Educational Access Programs

In 2003, CTV introduced The WISE Channel - a separate local educational access channel dedicated to providing programming and support services to the various public educational institutions in the City of Knoxville and Knox County School Districts. During the first 6 years, Knox County Schools provided programming for the channel during the school year on weekdays between the hours of 7 am and 4 pm. CTV handled the programming throughout the rest of the week, on the weekends, and during the summer months.

In the summer of 2009, Knox County Schools became responsible for all of the programming on the channel and The WISE Channel became known as KCS-TV. Now, a Communications Specialist under the direction of The Knox County Schools Public Affairs Office handles the programming and manages the television operation on a daily basis. CTV however, is still responsible for oversight of the channel to ensure it continues to be used in compliance with its intended purpose.

The new vision for KCS-TV is to become a community outreach and family engagement tool for the Knox County Schools. Programming will provide access to both the policy & management functions of the school system and student activities that are not prominently featured in other local media. KCS-TV will provide a window to the activities of the Board of Education, the school system administration, and activities of interest to the greater community. It will also serve as a platform to help inform community members on education related topics of interest and import.