The Poynter Institute is proud to announce the 34 newsroom leaders selected for the latest cohort of the Leadership Academy for Women.
This distinguished group represents a wide range of journalism roles across the media industry, spanning local, nonprofit, public media, digital and broadcast organizations, as well as visual, audience and investigative journalists. Participants hail from across the United States and internationally, bringing diverse perspectives and expertise to the program.
This is the first Leadership Academy for Women cohort in 2025, continuing Poynter’s mission to empower women and nonbinary leaders in journalism. Since its inception in 2015, the academy has provided leadership training, mentorship and community-building opportunities for more than 680 newsroom professionals.
The impact of the program is clear:
- 75% of past participants report having more confidence in themselves and the journalism industry.
- 72% use something they learned in the academy at least once per week.
- 60% have taken on new or expanded leadership roles after attending.
“Journalists in leadership roles are facing complex challenges as they navigate the evolving media landscape,” said Sitara Nieves, Poynter’s vice president of teaching and organizational strategy. “The Leadership Academy for Women provides these accomplished professionals with the space, skills and support to lead with confidence and clarity. We are thrilled to welcome this newest cohort to Poynter.”
Academy director Kate Cox emphasized the power of collective problem-solving in the program:
“Many leaders come into this program feeling alone in their challenges. But inside this room, among this group, are the breakthroughs, solutions and insights they’ve been looking for. The strength of this academy is the deep trust and collaboration that builds within each cohort—it’s where real transformation happens.”
Academy co-lead Fernanda Camarena added, “This is a wonderful program with a rich history of developing great journalists and leaders who go on to do important work. I can’t wait to see what this year’s program brings.”
Meet the newest Leadership Academy for Women cohort:
Jenna Amatulli, Deputy Head of News, The Guardian US
Stephanie Barrio Thorn, Deputy Editor, International Edition, The New York Times
Victoria Barron Cabrera (Tory), Senior Editor, ESPN
Oseye Boyd, Editor-in-Chief, Mirror Indy
Eliana Brown, Managing Editor, Global Programming, The Athletic
Pixie Clay, Deputy Managing Editor, Hawaiʻi Public Radio
Catherine Ellis (Kate), Assignment Editor, WGBH Educational Foundation
Lori Fazari, Deputy Head of Editing, The Globe and Mail
Molly Finnegan, Deputy Managing Editor, PBS NewsHour
Pia Gadkari, Supervising Producer, The Journal, Spotify
Naomi Harris, Content Manager, Education Writers Association (EWA)
Samata Joshi, Managing Producer, Podcasts, WBUR
Adelina Lancianese (Addie), Senior Producer, Embedded Podcast, NPR
Diana López, Community Manager, The Lenfest Institute for Journalism
Janet McFarland, Senior Editor, Report on Business, The Globe and Mail
Victoria McGrane (Vicki), Politics Editor, The Boston Globe
Amy McKeever, Senior Digital Editorial Manager, National Geographic
Jordan Dowd, Senior Multiplatform Editor, The Washington Post
Cynthia Miller (Cyndi), News Content Editor, City Editor, Santa Fe New Mexican
Bonnie Moon, Executive Producer, KXAS
Diantha Parker, Senior Editor, Marketplace
Silvija Pikal (Silvia), Special Projects Editor, CIM Magazine
Kate Rabinowitz, Graphics Editor, The Washington Post
Yarel Ramos, Anchor, Reporter, Televisa Univision
Chloe Riley, Executive Editor, Supermarket News
Laurène Rojas-Jardin, Morning Assignment Editor, CBC Montreal
Monica Sarkar, Senior Editor, CNN International, London
Heather Saunders, CEO and Lead Editor, Nova Arc Content Co.
Courtney Sinner (C.J.), Director of Graphics & Data Visuals, The Minnesota Star Tribune
Sabrina Starrett-Wolff, Senior Editor, The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Florence Tan, Deputy Editor, Commodities & Energy, Asia, Thomson Reuters
Carol Taylor, Breaking News Editor, The Dallas Morning News
Tatiana Titova (Tanya), Senior Producer for Russia, Belarus, Caucasus and Central Asia, The Associated Press
Kathy Young, News Editor of Global Beats, Video, The Associated Press
Poynter’s faculty and coaches for this session include Kate Cox, Fernanda Camarena, Kristen Hare, Maria Carrillo, Sherri Day, Josie Hollingsworth and Katie Sanders. Participants were selected through a rigorous review process led by Poynter’s leadership program faculty.
Applications for the 2026 Leadership Academy for Women are set to open on September 16, 2025.
Poynter extends its gratitude to the Nielsen Foundation for its support of this program.
For more information, visit poynter.org.
Media Contact
Sarah Sweeny
Director of Marketing, Events and Communications
Poynter Institute
ssweeny@poynter.org
About the Poynter Institute
The Poynter Institute is a global nonprofit working to address society’s most pressing issues by teaching journalists and journalism, covering the media and the complexities facing the industry, convening and community building, improving the capacity and sustainability of news organizations and fostering trust and reliability of information. The Institute is a gold standard in journalistic excellence and dedicated to the preservation and advancement of press freedom in democracies worldwide. Through Poynter, journalists, newsrooms, businesses, big tech corporations and citizens convene to find solutions that promote trust and transparency in news and stoke meaningful public discourse. The world’s top journalists and emerging media leaders rely on the Institute to learn new skills, adopt best practices, better serve audiences, scale operations and improve the quality of the universally shared information ecosystem.
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