The Vermont Public Board of Directors announced today that Scott Finn, President and CEO, is stepping down from the organization at the end of this year following nearly six cumulative years first with Vermont Public Radio and now Vermont Public, after its 2021 merger with Vermont PBS.
“Two years after our merger, Vermont Public is in an incredibly strong position in terms of audience, talent, finances and infrastructure and I’m so proud of all we have accomplished in service to Vermont and beyond,” Finn said. “Now is the right time to find the next leader to steward this great organization forward, and for me to find a new adventure.”
Finn led VPR and then Vermont Public through a merger, pandemic, historic floods and a reckoning on race. “I’ve joked that I don’t recommend doing a merger during a pandemic, but it’s no joke,” Finn said. “We did it anyway, and are succeeding by any metric.”
Marguerite Dibble, Vermont Public Board President, congratulated Scott on his accomplishments. “Under Scott’s leadership, Vermont Public has grown to serve more than 1 million people every month on multiple platforms - online, radio and TV. It has more than 40,000 members in a state with only 643,000 people which is just awesome. We so appreciate Scott’s leadership and wish him well in his next chapter,” Dibble said.
Finn oversaw development of a new strategic plan committed to serving a broader and more diverse audience, the launch of a daily news podcast and multiple e-newsletters, rapid audience growth of shows But Why? and Brave Little State, creation of the Made Here Fund and a full-time education manager, and multiple national awards, including a National Edward R. Murrow Award for Overall Excellence.
“We’ve seen rapid growth of our on-demand content,” Finn said, “and maintained our radio and TV broadcast audience, which is no small thing as other stations see declines.”
Originally from Iowa, Finn has a long career in public media, journalism and nonprofit leadership. He joined Vermont Public Radio as President and CEO in 2018. Prior to that, he was CEO and Executive Director of West Virginia Public Broadcasting, led news departments at WVPB and WUSF Public Media in Tampa, Florida, and was an award-winning journalist for WVPB and the Charleston Gazette.
The Board of Directors also announced that Brendan Kinney, Senior VP of Development, a nearly 14 year veteran of Vermont Public, will be moving into the Interim CEO role.
“Brendan knows this organization so well and we’re very excited to work with him in this new role,” shared Dibble.
The Board of Directors plans to conduct a search for the next CEO.
