Fred Berens and Wendy Dayton Begin Service on PBS Foundation Board of Directors

June 11, 2014 – ARLINGTON, VA – Two new members of the PBS Foundation Board of Directors were seated at their first meeting today, announced PBS President & CEO and PBS Foundation President Paula Kerger. Fred Berens, one of the top financial advisors in the country, and Wendy Dayton, President of the Douglas & Wendy Dayton Foundation, each began three-year terms of service at a meeting of the Foundation’s board held today in St. Paul, MN.  Both Mr. Berens, a former member of the PBS Board of Directors and a supporter of WPBT in Miami, and Mrs. Dayton, a member of the Board of Directors of Twin Cities Public Television in St. Paul, are long-time advocates of public broadcasting in their local communities.

“Through the support of donors to the PBS Foundation, PBS and local member stations have been able to move forward with projects and services that enhance the lives of individuals across the nation,” said Ms. Kerger.  “We are fortunate that two such outstanding leaders as Fred and Wendy have agreed to join the PBS Foundation’s board, and our public broadcasting system will benefit from their commitment and vision.  They join a group of skilled and dedicated individuals who believe in the power of public service media and are working each day to make our system stronger.  I am extremely grateful to all of the members of the PBS Foundation’s board for their exceptional work.”

“The work of the PBS Foundation is absolutely crucial to ensuring the future of PBS as America's most trusted media enterprise,” said Mr. Berens. “I am delighted to have this opportunity to serve on the Foundation's board, and to reaffirm my commitment to the mission of public broadcasting,” said Mr. Berens.

“I have long valued PBS' exceptional programming, especially its offerings in the arts,” said Mrs. Dayton.  “I am excited to now be in a position where I can help it achieve its long-range goals through the PBS Foundation.”

The board of the PBS Foundation is comprised of twelve top national leaders who are appointed by the PBS Board of Directors and led by Chair Dr. Mary G.F. Bitterman. The Foundation’s Executive Director is Brian Reddington.  All Board members serve three-year terms without remuneration.

Mr. Berens has served in various capacities with Wells Fargo Advisors, LLC since 1965 and was recently named by Barron’s magazine as one of America’s Top 100 Financial Advisors.  Having served on the PBS Board of Directors from 2007 to 2013, Mr. Berens is also a longstanding member, and a former chairman, of the Board of Directors of PBS member station WPBT in Miami.  He played a leading role in creating the station’s endowment, which he chaired for 25 years.   Since 1972, he has also served as a trustee of the University of Miami and has held additional seats on the boards of the Adrienne Arsht Center for the Performing Arts of Miami-Dade County, the Dade County Health Facilities Authority, and the Orange Bowl Committee. 

Mrs. Dayton is a trustee of the Cowles Center for Dance and the Performing Arts in Minneapolis and a member of the Minnesota State Arts Board. Now retired, she had a distinguished career in the fashion industry culminating in positions as vice president of Liz Claiborne, Inc., and vice president at Robert Terry in New York. As head of her foundation, Mrs. Dayton is strongly committed to fostering the performing arts.  She is also an avid proponent of public broadcasting.

About the PBS Foundation
Established in 2004, the PBS Foundation is a nonprofit 501(c)(3) supporting organization whose goal is to seek, cultivate, and receive philanthropic gifts at the national level for public broadcasting as a whole.  It partners with PBS and its member stations to advance the work of the PBS system, focusing on innovative projects that include the digital educational resource PBS LearningMedia, the award-winning online content production work of PBS Digital Studios, and PBS’ signature arts programming.

About PBS
PBS, with its over 350 member stations, offers all Americans the opportunity to explore new ideas and new worlds through television and online content. Each month, PBS reaches nearly 109 million people through television and over 28 million people online, inviting them to experience the worlds of science, history, nature and public affairs; to hear diverse viewpoints; and to take front row seats to world-class drama and performances. PBS’ broad array of programs has been consistently honored by the industry’s most coveted award competitions. Teachers of children from pre-K through 12th grade turn to PBS for digital content and services that help bring classroom lessons to life. PBS’ premier children’s TV programming and its website, pbskids.org, are parents’ and teachers’ most trusted partners in inspiring and nurturing curiosity and love of learning in children. More information about PBS is available at www.pbs.org, one of the leading dot-org websites on the Internet, or by following PBS on Twitter, Facebook or through our apps for mobile devices. Specific program information and updates for press are available at pbs.org/pressroom or by following PBS Pressroom on Twitter.

Media Contact:
Jan McNamara, jmcnamara@pbs.org, 703-739-5028