DRP Expands its Board and Realigns Positions

 

March 25, 2015 Washington, D.C. -- Developing Radio Partners, a U.S.-based non-profit, working to support the professional development of community radio stations and journalists primarily in Africa , announce the appointment of Adam Clayton Powell III, Brian Fix and Bob Ottenhoff, expanding the Board from 7 to 10 members.

 

“We value the insight, experience and interest Adam, Brian and Robert bring to the DRP Board. They will add valuable perspectives to the Board and DRP’s work in Sub-Saharan Africa,” said DRP Board Chair Ann Marie Plubell.

 

Adam is Coordinator of the Initiative on Mobile Telephones and Public Service, a joint program of the USC Annenberg Center on Communication Leadership and Policy (CCLP) and the Annenberg Trust at Sunnylands. He also coordinates CCLP's Washington, DC programs, which include public forums on subjects ranging from public service and online media to the intersection of diplomacy and technology.

 

He has worked extensively in Africa, Asia, Europe, Latin America and the U.S. on training programs in digital media for journalists, educators and policymakers. He has been a leader of the Highway Africa conference, the largest annual gathering of African journalists on the continent.

 

Brian is formerly a partner and now Counsel in the international law firm Dentons in New York. He specializes in acquisitions, corporate restructuring, and foreign investment into France and Central and Eastern Europe, as well as other cross-border transactions such as joint ventures, project finance, infrastructure development and construction projects, public-private partnerships, and co-productions and co-financings in the media industry.

 

In January, he hosted a “get to know DRP” reception at his New York City home and has had a long interest in journalism and also development in Africa.  He has been active with NPR – including establishing and partially funding a foreign internship program at NPR to expand its international news coverage. He has worked in several countries in Africa including Cameroon and Sierra Leone.

 

Bob is President and CEO of the Center for Disaster Philanthropy (CDP). He’s a veteran in philanthropy, nonprofit leadership, and entrepreneurship.  Prior to joining CDP, Bob spent a decade as president and CEO of Guidestar, an industry leader in the use of providing high-quality data to help donors make better decisions and improve nonprofit practice.

 

He also led efforts to build partnerships with more than 150 leading U.S. and community foundations, and oversaw the development of www.guidestar.org into a nationally respected, comprehensive source of reports and services on more than 1.5 million nonprofits.

Bob is known for his entrepreneurial spirit, strong technology focus, and quest to make an impact on the world.

 

The Board, in its March 20th meeting, voted unanimously in favor of all three appointments.

 

In addition to the Board appointments, DRP has realigned its management structure. Founder Bill Siemering will continue to lead DRP as its president and will focus on cultivating partnerships and foundation and individual support and representing the organization to the public.  He will also work with the board to expand the vision for the organization.  Charles Rice, who served as Vice President and Managing Director, takes on a new role as CEO – with responsibilities including administrative, budgetary, implementation of projects and social media.

 

“We are pleased to appoint Bill and Chuck to their new and expanded roles as they share the Board’s belief in radio’s ability to empower by giving a voice to the voiceless,” Plubell said.

 

Developing Radio Partners is a media development organization that works with people running local radio stations in developing countries providing and empowering station managers, journalists and other individuals in every demographic with the skills, content and methodologies they need to produce and present reliable information services on important topics of interest to their listeners around the priorities their listeners have identified.

 

Developing Radio Partners is dedicated to bringing information on the most important topics in development—population, climate change, health and governance—to those who are hardest to reach, using the most effective media: local radio and text messaging.