Last modified: Monday, January 9, 2012
Big Ten Network to air two IU-connected 'Impact the World' segments
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Jan. 9, 2012
INDIANAPOLIS and BLOOMINGTON, Ind. -- Horse-assisted activities for children with special needs and veterans, and a ground-breaking HIV/AIDS control program in Kenya: These creative and powerful programs at Indiana University will be highlighted this month in "Impact the World," a new Big Ten Network series debuting Tuesday, Jan. 10.
Hosted by actor Dennis Haysbert, the series will feature breakthroughs and inspiring initiatives from all 12 schools in the Big Ten Conference.
"The two programs from IU, one in the American heartland and the other in Kenya, exemplify a heartfelt tradition at Indiana University of helping and healing our neighbors, as well as people in need around the world," said Valerie Peña, associate vice president of public affairs and government relations at IU. "We're proud of our cutting-edge research and how our faculty and staff use it to change people's lives."
Below is a description of the programs in the two segments, one involving the Horseshoes of Hope and Horses for Heroes programs affiliated with the Department of Recreation, Park and Tourism Studies in IU's School of Health, Physical Education and Recreation, and the other featuring AMPATH, a partnership involving the IU School of Medicine, the Moi University School of Medicine and Moi Teaching and Referral Hospital in Eldoret, Kenya. The air dates and times are subject to change:
• 9:30 p.m. Jan. 10, following the University of Iowa v. Michigan State University basketball game: Viewers will see how horses are used at Bradford Woods, IU's 2,500-acre outdoor recreational and leadership development facility, to help children with such conditions as autism, Down syndrome and cerebral palsy through Horseshoes of Hope. With its specially trained horses, Horseshoes of Hope and Horses for Heroes help improve self-control, encourage teamwork and bolster confidence and self-esteem for children and veterans alike.
The segment discusses how the therapy helps a teen with autism improve her communication skills and an Iraq war veteran deal with post-traumatic stress disorder. The program will be repeated at 4 p.m. Jan. 12 following Penn State v. University of Nebraska men's basketball, at 10:30 p.m. Jan. 12, following the University of Minnesota v. IU match, and at 11 a.m. Jan. 15.
• 10:30 p.m. Jan. 17, following the Purdue University v. University of Iowa basketball game: Viewers will learn about one of the largest, most comprehensive and innovative HIV/AIDS control programs in the world, treating hundreds of thousands of HIV-positive patients in western Kenya while providing students an opportunity to spend time in the developing world, reinforcing the altruistic spirit of medicine. The Academic Model Providing Access to Healthcare, or AMPATH, has been featured in the Wall Street Journal, National Public Radio, the BBC and other international media and has been nominated multiple times for the Nobel Peace Prize.
AMPATH is a consortium of North American academic health centers led by Indiana University and including schools such as Duke, Brown, Purdue and Toronto working in partnership with Moi University School of Medicine and Moi Teaching and Referral Hospital in Eldoret, Kenya. This partnership, formed in 1989, has evolved to include care to individuals with cancer and diabetes, life-saving services to mothers and babies, ground-breaking health research, and educational opportunities for students and health care providers on both continents.
Faculty and medical students share amazing stories of conquering unbelievable odds to help save lives in these impoverished communities. The program will be repeated at 10 p.m. Jan. 19 following Purdue v. IU women's basketball, at 10 p.m. Jan. 20 following Purdue v. University of Wisconsin wrestling and at 11 a.m. Jan. 22.
"Impact the World" is the first Big Ten Network collaborative campus program series produced in conjunction with the Big Ten Conference and its 12 universities. Since the network launched in 2007, BTN has aired programs produced from each Big Ten university under the University Showcase heading. BTN is co-producing the series with Chicago-based TeamWorks Media.
For more details, visit btn.com/tag/impact-the-world. To view a trailer for the series, visit bit.ly/ybI0Ji. To find the Big Ten Network channels, visit btn.com/about/btn-channelfinder.
For more information about Horseshoes of Hope at Bradford Woods, contact Shay Dawson at 765-342-2915 or sldawson@indiana.edu. For more information about AMPATH, contact Megan Miller at 317-630-6882 or mejmille@iupui.edu. For more information about BTN, contact Elizabeth Conlisk at 312-665-0726 or Elizabeth.Conlisk@btn.com.
