Who We Are
Leaders from both the journalism and national service worlds have come together around this big vision. Report for America co-founders Charles Sennott and Steven Waldman are both nationally known, veteran journalists and social entrepreneurs dedicated to saving journalism.
Steven Waldman
Co-Founder & President
Charles Sennott
Co-Founder & GroundTruth CEO
Kim Kleman
National Director
Kevin Douglas Grant
VP Strategic Initiatives
Alison Bethel McKenzie
Director of Corps Excellence
Todd Franko
Director of Local Sustainability and Development
Norman Parish
Director of Recruitment
Rachel Rohr
Director of Training and Service
David Reed Fox
Director of Operations
Sam Kille
Marketing and Public Relations Manager
Ashley Garrett
Social Media Coordinator
Daniela Salgueiro
RFA Program Assistant
Advisory Board
Geneva Overholser
Senior Fellow, Democracy Fund, Former Director of Journalism, USC Annenberg
Phillip Martin
Senior Investigative Reporter, WGBH
Shirley Sagawa
CEO, Service Year Alliance, former Managing Dir., Corporation for National and Community Service
Jonathan Barzilay
COO, Public Broadcasting System
Rich Lowry
Editor, National Review
Cara Erickson
President, NewCoordinates Executive Search
Tracie Powell
Founder, AllDigitocracy
Deirdre Hughes
Charles Koch Institute
Ju-Don Marshall
Chief Content Officer, WFAE
Wendy Kopp
Founder, Teach for America and Teach for All
Mark Contreras
CEO, Connecticut Public Broadcasting
Jennifer Griffin
National Security Correspondent, Fox News
Liza Gross
Director of Practice Change, Solutions Journalism Network
Kylie Atwood
Reporter, CBS News
Tracy Jarrett
Producer, VICE News
Cathy Hogan
Former head of standards, PBS
Kerry Smith
Senior VP, ABC News
Bob Woodruff
Correspondent, ABC News Founder, Bob Woodruff Foundation
Bob Cohn
President, The Atlantic
Tom Rosenstiel
President, American Press Institute
Rosabeth Moss Kanter
Director of Harvard’s Advanced Leadership Initiative
Mizell Stewart
Senior Director, Gannett
Jim Brady
CEO, Spirited Media
Cyndi Stivers
Director, TED Residency
Stephanie Sy
Special Correspondent, PBS NewsHour
Bill Densmore
Founder, Clickshare
Charles McAllister
Analyst, Deloitte
Laura Castaneda
Professor, USC Annenberg School of Communication & Journalism
Jacqueline Thomas
Former Senior Editor, The Indianapolis Star; Former Editorial Page Editor, The Baltimore Sun
Click here to view GroundTruth’s Board of Directors
Zita Arocha
Director of Borderzine.com
Aman Batheja
Deputy Weekend Editor, Washington Bureau, New York Times
Mike Beaudet
Professor of the Practice, Northeastern University. Investigative Reporter, WCVB-TV
Christina Bellantoni
Director of Annenberg Media Center, Annenberg School of Communication and Journalism
Zuri Berry
Senior Managing Editor for WAMU in Washington, D.C.
Alison Bethel McKenzie
Executive Director, Society of Professional Journalists
Clara Bingham
Journalist, Author and Documentary Film Producer
Jennifer Borage
Digital Content Specialist, Mercer University. Formerly Senior Editor, Telegraph in Macon, Georgia.
Gina Boubion
Director of the Office of Career Development, Columbia University Graduate School of Journalism. Former instructor, NYU. Former assistant editor, San Jose Mercury News
Dr. Milbert O. Brown
Communication Faculty, Washington Adventist University
Rob Byers
Senior Local News Editor, Louisville Courier-Journal
Deborah Caldwell
Editor, The Foundry. Former Senior Editor at Time, Inc, Readers Digest, Beliefnet
Kelly Carr
Freelance Investigative Reporter, 2016 Boston Globe Spotlight Fellow, Director at Quinlan
Laura Castañeda
Professor of Professional Practice, Annenberg School of Communication and Journalism
Sarah Cohen
Knight Chair in Journalism, ASU Cronkite School of Journalism and Mass Communication. Former IRE president. Former data editor at The New York Times, The Washington Post
Eve Conant
Correspondent, National Geographic
Matthew Cooper
Contributing Editor, Washingtonian and Washington Monthly
Lisa Creamer
Digital News Editor, WBUR. Former 2018 NEFAC fellow. Former 2015 FASPE journalism fellow
Margarita Diaz
Associate Professor Journalism, Quinnipiac University
Anh Do
Metro Reporter, Los Angeles Times
Sharif Durhams
Senior Editor for News and Alerting, CNN Digital. President, National Lesbian and Gay Journalists Association
Susan Feeney
Partner, GMMB. Former Senior Editor, NPR’s Morning Edition and All Things Considered
Sara Ganim
Hearst Journalism Fellow, University of Florida’s Brechner Center. Formerly Washington Correspondent, CNN
Juan Pablo Garnham
Urban Affairs Reporter, Texas Tribune. Former Senior Producer, In the Thick.
Ted Gest
Washington Bureau Chief, TheCrimeReport.org. President, Criminal Justice Journalists
Jennifer Griffin
National Security Correspondent, Fox News
Justine Gubar
Journalist and Author. Executive Director, Sports Emmys
Katie Hawkins-Gaar
Journalism Consultant. Organizer, Poynter’s Leadership Academy for Women in Digital Media
Melinda Henneberger
Columnist & Editorial Board Member, The Kansas City Star
Robert Hernandez
Associate Professor of Professional Practice, USC Annenberg
Rod Hicks
Journalist on Call, Society of Professional Journalists
Deirdre Hughes
Director of Media Portfolio, The Charles Koch Institute
Mitra Kalita
Vice President for Programming, CNN Digital
Sheila Kaplan
Public Health Reporter, New York Times
Thomas Kapsidelis
Former Metro Editor, The Richmond Times-Dispatch. Author, After Virginia Tech: Guns, Safety, and Healing in the Era of Mass Shootings
Kimberly Kleman
Former Editor-in-Chief, Consumer Reports
Steve Koff
Freelance Journalist. Former Washington Bureau Chief, The Plain Dealer/Cleaveland.com
Rebeca Leber
Climate, Energy & Environment reporter, Mother Jones
Mira Lowe
Assistant Dean and Director of Innovation News Center, University of Florida
Pete Madden
Investigative Editor, ABC News
Ju-Don Marshall
Chief Content Officer, WFAE in North Carolina. Former Managing Editor, WashingtonPost.com
Brendan McCarthy
Deputy Projects Editor, The Boston Globe
Dan McGowan
Emmy-Award Winning Reporter, WPRI-TV in Rhode Island
Michele McLellan
Local News Researcher & Data Analyst, Michele’s List, INN Index
Seema Mehta
Political Writer, Los Angeles Times. Former Knight-Wallace fellow, University of Michigan
Graciela Mochkofsky
Director, Spanish-Language Program, Craig Newmark Graduate School of Journalism at CUNY
Jenni Monet
Award-Winning Journalist on Indigenous Rights and Injustice, Tribal Citizen of the Pueblo of Laguna
Stacy Morford
Senior Editor, InsideClimate News
Timothy Morgan
Director, Journalism Certificate Program, Wheaton College
Erica Morrison
Race, Identity and Changing Demographics Reporter, Oregon Public Broadcasting. Former Producer, NPR & WBUR’s Here & Now
Simon Moya-Smith
Writer, NBC News & CNN
Judy Muller
Professor Emeritus, USC Annenberg School of Journalism
Frank Mungeam
Knight Professor of Practice in TV News Innovation, ASU Cronkite School of Journalism and Mass Communication
Meredith Nierman
Director of Photography and Executive Digital Producer, WGBH
Sia Nyorkor
Region II Director, National Association of Black Journalists
Miguel Paz
Journalist & Professor, Nieman Berkman Fellow ’15, Harvard University
Lisa Pecot-Hébert
Director of Journalism, Annenberg School of Communication and Journalism
María Peña
Washington Correspondent, La Opinión/ Impremedia
Elise Pepple
General Manager, Marfa Public Radio
Tracie Powell
Founder, AllDigitocracy.org & Senior Fellow, Democracy Fund
Will Pry
Former Editor of the News Vertical, Dallas Morning News
Liza Ramrayka
Freelance Social Justice Journalist and Commissioning Editor
Fran Scarlett
Chief Knowledge Officer, Institute for Nonprofit News
Rachel Schallom
Deputy Editor for Digital, Fortune Magazine
Stacy Scholder
Emmy-award winning television news producer. Director of Annenberg TV News, USC Annenberg School for Communication and Journalism
Linda Shockley
Managing Director, Dow Jones News Fund
Jack Shuler
Director, Center for Narrative Journalism at Denison University
Geraldine Sealey
Managing Editor, The Marshall Project
Corrine Segal
Senior Editor, Literary Hub. Former Senior Multimedia Web Editor, PBS NewsHour Weekend
Melanie Sill
Veteran News Leader and Journalism Consultant based in North Carolina
Peter Slevin
Associate Professor, Medill School of Journalism
Alexandra Smith
Growth Director, WhereBy.Us
Erna Smith
Professor of Professional Practice, Annenberg School of Communication
Kerry Smith
Senior Vice President of Editorial Quality, ABC News
Todd South
Reporter, Military Times. 2014 Pulitzer Prize Finalist
Mizell Stewart III
Vice President / News Operations, Gannett & the USA Today Network
Lynn Stock
Deputy managing editor, Silicon Valley Business Journal
Stephanie Sy
Correspondent, PBS NewsHour
Melissa Tamplin Harrison
Managing Director, The Media Project
Doris Truong
Director of Training and Diversity, Poynter
Nikki Usher
Associate Professor, The University of Illinois & George Washington University
Ann Vaughan
Former Investigative Reporter, Wall Street Journal
Gayle Williams
Former Reporter and Lifestyles Editor, The Journal News. Former Health Editor, Consumer Reports. Development Communications Manager, Weill Cornell Medicine
Doualy Xaykaothao
Newscaster, NPR
Molly Yanity
Associate Professor of Journalism, Quinnipiac University
Jeff Young
Managing Editor, Ohio Valley ReSource
Kristen Young
Co-Founder, InvestigateWest
Debra Adams Simmons
Editor for culture, National Geographic; 2016 Neiman Fellow; board member, The Maynard Institute
Masuma Ahuja
Freelance journalist reporting on gender, migration and human rights
Marcia Allert
Photo editor, The Dallas Morning News
Jourdan Bennett-Begaye
Reporter, Indian Country Today
Helena Bottemiller Evich
Senior food & agriculture reporter, Politico; winner of the James Beard Award for Food and Health
Nellie Bowles
Reporter, The New York Times
Oralandar Brand-Williams
Senior reporter, The Detroit News
Graham Lee Brewer
Contributing editor at High Country News; board member at the Native American Journalists Association; citizen of the Cherokee Nation
Jacqueline Charles
Caribbean correspondent, The Miami Herald
Sarah Childress
Senior reporter, Frontline
Melvin Claxton
Former investigative journalist; Pulitzer Prize winner
Ivette Davila Richards
Freelance, multimedia journalist; former board member for National Association of Hispanic Journalists
Gloria Dickie
Freelance science and environmental journalist; board member, Society of Environmental Journalists
Scott Dodd
Senior staff editor, The New York Times; board member, Society of Environmental Journalists
Pat Duggins
News director, Alabama Public Radio; author, Final Countdown: NASA and the End of the Space Shuttle Program
Stephanie Ebbert
Local and state politics reporter, The Boston Globe
Mei Fong
Journalist; director of communications & strategy, Center for Public Integrity; Pulitzer Prize winner
Felice Freyer
Senior health reporter, The Boston Globe; board member of Association of Health Care Journalists
Jeff Gauger
Louisiana State Univ. content advisor & Professional-in-residence; North Louisiana Executive Editor, Shreveport Times/USA Today
Nadege Green
Reporter, WLGN Miami
Bryan Gruley
Journalist and author; Pulitzer Prize winner; nominated for the “first novel” Edgar Award by the Mystery Writers of America
Auditi Guha
Northeast regional reporter, Rewire.News
Gary Harki
Investigative reporter, The Virginian-Pilot
Melinda Henneberger
Columnist, Kansas City Star; Pulitzer Prize finalist
Rod Hicks
Journalist-on-Call, Society of Professional Journalists; former AP editor
Robert Jimison
The New York Times
Rachel Jones
Award-winning, international health reporter; Story editor, Global Press Journal
Paul Kiel
Business reporter, ProPublica
Andrew Khouri
Housing reporter, The Los Angeles Times
Francine Knowles
Former religion and business reporter, Chicago Sun-Times
Kim Kozlowski
Higher education reporter, The Detroit News
Madhu Krishnamurthy
Senior staff writer and education writer, Daily Herald (suburban Chicago)
Rhonda LeValdo
Reporter; faculty member, Haskell Indian Nations University Media Communications
Pete Madden
Investigative reporter, ABC News
Bill Mitchell
Climate editor, National Catholic Reporter
Greg Moore
Editor-in-chief and partner, Deke Digital; former editor, The Denver Post
Curtis Morgan
Hurricane, environment, courts and crime editor, The Miami Herald; Pulitzer Prize winner (2001, breaking news reporting)
Denise-Marie Ordway
Managing editor of Journalist’s Resource at the Harvard Kennedy School
Rachel Piper
Digital news editor, The Salt Lake City Tribune; Pulitzer Prize winner (2017, local reporting)
Bryan Pollard
2020 John S. Knight Journalism Fellow; former president of Native American Journalists Association
Victor Manuel Ramos
Deputy editor, Long Island Desk, Newsday
Mark Rochester
Editor, Investigations, Detroit Free Press
Shari Rudavsky
Health/medicine reporter, The Indianapolis Star
Andrew Skerritt
Storytelling coach, long-time local news editor
Shirley Sneve
Director, Vision Maker Media
Cheryl Thompson
Investigative journalist, NPR; president, Investigative Reporters & Editors (IRE)
Mc Nelly Torres
Independent journalist and former investigative producer for NBC6 in Miami; founder, Florida Center for Investigative Reporting
Eileen Truax
Freelance journalist covering migration and politics
Abbie Van Sickle
Criminal justice reporter, The Marshall Project
Mercedes Vigon
Associate director, International Media Center & associate professor in School of Communication and Journalism, Florida International University.
Vickie Walton James
Senior national editor, NPR
Rob Wildeboer
Senior editor of news, WBEZ (Chicago)
Dave Wilson
Senior editor, state and municipal government & education, Miami Herald
Alison Young
Investigative reporter, USA Today
Cindy Yurth
Assistant editor, Navajo Times
Julie Zauzmer
Reporter covering religion, faith and spirituality, The Washington Post