John Merrow

For the American theater architect (1874–1927), seeJohn William Merrow.

John Merrow
Born	John G. G. Merrow II (1941-06-14)June 14, 1941 Summit, New Jersey,US
Education	AB,Dartmouth College,1964 MA,Indiana University Bloomington,1968 EdD,Harvard Graduate School of Education,1973
Occupation(s)	Journalist,news anchor,author
Notable credit	The NewsHour with Jim Lehrer
Spouse	Joan Lonergan()

John G. Merrow II(born June 14, 1941) is an American broadcast journalist who reported on education issues s tarting in the 1970s. He was the education correspondent for the PBS NewsHour program. These features - often under the umbrella heading of "The Merrow Report" - were a staple of education reporting on public broadcasting. Additionally, he was the executive producer, host and president of Learning Matters, Inc., a not-for-profit corporation that creates television, radio and online segments anddocumentaries,focusing primarily on education.

Life

Merrow earned an A.B. from Dartmouth College in 1964,and received an M.A. degree in American Studies from Indiana University Bloomington in 1968.In 1973, Merrow graduated from the Harvard Graduate School of Education, with a doctorate in Education and Social Policy.He began his career as an education reporter in 1974, whenNational Public Radiobegan airing his first investigative reports on the nation's schools. Merrow quickly developed a devoted following with his program "Options In Education," which aired for eight years.The weekly radio broadcast received the prestigiousGeorge Polk Awardin 1981.

Merrow later produced a seven-part television series forPBSalong the same lines, entitled "Your Children, Our Children." This program received an Emmy nomination in 1984. He also served as education correspondent for theMacNeil/LehrerNewshourfor five years (1985–1990), and briefly occupied a similar position withThe Learning Channelbefore returning to the PBS program in 1993.

In 1995, Merrow established Learning Matters, which produced his NewsHour reports, along with other media content.In 1998, he created Listen Up! - a project which trains disadvantaged youth and their teachers in broadcast production skills and techniques.He received theGeorge Foster Peabody Awardin 2001 for "School Sleuth: The Case of an Excellent School,"and won a second Peabody Award for Listen Up's production, "Beyond Borders," in 2006.In 2005 and 2007, Learning Matters' programming received Emmy nominations. In 2012, Merrow was honored with the prestigiousHarold W. McGraw, Jr. Prize in Education.Merrow retired in 2015 and Learning Matters was acquired byEducation Week.

Merrow is also a published book author: he wrote "Choosing Excellence" (2001),"Below C Level" (2010), and "The Influence of Teachers" (2011).He also co-edited, with Richard Hersh, "Declining by Degrees" (2005).

Works

• Choosing ExcellenceLanham, Md.: Scarecrow Press, 2001,ISBN9781578860142,OCLC45207840
• Below C Level(2010)
• The Influence of Teachers(2011).
• John Merrow, Richard Hersh, (eds)Declining by DegreesPBS Home Video, (2005)OCLC61207761

“Addicted to Reform: A 12-Step Program to Rescue Public Education” (The New Press, 2017)

External links

• Learning Matters
• Listen Up! Youth Media Network
• Online NewsHour: Education Archive