Ruby Goyal Aggarwal was hired as CFO, SVP and treasurer for WETA in Washington, D.C.
Aggarwal’s first day is Feb. 1. As part of her duties, she will oversee the finance, accounting, and building and facilities operations for WETA and its subsidiary NewsHour Productions.
Aggarwal most recently worked as director and interim CFO for O’Connor Consulting Services, which works with nonprofits. She also ran her own consulting firm and worked as director of accounting for PBS and director of finance for Fox Television Stations.
Sandhya Dirks joined NPR as a journalist for the National Desk Race and Identity team.
Dirks most recently worked as a race and equity reporter for KQED in San Francisco. She worked on podcasts including Truth Be Told and created and co-hosted the podcast American Suburb. She was also a reporter and producer for On Our Watch, a podcast about policing co-produced by NPR and KQED.
Before KQED, Dirks was a reporter for KALW in San Francisco, KPBS in San Diego and Iowa Public Radio.
Also, Tanya Ballard Brown, a senior editor for NPR, is leaving the organization.
Ballard Brown will become executive editor for Government Executive. Ballard Brown joined NPR in 2008 after working for GovExec in the early 2000s. She has also been an editor and writer for The Washington Post and a fellow with the Nieman Foundation for Journalism at Harvard University.
Rebecca Lavoie was promoted to director of on-demand audio for New Hampshire Public Radio.
Lavoie joined the station in 2010 as senior producer of Word of Mouth. She has also worked as digital director and director of audience and engagement.
Outside of NHPR, Lavoie is the creator and host of Crime Writers On…, a podcast that reviews true crime podcasts, television and other media. She also hosts the Netflix podcast You Can’t Make This Up, one of several shows produced by her company, Partners in Crime Media. Lavoie is also an author of true crime books.
Marketing
Claribel Rivas was hired as a social media manager for PBS Digital Studios. Rivas most recently worked for WETA in Washington, D.C., as senior social media manager and as a fellow for Washington Week.
Education
Lisa Bracken was hired as director of education for KERA in Dallas. She most recently worked as senior executive director for Reading Partners. She has also been director of development and admission for Lakehill Preparatory School and manager of early childhood content and television for KERA.
Content
Alex Degman will join WBEZ in Chicago as a statehouse reporter next month. Degman most recently worked as an anchor for KMOX in St. Louis, a commercial station. He has also been a news director for WTAX in Springfield, Ill., and anchor for Tri States Public Radio in Macomb, Ill.
Rickey Bevington left her position as senior anchor and correspondent for Georgia Public Broadcasting to become president of the World Affairs Council of Atlanta and executive-in-residence at Georgia State University’s J. Mack Robinson College of Business. Bevington joined the station in 2006 and has been a host, EP and news director.
Ryan Benk will become a senior producer and editor for WAMU in Washington, D.C. He will work on the station’s Morning Edition and All Things Considered teams as well as NPR One and Consider This. Benk most recently worked as a producer for NPR’s Morning Edition. He has also been a reporter and host for WJCT in Jacksonville, Fla., and a researcher and reporter for WFSU in Tallahassee, Fla.
Natasha Williams was hired as a multimedia reporter for WOSU Public Media in Columbus, Ohio. Williams most recently worked as a reporter for WLKY, a commercial station in Louisville, Ky. She has also held anchor and reporting positions for WHIO in Dayton, Ohio, and Louisiana Public Broadcasting.
Bob Kelley became host of Morning Jazz for WUCF in Orlando, Fla. Kelley, who also hosts Saturday Jazz for the station, succeeds Marc Taylor, who left the station this year. Kelley joined WUCF in 2015. He has also been a jazz host for commercial stations in Orlando.
George Joseph, a law enforcement reporter for WNYC/Gothamist in New York City, was hired as a reporter for The City, a nonprofit newsroom. Joseph joined New York Public Radio in 2019.
Lance Dixon is leaving his position as digital editor for WLRN in Miami to become an audience engagement producer for The 19th, a nonprofit newsroom. Dixon joined the station last year.
Send news of “comings and goings” to [email protected]