Get to Know the Channing Bete Company
Located in South Deerfield, Massachusetts, the Channing Bete Company began
in 1936 as an advertising agency founded by Channing L. Bete Sr., who incorporated
the business in 1946. Mr. Bete's own earliest writings focused on issues such
as world peace and how to make the world a better place. These issues are reflected
in the Company's mission today, "to strengthen individuals, families, and communities
by reinforcing healthy behaviors and commitment to positive social values."
Over the years, the Channing Bete Company developed its trademarked publication
style called Scriptography® --
a blend of reader-friendly text and graphics designed to convey key points
quickly and help readers retain and act upon the information they learned.
And while the familiar Scriptographic® booklet remains a mainstay of communication
in a variety of venues, the company continues to develop and expand its range
of styles and formats in response to changing audience needs and issues.
Today, the Channing Bete Company offers an array of nationally acclaimed products
and programs focusing on areas such as smoking prevention and cessation, substance
abuse and violence prevention, and school success. In addition, the company
provides promotion, publishing, and distribution services to corporate
partners, including the American Heart Association and Prevent Child Abuse
America.
 Our History
It all started in 1936, when Channing L. Bete Sr. began the company as an
advertising agency, eventually incorporating his business in 1946.
Convinced that postwar America needed new ways to understand the dramatically altered global landscape, he began writing short booklets on subjects that were highly compelling to Americans at that time.
A strong believer in the importance of giving individuals access to life-enhancing,
empowering information regardless of education or social class, he created
the universal word-and-graphics format known as Scriptography.
In 1954, Chan converted his advertising agency into a publishing company, to more effectively bring his ideas to the public. A true visionary, he spent the rest of his life predicting and writing about ways to make the world a better place... and in the process, changed the way people think.
In 1967, his son, Joe, took his father's vision and applied it not only to
the growing line of educational materials published by the company but also
to the organization itself. Proving that enlightened management and corporate
growth are not mutually exclusive, Joe and his team transformed a small publishing
company into a multi-million-dollar corporation. At the same time, he implemented
forward-thinking employee benefits such as employee stock ownership, workplace
health initiatives, parental leave/child-care options, family care leave, flextime,
and profit sharing.
 Today,
under the third-generation leadership of Joe's son Mike, the company remains
employee owned, and continues to grow and prosper. In addition to publishing
and distributing educational resources for schools, public health organizations,
and private and government agencies, the company has expanded its horizons
to include a growing array of positive youth development programs.
With the January 2000 acquisition of Developmental Research and Programs,
Inc. (DRP) -- a social development research organization -- the company now
delivers proven-effective science-based prevention programs, created to allow
people to lead healthier, more successful lives.
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