Ann Alquist has joined Prairie Public as the Director of Radio, overseeing the station’s statewide radio network.
Alquist has more than 20 years of experience innovating public media at stations across the country. Most recently, she co-led an initiative for energy-independent radio for southeastern Alaska, building renewable energy sources to power translators for KCAW Sitka in the most remote parts of the North Pacific region.
“We’re excited to welcome Ann Alquist to our team,” said John Harris, Prairie Public’s President & CEO. “She has a great deal of experience and an impressive background in public media. We look forward to Ann getting to know our prairie community.”
Alquist says she is passionate about public media’s mission to provide trustworthy news and information, especially in rural areas.
“I think the best way for me to make an impact, and act on the mission of public media, is in rural media. National outlets aren’t able to tell North Dakota’s stories in the same way that Prairie Public can,” she said. “What I love about the Midwest is that we solve problems together – and we’re going to solve how we meet information needs in rural America.”
As Director of Radio, Alquist will oversee all aspects of Prairie Public’s radio network, including programming, operations and capital planning, and implementation for expanded digital services.