Citizen One pilot deemed successful

CLOVERDALE ­— Pitching the idea a year ago, consultant Taulbee Jackson was confident that a new local news platform, run by Cloverdale students, would mean more buy-in from the community.

Also part of the plan was students learning about media literacy and how to engage leaders and community members as journalists. Meanwhile, it was hoped the program could stand on its own.

Based on data compiled in the last year, Jackson reported to the Cloverdale School Board last week that the Citizen One pilot program exceeded expectations. There have also been takeaways for how it can grow.

Getting the program under way was a “science experiment,” as Jackson related. It was based around a magazine-style online platform with livestreaming, blogs and podcasts.

Gauging analytics baselined every 90 days since the start, Jackson touched on the impact of Google. As the website is being indexed by the search engine, the audience is growing as Citizen One content is found in more searches.

“What we found was there’s so much demand for localized content, that Google has actually driven the majority of our traffic,” Jackson said. “I didn’t think we would get that kind of uptick there.”

He noted that more than 51 percent of the Cloverdale community has downloaded Citizen One’s mobile app. To make a comparison with Nielson rating, he provided that the program’s share of the local news market is larger than the Super Bowl’s reach.

Citizen One recently had about 1,085 users, around a quarter of the Banner Graphic’s subscriber base. On the Nielson comparison, Jackson related, it would be one of the top radio stations locally. The kicker, he suggested, is that the focus is on Cloverdale.

Jackson said he would pursue grant funding, investors and advertisers in the meantime to support the program. In essence, the intent has been for it to be decoupled from profit as a community resource.

“What we really needed to prove is, ‘Can we generate an audience that we can monetize?’” Jackson said. “I want something that can pay for itself, and can sustain itself over time.”

While language arts teacher Maria Skiles is the primary administrator, Jackson said “very minimal guidance” has been given to students. The goal is for them to work in different roles and be able to communicate effectively.

As to producing the content, Jackson said it should be simplified as if sharing on social media. In this vein, he related that the quality and efficacy “passed with flying colors” given their inexperience.

Moving forward, Jackson said a critical component would be to establish a set curriculum focused on different aspects of journalism and training. A media graduation pathway is also being considered.

In other business:

• The board approved a request from Curriculum Director Cathy Ames to accept a Title IV grant for $16,927.55.

• The board approved Cloverdale’s tentative calendar for the 2023-24 school year. Supt. Greg Linton noted that the calendar coordinates with the other county school districts and Area 30 Career Center. He added that two make-up snow days were included.

• The board approved $5,000 stipends for Cloverdale High School special education teachers Dana Lorenze and Dorothy Hoffmann. Linton said this was to compensate them for increasing their caseloads monitoring students’ individualized educational plans (IEPs).

“We don’t plan for this to be long-term, hopefully, but at least it’ll get us through this school year,” Linton said in noting that another special education teacher will be sought, as the high school has been short one this year.

• The board approved appointing Dakota Lanham to the Putnam County Public Library’s board of trustees. Lanham will replace Tiffany Shields, who resigned from the board in July.

The board also recognized Cloverdale Schools’ Students of the Month in Bentley Petrey (Cloverdale Elementary School), Oliver Gilliam (Cloverdale Middle School) and Audrey Fagg (Cloverdale High School).

The board also recognized Teachers of the Month Kelly Monnett (Cloverdale Elementary School), Mark Wheeler (Cloverdale Middle School) and Hoffman. Wheeler was not present at the meeting.

The board also approved the following personnel report:

• New hires: Susanna Hollingsworth - bus driver; Tara Broyles - medical paraprofessional; Debbra Morgan - part-time cafeteria worker; Darlene Bousman - executive secretary position; Darla Thomas - covering maternity leave for Deputy Treasurer Sara Zaring; and Steve Schabel - eighth-grade boys’ basketball coach; and

• Leave of absence: Chelsey Meluch - CHS biology teacher.

Board members Arvel Hinton and Mike Rightmyer were absent, while Zaring covered for Executive Secretary Rebecca Willis.

The next regular meeting of the Cloverdale School Board is set for Monday, Dec. 12 at 7 p.m. in the Arthur L. Johnson Administration Office near Cloverdale High School.