Ondine Landa Abramson joined WBGO in Newark, N.J., as the station’s first CDO.
Landa Abramson most recently worked as an independent consultant. She was also executive director for the South Orange Performing Arts Center. She started her career as a contract manager and associate agent for Etta James’ management agency and was also an artist liaison for SF Jazz, a music venue.
“I’ve had the good fortune to work with and around jazz for nearly 30 years now,” said Landa Abramson in a news release. “I am deeply passionate about this unique American art form so working for an institution whose mission is to present, preserve and curate this music and its cultural legacy feels like a rare and wonderful opportunity.”
Sarah Dobson was hired as VP of development for WJCT Public Media in Jacksonville, Fla.
Dobson previously worked as senior director of development for Feeding Northeast Florida. She was also director of annual giving for Harvard Medical School and an independent consultant for the Jacksonville Symphony, Big Brothers Big Sisters of Northeast Florida, and the University of North Florida.
“As a fundraising professional, I feel fortunate to serve local nonprofits and help fulfill their missions in our community,” said Dobson in a news release. “I have seen the pivotal role WJCT Public Media plays in keeping our community informed, engaged and inspired. I’m eager to contribute to WJCT Public Media’s continued growth through fundraising, expanding our reach and connecting members of the community all across Northeast Florida.”
Development
Becky Levy left her position as director of strategic program and process management for the Contributor Development Partnership to become membership director for the Museum of Science in Boston. Levy joined CDP in 2019 after working in the membership department of GBH for nearly a decade.
Education
Anna Ford joined Southern Oregon PBS as education manager and youth media producer. Ford most recently worked as a field organizer for the League of Conservation Voters. She was also a community organizer for Unite Oregon and an associate producer for Biz Kids, a financial literacy program for children.
Content
Christopher Ayers stepped up from news editor to news director for WESA in Pittsburgh. Ayers joined the station in 2016 as a Morning Edition producer and was also an editor and anchor for All Things Considered. Before that he worked as a reporter and anchor for WFYI in Indianapolis and WSKG in Binghamton, N.Y.
Henry Epp announced on Twitter that he was hired as a reporter for Marketplace. Epp most recently worked as a business reporter for Vermont Public. He joined the station in 2017 as a reporter and host for All Things Considered. Before that he worked as a reporter and host for New England Public Media in Amherst, Mass.
The Current in St. Paul, Minn., named Jessica Paxton as a weekday afternoon host. She starts the new job April 10. Paxton joined the station last year as a part-time host and has also worked as host of Teenage Kicks, a weekly program from The Current that features music from 1970s punk to ’90s grunge. Paxton previously worked as programming manager and talent buyer for the Parkway Theater in Minneapolis and was also a host for KYMN in Northfield, Minn.
Susan Davis joined KQED in San Francisco as a senior producer for the daily public affairs program Forum. She most recently worked as senior producer for MPR News with Angela Davis, produced by Minnesota Public Radio. She has also been a senior supervising producer for WUNC in Chapel Hill, N.C., and a producer for NPR.
Murphy Woodhouse became a reporter for the Mountain West News Bureau, a collaboration among stations in Colorado, Idaho, Montana, Nevada, New Mexico and Wyoming. Woodhouse will be based at Boise State Public Radio in Idaho. He previously worked as senior field correspondent for KJZZ in Phoenix. He was also a reporter for the Arizona Daily Star and Nogales International. “Murphy is a trusted, experienced reporter. He’ll strengthen the bureau’s coverage of important regional issues, including tribal affairs and the impact of climate change,” said Dave Rosenthal, managing editor for the bureau, in a news release.
Megan Feighery was appointed host of HumaNature, a podcast produced by Wyoming Public Radio that covers how humans interact and connect with nature. The podcast had been on hiatus since 2021 when the previous host, Erin Jones, left the program to become an editor and producer for Colorado Public Radio. Feighery most recently worked as a All Things Considered host for South Dakota Public Broadcasting. She has also been an intern producer for Wyoming Public Radio and a part-time reporter for the station.
Shalina Chatlani was hired as a local investigative fellow for the New York Times and will cover health-care issues in Mississippi for a year. After that, she said on Twitter, she will return to work for the Gulf States Newsroom, a regional collaboration among NPR and member stations in Alabama, Louisiana and Mississippi. Chatlani joined the newsroom as a health-care reporter in 2020 and was based at WWNO in New Orleans. She previously worked as a science and technology reporter for KPBS in San Diego.
Margo Vansynghel announced on Twitter that she left her position as an arts and culture reporter for Crosscut, a news site owned by Cascade Public Media in Seattle, to become an arts economy reporter for the Seattle Times. She joined Crosscut in 2019 after working as a freelance journalist.
Fellowships
Cherri Gregg, an afternoon host and news anchor for WHYY in Philadelphia, will participate in the Philadelphia Media Founders Exchange, a program co-led by the Lenfest Institute for Journalism, the Knight-Lenfest Local News Transformation Fund and the Independence Public Media Foundation. The program gives coaching and a $15,000 grant to each participant, all media entrepreneurs of color, to help grow their businesses. In addition to working for WHYY since 2021, Gregg is founder of Create Genius Media, a company that is “dedicated to amplifying the stories of Black and brown people,” according to a news release.
Governance
Terence Samuel, VP and executive editor for NPR, was appointed vice chair for the National Press Foundation’s board of directors. He joined the board in 2021. “As journalists, our role in the furtherance and preservation of democracy is under constant threat. The way I think we meet that challenge is with ever-greater journalism and even greater journalists,” Samuel said in a news release. “NPF has a critical role to play in creating the next generation of journalists and I am honored and eager to be part of that effort.”
Melissa Roy, a managing partner for the public relations firm Lambert Global, was elected board chair for Detroit Public Television. Roy, who joined the board in 2015, succeeds Timothy Nicholson, COO at PVS Chemicals Inc., who served for 12 years as a board member and will stay on as an emeritus trustee.
Send news of “comings and goings” to [email protected]