CEO of WITF parent company resigns
The CEO of the parent organization of WITF in Harrisburg, Pa., resigned last week.
Ron Hetrick resigned Oct. 13 from his role at Pennon, which also includes the LNP newspaper and its website LancasterOnline. The newspaper and website were gifted to joint licensee WITF in 2023.
Hetrick shared his departure in an email to staff that was quoted in a story by WITF. Hetrick said he had considered the move for “some time” and that it was time for someone new to “invigorate the organization around its public media, education and journalism mission.”
Pennon Board Chair Leigh Horner confirmed the resignation in an email to Current.
“Ron Hetrick has been a tremendous leader for WITF and Pennon for 25 years,” Horner said.
Horner will take on “direct oversight” until an interim leader is named, she said.
“The board is working expeditiously to identify an interim president,” Horner said. “The priority is to find someone who not only has a proven track record of managing complex organizations but is skilled in effectively managing and motivating teams.”
The board is also establishing a committee for a national search for the next CEO, Horner said.
“We’re focused on creating a smooth executive transition and we will be looking at how to best serve our local communities with high-quality offerings that are sustainable for our organization,” Horner said.
Hetrick started at WITF in 2000 as director of technology before becoming SVP of finance and administration in 2009. He took the helm in 2019.
During his tenure, WITF was one of three stations to create the Information Equity Initiative in 2021 to help improve access to digital learning materials.
Last year, WITF and LNP eliminated 24 positions. The organizations said at the time that their merger created opportunities “to fill critical gaps in access to news, information, engagement and education, in support of our mission to advance lifelong learning in our community.”
“To achieve this, we need to invest in new areas, sunset certain operations and reorganize resources to create innovative and integrated products and services across the organization,” they said.
In February, journalists at WITF and LNP voted to unionize.
