StoryCorps builds relationships with organizations that work with us to bring groups of new participants to our New York City-based StoryBooths to record their stories.

These partnerships are valuable to us and help to ensure that a wide array of people have the opportunity to participate in StoryCorps. StoryCorps is committed to providing a positive experience to those served by our partner organizations, and we work to address any possible barriers to their participation in our project.

To learn more about New York City Outreach, including how your
organization can become a StoryCorps Community Partner, please contact us
at nyc_outreach@storycorps.net.

StoryCorps provides our Community Partners with:

• Broadcast quality recordings -

  All participants receive a CD copy of their interview to share with friends and family.

• Archiving of recordings at the Library of Congress -

  With participants’ permission, a copy of their recording is preserved at the American Folklife Center at the Library of Congress so that future generations can hear their story.

• Dedicated attention from StoryCorps Outreach Staff

  - Our Outreach Staff will work with you every step of the way to ensure that your community members have a strong understanding of the project and will find participating in StoryCorps as easy and rewarding as possible. Participants will always have direct access to StoryCorps staff to answer any questions they may have.

• Presentations by StoryCorps Outreach Staff

  - StoryCorps offers interactive and informative presentations and workshops about the project for your group of potential participants. Presentations can vary in length and content according to the Community Partner’s needs and are a fun and effective way to encourage people to share their stories. Presentations and workshops are typically scheduled several weeks in advance and require a minimum commitment of interviews.

• Special access to reservations

  - We will reserve interview times for your organization before reservations open to the general public. We aim to provide our Community Partners with flexibility in scheduling interview appointments. This policy also allows us to offer you back-to-back interview times.

• Waiving of credit card requirement

  - StoryCorps requires that the general public provide credit card information when making a reservation. This requirement is waived for our Community Partners.

• Signage and materials

  - When applicable, we will provide you with a StoryCorps sign to place in a central location to encourage people to sign up and/or to remind people of their appointment dates and times.

  We will provide appropriate informational materials.

• Reminders to participants the (business) day before all scheduled interviews -

  StoryCorps will send confirmation and reminder e-mails to participants.

  StoryCorps will call participants to remind them about their interviews, make sure they know where the StoryBooths are located, and answer any remaining questions they may have.

StoryCorps asks that our Community Partners provide:

• A point person at your organization

  - A successful partnership requires that a member of your staff act as the primary liaison between StoryCorps and the potential participants. Ideally, this person will have direct access to participants and assist us in scheduling appointments.

• Point person participation

  - This point person must do their own StoryCorps interview (with the partner of their choice) prior to recruiting their community members to participate in StoryCorps. This allows them to have a firsthand understanding of the project that they can share with their community members.

• Two weeks cancellation notice

  - Each StoryCorps interview costs us over $250. If participants need to cancel their appointments, they MUST cancel with at least two weeks notice so that we can open their interview time slots to the public. Although we waive the $25 same-day cancellation fee for our Community Partners, we ask that you respect this policy as part of our partnership. If participants do not show up for their interview appointments or cancel with less than two weeks notice, this will significantly impact the possibility of any future partnerships between StoryCorps and your organization.

• Reminder calls to participants the (business) day before all scheduled interviews

  - In an effort to avoid last minute cancellations or no-shows, we ask that your organization’s point person place reminder phone calls to participants (or have an in-person conversation with each participant) to ensure that they are still planning on coming to the StoryBooth. (These calls should be made in addition to the reminder calls that are made by StoryCorps staff.)