Now in it’s second year, the ‘Saving Tomorrow, Today’ platform was created through partnership between University of Phoenix and Urban One (parent company of One X Studios) in an effort to discover and promote solutions within the K-12 education system. The journey began with an acclaimed half-hour documentary that premiered on TV ONE followed by the launch of savingtomorrowtoday.com. The site, for which One X produces engaging video content, is now the largest resource for news and stories on people of color in education.
What happens when the nation’s most valuable natural resource, our students, fail to thrive in the environments intended to protect and teach them?
It’s a question journalist Charles H.F. Davis III, Ph.D. sets out to answer and solve in Saving Tomorrow, Today: The Curriculum of New America—a documentary that takes a look at how educators, parents, creatives and critical thinkers are collectively working to create spaces where marginalized students can grow. Through these discussions, Davis will come face-to-face with the challenges African-American and Latino youth face today with the goal of identifying non-traditional, yet relevant solutions to those challenges.
If the beginning of a child’s education is ultimately their foundation, it’s imperative that the answer to our nation’s failing education system is identified and remedied.
The Circle of Mothers
Kadiatou Diallo, Iris Baez, Hawa Bah, Constance Malcolm, Sybrina Fulton, and Valerie Bell make up the support group of mothers who have lost children to senseless acts of violence. Known as The Circle of Mothers, they were also the subjects of an art project by Sylvia Maier, which reimagines the moms as figures on U.S. currency. In this video, originally filmed as part of the documentary, Saving Tomorrow, Today, the mother sit with Charles H.F. Davis, PhD to discuss the art project, the role education must play and their hopes for the future of their communities.
The Coalition Tour
In 2016, University of Phoenix embarked on a new partnership with National Action Network and NNSTOY (National Network of State Teachers of the Year) in an effort to empower and mobilize teachers, parents, students and community members to forge and implement solutions to the issues facing their local community schools. One X Studios sent cameras to capture the kick-off tour which reached the four cities of Atlanta, GA, Richmond, VA, Baltimore, MA, and Columbia, SC. In a 4-part video series, we captured the reactions of local stakeholders committed to fostering change.
Leaders Of The New School
An insightful short-form content series where thought-leaders within education share innovative solutions that address existing challenges facing America’s education system. In each installment, our featured guest provides academic and social context around their pedagogy—highlighting how their work both positively impacts and creates opportunities for marginalized students in the K-12 system. Left to right: Dr. Chris Emdin, Dr. Mark Anthony Neal, Tyler Brewster
Student Projections
First and foremost, Saving Tomorrow, Today is a commitment to our students. So when the site re-launched in 2017, One X Studios took the announcement to one of the African-American community’s most watched events, The NAACP Image Awards, to show audiences what the platform is all about. Student Projections features just some of the impactful quotes from thought-leaders we’ve met throughout our journey and reminds us who the work is ultimately for: our students.