NEW LEADER COMES TO CENTRAL FLORIDA FROM CORPORATION FOR PUBLIC BROADCASTING, WHERE SHE SERVED AS VP OF RADIO
ORLANDO – The Board of Trustees of 90.7 WMFE | 89.5 WMFV announced today the appointment of Erika Pulley-Hayes as President and CEO.
Pulley-Hayes succeeds LaFontaine E. Oliver, who led the station since 2013, before returning to Baltimore in July to lead NPR member station WYPR.
Pulley-Hayes is currently vice president of Radio at the Washington, D.C.-based Corporation for Public Broadcasting, the nonprofit steward of the federal government’s investment in public media, which supports the operations of over 1,500 locally owned public TV and radio stations. She will assume her new role on Jan. 13.
“WMFE|WMFV provides an important service to Central Florida, and this is an incredible opportunity to build upon the quality journalism and programming this organization delivers to the community,” Pulley-Hayes said. “I am very excited to join this team and continue working to enhance the local service that engages audiences across platforms.”
In her role at the CPB, Pulley-Hayes has provided strategic leadership to the public radio system by developing initiatives that sustain and advance public media service. She has driven innovation in a legacy industry through programs that enable public media organizations to respond to disruption and prepare for the future. She has extended public media to new audiences across platforms by providing podcasting expertise to local stations and developing a new format for multicultural millennials.
“We are excited to welcome Erika Pulley-Hayes to Central Florida,” WMFE|WMFV Board Chair Anne E. Kelley said. “She is uniquely positioned to continue her record of driving innovation, now on the local level, and to further our stations’ mission to engage new communities, both on our terrestrial airwaves as well as our growing number of digital platforms.”
More about Pulley-Hayes
Pulley-Hayes has worked at CPB since 2005 and has been responsible for managing daily operations, financial administration, grant programs, funding decisions and impact evaluation. She has worked to enhance local service and sustainability by identifying new business opportunities and operating models that increase organizational capacity.
She began her career as a legal assistant at a Fortune 500 pharmaceutical company. She later managed legal operations of a small clinical research organization in Virginia.
Pulley-Hayes holds an MBA and an MS in nonprofit management from the University of Maryland University College. She also holds a BA from William Paterson University in her home state of New Jersey. In her spare time, she enjoys practicing yoga, attending live events and traveling. She has two adult sons.
About Community Communications Inc.:
Community Communications Inc. is a non-profit, member-supported, community-based public broadcasting company that operates 90.7 WMFE-FM, metro Orlando’s primary provider of NPR programming; 90.7-2 Classical; and 89.5 WMFV, public radio for The Villages, Leesburg and The Golden Triangle. Part of the community since 1980, Community Communications focuses on providing quality national and local news and programming. Visit wmfe.org and wmfv.org for more information.
