On one side: Talented, eager people. On another: cable industry companies devoted to diversity of individuals and ideas.

At the intersection: the Walter Kaitz Foundation, which serves as a catalyst for partnerships between the industry and organizations serving women and people of color. Two recently conceived partnerships illustrate the Foundation’s role in advancing diversity with creativity and impact.
 
Howard University School of Business
     Executive Leadership Honors Program 

Working with Howard University’s School of Business, the Foundation has forged alliances with a select group of sponsoring companies whose representatives provide mentoring, instruction and leadership development training for some of the best and brightest business students at the Washington, D.C. University.
 
Corporate sponsors enjoy a year-long presence on campus that enhances their recruitment efforts as they identify and work with top business students who study industry issues. Honors students, in turn, gain invaluable instruction and insight through case-study competitions, access to corporate mentors, participation in bi-monthly seminars, plus training in personal business and social skills. 

National Association of Television Program Executives
     Diversity Fellowship Program 

For television writers and producers, access is everything. Now, thanks to an inventive collaboration between the Foundation and the National Association of Television Program Executives, multi-ethnic professionals have a unique opportunity to learn and network with television production and studio executives. 

The NATPE Diversity Fellowship Program immerses participants in mentoring meetings and events involving television industry executives during NATPE’s annual LATV Festival, which brings together nearly 1,000 content creators, agents, studio, network and new media executives in Hollywood. 

In 2009, the Diversity Fellowship Program hosted 20 fellows, sponsored by:
 
• Fox Networks (6 fellows)
• MTV Networks (5 fellows)
• Comcast Networks (2 fellows)
• ESPN (2 fellows)
• Scripps Networks (2 fellows)
• Walter Kaitz Foundation (3 fellows)
• NATPE (1 fellow) 

The LATV Festival also featured top executives from cable networks Showtime, Sci Fi Channel, Fox Reality Channel and TV Guide Network. Other sponsors included Comcast, which presented $10,000 to each winner in ITVF’s four content categories to help aspiring producers get their productions started.