ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. – Poynter, a school dedicated to serving journalism in the interest of democracy, has launched a 35th Anniversary Matching Gift program made possible through a $100,000 pledge from Poynter Trustee Andrew Barnes and his wife, Molly.
Barnes, the retired Chairman and CEO of the St. Petersburg Times, said: “Journalism is changing rapidly, but its central mission of informing our democracy remains. Poynter is at the forefront of figuring out how to adapt while retaining what is so important. It’s time for us all to support Poynter as we can.”
In announcing the gift, Poynter President Karen Dunlap said: “As Poynter enters its 35th year, we are celebrating this significant gift which will help us to meet the needs of a changing media landscape as we prepare journalists for the 21st century. We are enormously grateful to Andy and Molly Barnes for this generous contribution.”
“The Barnes’ gift will enable us to match, dollar-for-dollar, unrestricted gifts of $1,000 received until June 2010,” said Ann W. Madsen, Director of Development. “Thanks to this pledge, donors who give $1,000 during this special period will be afforded entry into our new leadership recognition program, The President’s Circle.”
Madsen said Poynter would also match the first $1,000 of any larger unrestricted gift during the same timeframe.
The Institute, which was founded in 1975 by Nelson Poynter, owner of the St. Petersburg Times, is a non-profit school dedicated to teaching and inspiring journalists and media leaders. Poynter stands for journalism that informs citizens and enlightens public discourse.
In creating the Institute, Nelson Poynter said it would be “an institution of such excellence that it will attract support from outside foundations in the form of grants, scholarships and funding of special experimental projects.”
The Institute today trains journalism practitioners around the world in the areas of online and multimedia, leadership and management, reporting, writing and editing, TV and radio, ethics and diversity, journalism education and visual journalism. Poynter’s News University (www.newsu.org) offers newsroom training to journalists and journalism students through interactive e-learning modules and links to other journalism education and training opportunities. Poynter’s Web site, Poynter.org is the industry’s daily destination for news and conversation about journalism.
For more information about making a matching gift, contact Ann W. Madsen at amadsen@poynter.org or (727) 553-4651, or donate online at Poynter.org/donate.
