Georgia Public Broadcasting tells lawmakers its education resources reach every county; highlights funding, emergency role and statewide usage

Georgia Public Broadcasting executives told a legislative committee that GPB’s free K–12 materials are used in every county in Georgia, that the network relies on a mix of state funds and donations, and that its broadcast infrastructure is a key part of the state’s emergency alert capabilities.

“State funds make up 34% of GPB’s overall revenue,” Elizabeth LaPrade, GPB’s chief financial officer, told the committee, describing the remainder as a mix of individual giving and sponsorships, federal Corporation for Public Broadcasting funds, client services and other revenue. LaPrade said about 36% of GPB’s revenue comes from individual giving and sponsorship, 12% from indirect federal funds via the Corporation for Public Broadcasting, 10% from client services and the remainder from other sources.

The presentation focused on three areas: education services, broadcast and technology infrastructure, and community engagement. Laura Evans, GPB’s vice president for education, said GPB offers a Georgia Studies collection that drew about 1,400,000 clicks in the last school year and that GPB recorded about 14.7 million clicks on its educational content across platforms last school year. Evans said GPB’s education content is available at no cost to teachers, students and families and is aligned with Georgia Department of Education standards.

“Eve…