Public Broadcasting Atlanta Board Of Directors Elects Five New Members
Staff Report From Metro Atlanta CEO
Tuesday, July 18th, 2017
Public Broadcasting Atlanta announced the addition of five new members to its Board of Directors: Regents Professor of Marketing Emeritus at Georgia State University Ken Bernhardt; clinical nephrologist and medical community leader William Cleveland; nationally recognized arts and marketing leader Sonya Halpern; strategic planning and economic development expert Craig Lesser; and nationally recognized leader in the field of diversity and inclusion Al Vivian.
“We are thrilled to welcome these five distinguished creative and business leaders to our Board,” said Ann Cramer, Chair, Board of Directors Public Broadcasting Atlanta. “Each of them brings energy, expertise and a deep understanding of the value and potential of public media.”
The five new members join a board of 20 influential community leaders who govern and guide the mission of PBA -- "to educate, entertain and empower as we connect people to each other and the world." PBA’s media services include public television (PBA30), public radio (WABE 90.1) and cultural events hub (Atlanta PlanIt).
“I’m delighted to have Ken, William, Sonya, Craig and Al join our highly engaged Board,” said Public Broadcasting Atlanta President and CEO, Wonya Lucas. “I look forward to collaborating with them to advance our mission and help us reach our content, audience development and community engagement goals.”
Mr. Bernhardt is the Regents Professor of Marketing Emeritus at Georgia State University. A marketing consultant with decades of experience, he has provided marketing leadership to key clients such as Chick-Fil-A, Delta, Coca-Cola, Home Depot, Kimberly-Clark Healthcare and AirTran. Bernhardt is a past chairman of the board of the 45,000 member American Marketing
Association and a past president of the Association for Consumer Research. He founded Georgia State University’s Marketing RoundTable in 1990.
Dr. Cleveland is a clinical nephrologist currently serving on the medical staff for seven Atlanta area hospitals. He is also the Medical Director for two dialysis centers and the President of Southwest Atlanta Nephrology, PC and Nephronet, LLC. Prior to his current positions, he was the president of the Crawford Long Hospital Medical Staff. Dr. Cleveland was honored by the International Olympic Commission with a Distinguished Service Award.
Mrs. Halpern served on the President’s Advisory Committee of the Arts for the John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts. She is a is a former advertising sales and marketing executive, having worked for ESPN, Inc., The Walt Disney Company, and Cox Enterprises.
Mr. Lesser is Managing Partner of the Pendleton Consulting Group, LLC, a global consultancy that provides advice, connectivity and strategic planning services in the areas of economic development and governmental affairs. Prior to founding Pendleton Atlanta, he served as Commissioner of the Georgia Department of Economic Development, managing director of McKenna Long & Aldridge and vice president of governmental and regulatory affairs for Georgia Power Company.
Mr. Vivian is the President and Chief Executive Officer of BASIC Diversity, Inc., a diversity consultancy that has been operating nationally for 35 years. He has trained and provided diversity counsel to numerous Fortune 500 companies, government agencies, professional firms, non-profits and academic institutions. He serves on Leadership Atlanta’s Race Relations committee and conducts their Race Awareness Day.