Jody Evans Named Next PRPD Prez

The Public Radio Program Directors Association (PRPD) has named Jody Evans its next President and Chief Executive Officer.  Evans is currently President and CEO of Western North Carolina Public Radio, Inc., which operates WCQS-FM in Asheville, NC. Evans joined WCQS in 2010 and led a highly successful turnaround effort. In 4 years, Evans eliminated the community licensee’s debt through a successful partnership with the organizations’ Board of Directors and significant community leaders. 

Prior to WCQS, Evans has been a national thought leader and successful programmer at Vermont Public Radio and KUT, Austin. Evans was a PRPD Board member from 2005-2009 and has long been a national thought leader in the areas of programming, development and effective public media organizations. She will step into the President and CEO position on January 1, 2015, succeeding Arthur Cohen who is retiring after eight years at the PRPD helm and a decades- long career in public broadcasting.

“We are excited that Jody will bring her passion for mission driven content, forward thinking ideas about our industry, and her inspirational leadership abilities to PRPD,” said Tamar Charney, chair of the PRPD board and Program Director at Michigan Radio. “She is driven by her love of our industry and her excitement about the strong future that is possible for public media. We were impressed by her track record in content creation, fundraising, fiscal management, and working with stakeholders. We look forward to working with her to ensure that PRPD remains a vital force in support of great content across all our platforms.”

PRPD is known for its annual Public Radio Programming Conference, and has evolved into a leadership organization that elevates the role of the program director in each station and throughout the system. Under Evans leadership, PRPD will lead the discussion about the future of content and develop the research needed to move forward in a strategic manner. Evans has expressed great enthusiasm about “the ability to be part of and possibly ignite a national dialogue about what we do and how we are going to move forward.”

Evans has a Bachelor of Arts degree in Mass Communications from Wright State University in Dayton, Ohio.

Cara Erickson, president of NewCoordinates, LLC partnered with PRPD's Board search committee to conduct this search.  NewCoordinates is a boutique retained executive search consultancy specialized in the media, digital media, and information industries.