John Legend to Host TED TALKS EDUCATION Special on PBS, 5/7

TED, the non-profit devoted to Ideas Worth Spreading, and WNET, in partnership with PBS and the Corporation for Public Broadcasting (CPB), will co-produce TED's first-ever original television special this spring, featuring content created and curated exclusively for the show. The "TED Talks Education" one-hour program will feature a mix of teachers and education advocates delivering short, high-impact talks on the theme of teaching and learning. The special will be taped before a live audience on April 4, 2013 in the BAM Harvey Lichtenstein Theater of New York's Brooklyn Academy of Music, and will air nationally on PBS on Tuesday, May 7, 2013 at 10:00 p.m. EST. "TED Talks Education" is part of American Graduate: Let's Make It Happen, a nationwide public media initiative made possible by CPB to help communities identify and implement solutions to the high school dropout crisis.

"Re-imagining education is the key to a more hopeful future," said TED and "TED Talks Education" curator Chris Anderson. "What better time to gather some of the country's most respected and forward-thinking education advocates, and make this topic the theme of TED's first-ever original television broadcast special."

"America's local public media stations share a deep commitment to educational achievement for all students. We know that completing high school is a significant step with lifelong impact for the student, his family and the community," said Patricia Harrison, president and CEO of CPB. "'TED Talks Education' brings together thought leaders who know how we can engage, teach and inspire a generation born digital and identify the paths to their school success."

Musical performer and education advocate John Legend has been tapped to host "TED Talks Education," as well as deliver a TED Talk as part of the program. Other speakers include:

Pearl Arredondo, Educator and advocate
Geoffrey Canada, Educator, social advocate and CEO of Harlem Children's Zone
Dr. Angela Lee Duckworth, Assistant Professor, Department of Psychology, University of Pennsylvania.
Bill Gates, Technologist and philanthropist
Malcolm London, Poet, teacher and advocate
Ramsey Musallam, Educator and advocate
Rita F. Pierson, Ed.D, Education and anti-poverty advocate
Sir Ken Robinson, Social activist, educator and most-watched TED Talk speaker on TED.com

The program will be updated with additional speakers before it is taped.

The program will also feature three short films profiling high school students with remarkable stories. The documentaries will be produced by two-time Emmy-winning filmmaker Tony Gerber and Pulitzer Prize-winning playwright and MacArthur Genius Award-recipient Lynn Nottage.

"TED Talks Education" is curated by TED's Chris Anderson and is produced by TED's Juliet Blake and WNET's Julie Anderson.

For more information about the special, visit: pbs.org/wnet/ted-talks-education.