Auburn’s EAGLES program to be featured on national television show

Auburn University’s EAGLES program—a comprehensive transition program, or CTP, for students with intellectual disabilities—will be featured on regional and national broadcasts of Simply Southern TV beginning this weekend.

The show will premiere locally on WLTZ-TV 38 in Columbus, Georgia, at 5 p.m. CT on Saturday, March 5, with a rebroadcast scheduled for the national cable network RFD-TV at 3 p.m. on Wednesday, March 9. Simply Southern TV is a 30-minute show that celebrates Alabama’s farmers, gardeners, makers, rural communities and one-of-a-kind destinations. Episodes are also available on the show’s website at www.SimplySouthernTV.net.

Administered by the College of Education, the EAGLES program has expanded to include 20 students and gives students with intellectual disabilities opportunities for post-secondary education. Its acronym stands for Education to Accomplish Growth in Life Experiences for Success, and the program allows students to engage in a two or four-year campus experience to help students achieve their employment and independent living goals upon successful completion of the program.

“The EAGLES program is the perfect example of creating a culture of inclusion,” said Simply Southern TV co-host Mary Wilson. “Right now, there are 20 students enrolled, and without the EAGLES program, they might not have gotten to experience life on a college campus. This is all about providing students age 18 to 26 who have intellectual disabilities with access to ways to continue their education through academics, social skills, daily living skills, health and wellness and career opportunities.”

Viewers also can catch the show on the following channels:

• WPMI-TV 15 in Mobile on Sundays at 6 a.m. CT
• WBMA-TV 33/40 in Birmingham on Sundays at 6:30 a.m. CT
• WAFF-TV 48 in Huntsville on Sundays at 9 a.m. CT
• WAKA-TV 8 in Montgomery on Sundays at 10:30 a.m. CT
• WTVY-TV 4 in Dothan on Sundays at 10:30 a.m. CT
• RFD-TV cable network on Wednesdays at 3 p.m. CT
  
  

Simply Southern TV is presented by the Alabama Farmers Federation, but it’s made possible through sponsorships. Those include major sponsor Alabama Farmers Cooperative; supporting sponsor Alfa Insurance; sustaining sponsors Alabama Catfish Producers, Alabama Soybean Producers; and Alabama Wheat & Feed Grain Producers; and contributing sponsors Alabama Cooperative Extension System, Alabama Farm Credit, Alabama Farmers Agriculture Foundation and Sweet Grown Alabama.