Natalie Pillsbury has been named president and CEO of PBS Western Reserve in Kent, Ohio.
Pillsbury joins the station March 20. She succeeds David Rotterman, who served as CEO for three weeks before dying suddenly in August. Rotterman was appointed after the retirement of Trina Cutter, who had served the organization for 21 years.
Pillsbury currently works as director of strategic content initiatives for Ideastream Public Media in Cleveland. She began in public media in 2015 for WKSU in Kent, serving in a senior leadership role managing major gifts, grant fundraising programs and strategic planning.
Before working in public media, Pillsbury worked as associate director of donor engagement and leadership giving at the University of Chicago and as annual giving officer at Women Employed in the greater Chicago area.
“I am thrilled and honored to accept the president and CEO position at PBS Western Reserve,” Pillsbury said in a press release Friday. “I am energized by the potential for the station to grow its service and presence in our region, and I aim to build upon its excellent reputation to realize those opportunities in partnership with the staff and board.”
PBS Western Reserve is the brand name for Northeastern Educational Television of Ohio Inc., which comprises television stations WNEO and WEAO.
“The NETO board of directors is excited about Natalie serving as the next president and CEO,” said Board Chairwoman Romona Davis. “Her strategic planning experience and skills will be valuable in guiding the organization through the ever-changing public media landscape. … We believe the future for the organization is bright.”