LENFEST INSTITUTE NAMES NEW CHAIR, VICE CHAIR, BOARD MEMBER

PHILADELPHIA (June 22, 2017) – The Lenfest Institute for Journalism today announced the election of David Boardman, a respected journalist and educator, as chair of the Board of Managers and Rosalind Remer, a renowned historian and community leader, as vice chair. The Institute also added Roy Rosin, a recognized thought leader in innovation management, to the Board.

H.F. “Gerry” Lenfest, the founder of the Institute and its first chair, has been named chair emeritus, remaining active on the Board of Managers and in the day-to-day business of the Institute.

Founded in 2016, the Institute is dedicated to sustaining and supporting local public-service journalism in Philadelphia and similar markets around the country. The Institute, through association with The Philadelphia Foundation, owns the Philadelphia Media Network, which operates The Philadelphia Inquirer, Philadelphia Daily News and philly.com.

“I am delighted with the Board’s choice of David Boardman and Rosalind Remer as chair and vice chair,” Lenfest said. “Each appointment is part of a long-planned leadership transition. Both David and Ros have been instrumental in the founding and success of the Institute.”

Boardman is the former top editor of The Seattle Times and has served as dean of the Lew Klein College of Media and Communication at Temple University since 2013. He also serves as chair of the Reporters Committee for Freedom of the Press, the nation’s premier defender of journalists’ rights.

Remer is the vice provost of Drexel University, where she leads an array of Philadelphia cultural partnerships. She is a nationally recognized historian of early American publishing who led Philadelphia’s tricentennial celebration of the life of Benjamin Franklin.

Rosin is the chief innovation officer of Penn Medicine at the University of Pennsylvania. He is a veteran of the Silicon Valley technology industry, having led innovation and product management for Intuit and advised early stage companies for the past two decades.

“David Boardman is among the country’s most distinguished journalists and journalism deans,” Lenfest said.

“Rosalind Remer is an outstanding educator, innovator, and historian. I have valued their partnership and integrity for many years and could not have built the Institute without them. I am also pleased that Roy Rosin, an expert on business disruption and innovation, has agreed to lend his expertise to our distinguished Board of Managers. I look forward to working with the Board and the Institute for many years to come.”

Jim Friedlich, executive director and CEO of the Institute, lauded the smooth transition of Board leadership, with founder Lenfest staying actively involved.

“It has been a great honor to work with Gerry as founding chair and I’m excited to continue to work with him,” Friedlich said. “Both David and Ros have provided tremendous leadership in the past, and I am delighted to work with them in their new capacities. Roy brings to the Board an outstanding track record of innovation, as well as a welcome perspective from the world of software and technology. We look forward to his contributions and insights.”

Since its founding in 2016, The Lenfest Institute has launched a number of initiatives in support of digital-skills training for journalists and the application of new technologies for investigative and data journalism in Philadelphia. In late 2016, the Institute was awarded a major Knight Foundation grant to assist in the business transformation of a dozen metropolitan newsrooms in Philadelphia and across the country. Earlier this month, the Institute announced a new grant program to support entrepreneurship and innovation in local news.

Launched with an initial gift of $20 million from Mr. Lenfest, the Institute has since announced additional funding of $26.5 million from a broad group of individuals, foundations and corporations intent upon sustaining the future of great local journalism. Based upon this momentum, Mr. Lenfest announced in early May a matching pledge of $40 million to encourage additional support.

“Preserving and advancing public-service journalism on a local level is a profoundly important mission, and The Lenfest Institute is at the center of that mission,” Boardman said. “Gerry’s inspired vision and his enormous generosity have created a dynamo that, under Jim Friedlich’s direction, is beginning to make its mark here and across the country.”