTIME project. Students from the College of Mass Communications and Information Studies train and mentor the seniors participating in the project. Ifra Newsplex trains the students from USC and from Benedict College. The Office of Information Technology serves as a technology consultant for the project.

Benedict College provides basic digital literacy training for seniors. Students from Benedict College also train and mentor seniors in the project.

The State Media Company serves as key advisors for the BGTIME project. The State provided initial online hosting and provided oversight in developing the website. The State, through its new media and its traditional resources, promotes the BGTIME project.

South Carolina ETV documents the components of the planning process and will follow the project as it unfolds. In 2010, ETV will produce a documentary about this project. The documentation will be available to other communities who wish to replicate the project. ETV's educational radio provides another forum for discussion of issues generated through the senior project.

Funding from the Knight Foundation and Central Carolina Community Foundation coupled with additional funding and in-kind contributions from the partners will have a total impact of over $1 million to help bridge ethnic, economic, and generational lines to increase digital literacy among seniors.