Meet The Members Of The Third Incubation Lab
The latest edition of the Public Radio Incubation Lab is all about re-imagining local engagement through digital audio discovery. (See past post for more context). It’s a daunting, but thrilling, challenge that we’ll detail more in future posts. Before we dive into our project, we wanted to give you a chance to get to know our group. As this third rotation of the lab kicks off, we asked each member: Why did you decide to join?
Chris Maccini
In Chris’ role at Spokane Public Radio, his emphasis is on production of local arts-themed programming and digital distribution. After many years living in Seattle, working for non-profit organizations, and sailing around the Puget Sound, Chris now lives in his hometown and walks to work at the NPR Member station he grew up listening to.
Why he decided to join the Lab: “Smaller NPR Member stations have always been on the forefront of local engagement. Digital media offers enormous opportunities and unique challenges for these organizations. I’m excited to bring a ‘front line’ perspective to the Lab and seek solutions that will benefit listeners and organizations across the NPR system.”
Jeff Taylor
Jeff Taylor is the Membership and Outreach Coordinator for 91.9 FM WUOT (Knoxville, TN), an NPR Charter Member Station. Jeff brings nearly a decade of experience in grant writing, fundraising, event management, and strategic planning to the Incubation Lab team.
Why he decided to join the Lab: “Beat poet and activist, Gary Snyder, once said, “We moved the world a millionth of an inch.” It is an honor to work with this team to explore the potential of the digital space. Who knows, we may move the world a millionth of a millionth of an inch, but it is ours to try for.”
Kelsey Proud
Kelsey Proud is currently Managing Editor of Digital at WAMU in D.C. by way of several digital and leadership positions at St. Louis Public Radio. At WAMU, she leads a team of digital journalists, coordinates select projects, and consults on initiatives across the organization. Talk with her about human-friendly journalism, diverse and inclusive newsrooms, thoughtful mentorship, intentional innovation, and always, dogs.
Why she decided to join the Lab: “I’ve had the privilege and challenge of a front-row seat to the digital spaces in public media for nearly a decade. I’m thrilled to have the opportunity to use that experience in a really focused way, learn from my Lab teammates and stakeholders, and serve the system by directly confronting some of the big questions we rarely have the space to explore.”
Lauren Landau
Lauren Landau is Associate Producer at NPR, where she writes and produces on-air fundraising spots for station membership drives. She is also involved in the planning and execution of NPR’s annual Year-End Digital Fundraising Campaign. She enjoys learning how NPR can better support fundraising efforts at Member stations.
Why she decided to join the Lab: “I love public radio, and the people who make and support it. When the second Public Radio Incubation Lab rotation presented their work, I was intrigued by their problem statement, research, and final project. I left the room feeling energized and knew I had to apply for the next rotation. The Lab offers a unique opportunity to think creatively, try new things, and work toward solutions that will strengthen public radio’s future and the relationship between NPR and its stations. That is thrilling, especially at this special time in the audio landscape. I feel so privileged to be engaging with this work.”
Louisa Conklin
Louisa Conklin, part-time scrum master for the Lab, has been with NPR for just shy of one year as an Executive Assistant with the Digital Media team. Previously she was the captain of a 50' passenger vessel on the Potomac River, and worked for several years on private sailing yachts.
Why she decided to join the Lab: “I’ve been supporting the Lab’s operations since Rotation 1 and felt it was a great time in my tenure here to deepen my work with this project. Having spent the past year supporting the Digital Media team, I’ve spent a lot of time thinking about ways big and small I can work with my NPR colleagues in their collaborative work with Member Stations within the digital space.”
Rebecca Rolfe
Rebecca Rolfe is the first designer hired at NPR to focus specifically on voice platforms. She is interested in how to translate the warm personalities of NPR hosts to the likes of Alexa, Bixby, Cortana, and Google Assistant.
Why she decided to join the Lab: “The lab is a huge growth opportunity for designers, who get to jump out of the iterative improvement flow we’re used to working within and dream BIG. I am scared to leave the comforts of my team, but I wanted to meet station folks and better understand how NPR works, all while growing personally as a designer in the face of a gnarly problem and a short deadline to tackle it.”
Ryan Patecell
Ryan Patecell is the Product Manager of Audience Engagement at NPR. Ryan manages the tools and services that drive engagement with NPR across email and social platforms, and contributes to the strategy for how NPR is building a relationship with those users to ultimately drive donations to Member stations.
Why she decided to join the Lab: I regularly work within cross-functional teams here at NPR, but it is rare that we get the opportunity to take a step back and view problems from a wider lens. I hope that this opportunity allows us to propose thoughtful change that is essential in order to stay relevant in this increasingly competitive media landscape.
Have any questions for us? Leave a comment! We’ll be spending the next few months working through the theme; stay tuned for progress updates.
