Special Events
Our community events connect you directly with the people, places, stories that bring the Vermont experience to life. Check back often as we’re always adding new events to the list.
Interested in Volunteering?
We’re always looking for volunteers to lend a hand, either at community events around the state or here at the station! Interested? Contact Amy Zielinski: azielinski@vermontpbs.org | (802) 540-6822. Be sure to also sign up for our newsletter.
For official Vermont PBS meetings, such as Board of Directors, please visit vermontpbs.org/meetings
Upcoming
More coming soon! Sign up for our newsletter in the mean time to stay connected and learn of future events.
Past Recordings
Muhammad Ali
Recorded live on September 14, 2021 - In advance of the Ken Burns documentary, Muhammad Ali, we were joined by producer Sarah Burns and biographer Jonathan Eig for a fascinating conversation about the life of Muhammad Ali. Hosted Vermont Public Radio's Mitch Wertlieb.
The 8-hour Muhammad Ali documentary begins Sunday, September 19th at 8PM on Vermont PBS. Watch live or stream: video.vermontpbs.org/show/muhammad-ali
Asian Americans: The Vermont Experience
Recorded live June 17, 2021 - Following a screening of Breaking Through, episode five in the Asian Americans film series from PBS, we hosted a live discussion with Asian Americans living in Vermont.
- Puja Gupta Senning, (she/her) is a 1.5 generation, Indian American, psychotherapist, womyn, mother, and Vermonter.
- Courtney 'Coco' Casper (she/they) is a queer cisgender first-generation Indian-American social worker, changemaker, and training psychotherapist.
- Paul Suk-Hyun Yoon (he/him/his) is a second-generation Korean American diversity, equity, and inclusion higher education administrator, consultant, and doctoral candidate.
Presented by Vermont PBS, VPR and VT APIDA for Black Lives.
List of resources provided by the panelists:
- Vermont Releaf Collective
- Unlikely Riders
- Loving Day Vermont
- GoFundMe: Uplift BIPOC Healing (organized by Coco)
- VT APIDA for Black Lives
- Strangers From a Different Shore
- The Making of Asian America
- The City of Burlington’s Juneteenth Celebration
Watch Recording on YouTube| Watch the entire Asian American series
Making Joy with Mister Chris:
Screening + Singalong
Recorded May 17, 2021 - Join us for a special family-friendly virtual event with Mister Chris! Get ready to sing, dance and see a new short video from Mister Chris and Friends. Bring your favorite song requests, questions, and ideas for a brand-new song to write with Mister Chris. This free event is open to everyone.
Made Here Film Festival Winners
Recorded live May 16, 2021 - Watch the award-winning films and meet the filmmakers from the 2021 Made Here Film Festival. The Made Here Film Festival is New England’s only competitive festival devoted entirely to films made by filmmakers from Vermont, New Hampshire, Maine, Massachusetts, Northern New York and Quebec. Produced by Vermont International Film Festival (VTIFF), in partnership with Vermont PBS and co-sponsored by Maine PBS.
An Evening with Dr. Francois Clemmons
Recorded May 6, 2021 - He made history as Officer Clemmons on the award-winning PBS television series Mister Rogers’ Neighborhood. Herald as the first African American actor to have a recurring role on a U.S. television program, his many accomplishments make him a Renaissance man of the highest order. He is a Grammy Award-winning opera singer, founder of the Harlem Spiritual Ensemble, emeritus artist in residence at Middlebury College, actor, composer, arranger, playwright, activist, mentor—and with the publication of Officer Clemmons: A Memoir, he now adds author to the list. Join host Jane Lindholm for an in-depth interview with Dr. Clemmons, who will read an excerpt from his memoir, answer audience questions, and conduct a virtual book signing.
Watch short video retrospective of Dr. Clemmons
Watch conversation between
Jane Lindholm and Francois Clemmons
Philly D.A.
Recorded April 19, 2021 - Philly D.A. is a groundbreaking documentary series embedded inside the long shot election and tumultuous first term of Larry Krasner, Philadelphia's unapologetic District Attorney, and his experiment to upend the criminal justice system from the inside out.
Following a sneak preview of the first episode we’ll host a discussion with the film’s director, Ted Passon; Jessica Brown, Esq, Supervising Attorney in the Chittenden County Public Defender Office; Skyler Nash, a public policy and research analyst for the City of Burlington Racial Equity, Inclusion and Belonging Committee. Hosted by Sarah George, Chittenden County State’s Attorney.
Antiques Roadshow Behind The Scenes
A Vermont PBS Virtual Event
Recorded live April 7, 2021 - Find out what makes Antiques Roadshow PBS’s most-watched ongoing series. Join us and meet Marsha Bemko, Executive Producer of the 18-time Emmy® Award-nominated program, and Kevin Zavian, a third-generation jeweler and Roadshow appraiser since 2000. You’ll also get a sneak preview of special new episodes airing this spring, and there will be plenty of time for Marsha and Kevin to take your questions! Hosted by Thomas Denenberg, Director of the Shelburne Museum.
Coded Bias
Film + Discussion
Recorded April 1, 2021 - When MIT Media Lab researcher Joy Buolamwini discovers that many facial recognition technologies fail more often on darker-skinned faces or the faces of women than others, she delves into an investigation of widespread bias in the technology that shapes our lives.
Following the film, VPR’s Henry Epp will take your questions for Joseph Near, assistant professor of computer science at the University of Vermont and Falko Schilling, Advocacy Director with ACLU of Vermont.
Mr. SOUL!
Recorded live Mar. 18, 2021 - Before Oprah and Arsenio, there was Mr. SOUL! From 1968 to 1973, the public television variety show SOUL! offered an unfiltered, uncompromising celebration of Black literature, poetry, music, and politics, capturing a critical moment in culture whose impact continues to resonate today. Following the film, join us for a live chat with these Vermont artists:
United We Ski
Recorded live February 3, 2021 - United We Ski examines the importance of small ski areas to the sport of skiing and New England Life. The film looks at the rise and decline of Vermont’s small ski areas and tells the story of three surviving: Hard'ack, Cochran's Ski Area, and Northeast Slopes. Produced by Elliot and Tyler Wilkinson-Ray of T-Bar Films.
Following the film, we’ll chat with Vermont ski legends John Egan and Barbara Ann Cochran. John is a US Ski & Snowboard Hall of Fame inductee, leadership coach, mountain guide, carpenter, father and husband, learn more about John at feeltheturn.com. Barbara is an Olympic gold medalist skier, US Ski & Snowboard Hall of Fame inductee and her family owns Cochran’s Ski Area.
Hosted by: Lisa Gosselin Lynn - Editor of Vermont Ski + Ride and Vermont Sports magazines
9to5: The Story of a Movement
Recorded live January 28, 2021 - Before the hit song or film, 9to5 was an inspiring movement for equality that encapsulated the spirit of both the women’s and labor movements of the 1970s. Join us for a special sneak preview of this new film from Independent Lens followed by a conversation with a co-founder of 9to5 Boston. Share your questions and ideas to continue the fight for equal rights for women and equality for all.
Hosted by: Rhoni Basden – Executive Director, Vermont Works for Women
Special Guests: Janet Selcer – Co-Founder, 9to5 Boston; Cary Brown – Executive Director, Vermont Commission on Women
From Lidia’s Kitchen To Yours - Live Q&A with Lidia Bastianich
Recorded Live on December 9, 2020: Vermont PBS hosted a live Q&A with chef, restaurateur, author and television personality Lidia Bastianich. We discussed holiday cooking and traditions, favorite recipes, her latest cookbook, Felida - recipes from her flagship restaurant in New York City - and took questions from the audience. Hosted by Melissa Pasanen, a food writer for Seven Days and an award-winning cookbook author and journalist who has covered food and agriculture in Vermont for 20 years. Sponsored by: Healthy Living Market & Café Stowe Kitchen Bath & Linens
How Not to Travel - But Plan Big! - During a Pandemic with Rick Steves
Recorded November 16, 2020 - Get inspired from your couch—and plan your next big adventure—in this live Q&A with travel expert Rick Steves.
Rick will share tips on how to travel without leaving your home and take your questions about planning future travel.
Hosted by Jen Rose Smith, an award-winning travel journalist based in Vermont's Green Mountains.
Bob Ross Paint-Along Virtual Event
Recorded Oct. 26, 2020 - Vermont PBS and BobRoss.com invite you to a joyful evening learning to paint in the style of the one and only Bob Ross with Faye Fletcher, CRI. Faye has been sharing the Joy of Painting since 2002, when she followed her dream and became a Certified Ross Instructor. Since then, she's had over 5,000 students in her classes. That's a lot of happy trees! RSVP for this FREE event, gather your supplies, and get ready to paint a majestic mountain lake.
Watch Recording of Event! | Download Supply List / Instructions
I Am From Here
Film + Discussion
Recorded Sep.23, 2020 - I Am From Here features BIPOC educators and students sharing their personal stories of living in and going to school in Vermont. It was produced by Bess O'Brien and commissioned by the Vermont NEA.
Following the film, filmmaker Bess O’Brien will chat with interviewees from the film to find out what changes have occurred in Vermont since the film was produced in 2018. We welcome you to join the conversation as well.
Women’s Stories: Short Film Showcase
Recorded live August 12, 2020 - A FREE sneak preview of Women's Stories: Short Film Showcase, part of our Made Here series. We will share five short films and then you will have an opportunity to ask questions of the filmmakers. Our event will be hosted by Dr. Van Dora Williams, an award-winning producer and writer and Associate Professor of Communications and Creative Media at Champlain College. The films we will share are as follows:
- MEET THE ARTIST: MELISSA GLICK by filmmaker Sara Pagiaro
- THE LONG HAUL by filmmaker Chloe White / Whalebone Films
- WINTER'S WATCH by filmmaker Brian Bolster
- ELEGIES - a collaboration between Eiko Otake, John Killacky, and Brian Stevenson
- IN THE FOOTSTEPS OF REGINA JONAS directed by Gail Reimer / Jewish Women's Archive
Watch video of the related stories at
video.vermontpbs.org/video/womens-stories-a-short-film-showcase-o09v2s/
The Vote: Sneak Preview and Discussion
Recorded July 1, 2020 - Women weren't given the vote, they took it. You're invited to a sneak preview of the new American Experience Film, The Vote. It chronicles the fight for the passage of the 19th amendment, giving women the right to vote. Hosted by: Elizabeth Hewitt | VTDigger. During the event we’ll speak with:
- Meg Mott, Constitutional Law Scholar | Formerly of Marlboro Collage
- Amel Ahmed, Associate Professor of Political Science | UMass Amherst
- John T. Grayson, Professor Emeritus of Religion | Mount Holyoke College
Sneak Preview of Lucy Worsley’s Royal Myths & Secrets
and Q&A with Lucy
Recorded June 19, 2020 - Lucy Worsley travels across Britain and Europe visiting the incredible locations where Royal history was made. In beautiful palaces and castles and on dramatic battlefields she investigates how Royal history is a mixture of facts, exaggeration, manipulation and mythology.
After the preview Paul Deslandes, Department of History Chair at the University of Vermont, talks with Lucy about her role as Chief Curator at Historic Royal Palaces, her research in British history and we'll take your questions as well!