February 15, 2024; Washington, D.C. - NPR welcomes the election of Rachel Hubbard and Shawn Turner to the NPR Board of Directors.
Rachel Hubbard, Executive Director of KOSU Public Radio, Stillwater, OK, was elected by the Board to serve as a Member Director filling an unexpired term vacancy. She was seated on February 12 and will serve the remainder of the term which ends in November 2026.
Shawn Turner, General Manager of WKAR Public Media, East Lansing, MI, was elected by the Board to serve as a Member Director filling an unexpired term vacancy. He was seated on February 12 and will serve the remainder of the term which ends in November 2024.
"The media industry continues to be disrupted. NPR and public media are in an amazing position to take advantage of an opportunity and be the best version of what our network was designed to be," said Hubbard. "I look forward to serving with this group of colleagues as we navigate and collectively shape what is to come."
"It's an honor to serve on the board of the most trusted, respected, and important media organizations in the country," Turner said. "I can't think of a time when NPR's mission to create a more informed public, and to ensure that every American has access to reliable and factual news and information, was more critical."
NPR's 23-member Board of Directors is comprised of 12 Member Directors who are representatives of NPR Member organizations and are elected to the Board by their fellow Members, 9 Public Directors who are prominent members of the public selected by the Board and confirmed by NPR Members, the NPR Foundation Chair, and the NPR President & CEO.
Biography: Shawn Turner
Shawn Turner is the General Manager of WKAR Public Media, based in East Lansing, MI. He is also a professor of strategic communication at Michigan State University. Prior to his current position, Turner served in senior positions in government, nonprofit, and academic organizations. His previous positions in government include Deputy White House Press Secretary for National Security, Director of Communication for National Intelligence at the Office of the Director of National Intelligence (ODNI), and Deputy Press Secretary for Foreign Affairs for the National Security Council (NSC). As a senior intelligence officer, Turner was responsible for coordinating all internal and external communication on behalf of the 17 agencies and components that make up the U.S. intelligence community. At the White House and the NSC, Turner was a principal spokesperson for U.S. foreign policy in Afghanistan and Pakistan.
Turner currently serves as a member of the board of trustees for the German Marshall Fund (GMF) and sits on the executive board of advisors for the Center for Ethics and the Rule of Law (CERL) at the University of Pennsylvania Law School. He previously served on the board of advisors for the National Security Agency (NSA).
Turner's non-governmental experience includes serving as an adjunct professor in the University of Pennsylvania Law School, and as the Director of Communication at the Center for a New American Security. He is also a former Distinguished Terker Fellow in George Washington University's School of Media and Public Affairs.
Turner has published numerous articles on national security and authored book chapters on risk communication for national defense, and information-processing and cognitive theories. In 2013, the National Journal named Turner one of Washington DC's top decision makers. In 2015, he was awarded the Intelligence Community Leadership Award, and in 2016, he was awarded the Meritorious Presidential Rank Award for outstanding career accomplishments and exemplary service to the nation.
Prior to his civilian career, Turner served 21 years in the Marine Corps. He received his B.A. degree in communication studies from Texas State University and an M.A. degree in communication from George Mason University.
Biography: Rachel Hubbard
Rachel Hubbard has been the Executive Director of KOSU Public Radio, based in Stillwater, OK, since February 2020.
She is a news veteran of more than 20 years and began her career at a small community radio station in Hobart, Oklahoma at the age of 16. Hubbard has been a state capitol reporter, news director and program director. Her journalism has won numerous awards including the Sigma Delta Chi Award from the Society of Professional Journalists, the Scripps Howard Foundation Award for National Journalism and the duPont-Columbia Award.
She spearheaded KOSU's innovative collaboration with AAA music station, The Spy, in 2012. Under her leadership as Executive Director, KOSU's newsroom has more than tripled in size and became the first mainstream newsroom in Oklahoma to have an Indigenous Affairs beat.
Hubbard serves on the board of Station Resource Group and Public Radio in Mid America (PRIMA). She is a member of Rotary Club 29 in Oklahoma City. She holds a Bachelor of Science in Agricultural Communications and a Master's Degree in Business with a focus on entrepreneurship from Oklahoma State University. She lives in Oklahoma City with her husband and sons.
About the NPR Board of Directors
The NPR Board of Directors is responsible for the governance of our 501(c)(3) nonprofit corporation. The Board sets the policies and overall direction for NPR management, monitors the performance of NPR, and provides financial oversight.