William Allen White Foundation

Founded to promote journalistic ideals

In 1944, the Kansas Board of Regents established the William Allen White School of Journalism at the University of Kansas. The following year, a group of William Allen White’s friends established the William Allen White Foundation in his honor. The founders envisioned the Foundation as a complement to the School of Journalism.

Original members were: Steerman R.A. Clymer, Dean W. Malott, Roy Bailey, Milton Tabor, Henry J. Allen, Will T. Beck, Fay N. Seaton, John Redmond, Ora G. Rindom, Henry Haskell, Roy Roberts, F.B. Ross, and W.C. Simons.

At the time of its inception, the foundation had three primary goals: to encourage better journalism in Kansas; to extend White’s principles into the future; and to strengthen freedom of speech, press and communication. To accomplish these goals, the foundation planned to sponsor lectures, awards and institutes.

Today the William Allen White Foundation continues to contribute to KU as well as promote White’s journalistic ideas.

Core Activities

• Honor William Allen White’s stature as a national figure in journalism history.
• Support journalism education at the University of Kansas.
• Recognize news enterprise annually in Kansas.
• Award an annual citation to an individual, team or organization whose work in journalism and impact on America exemplifies William Allen White’s highest ideals.

Officers

Ann M. Brill, President

Eric Nelson, Chair

Michelle Keller, Vice Chair

Hannah Wise, Secretary

Katrina Yoakum, Treasurer

List of Trustees

Danforth Austin, Global Press Institute, Board of Directors; Voice of America, Director, retired, Scottsdale, AZ

Doug Barrington, Team Barrington/Realty Professionals, Topeka, KS

Robb Bertels, Mission Produce Inc., Vice President, Sales & Marketing, Oxnard, CA

Murrel Bland, MCB Consulting Inc., President, Kansas City, KS

Ryan Blethen, The Seattle Times, Assistant Managing Editor, Seattle, WA

Brian Bracco, KSHB-TV, Vice President and General Manager, retired, Kansas City, MO

Emily Bradbury, Kansas Press Association, Executive Director, Topeka, KS

Kia Breaux, Associated Press, Midwest Regional Director, Iowa-Kansas-Missouri, Kansas City, MO

Ann M. Brill, WAW School of Journalism and Mass Communications, University of Kansas, Dean, Lawrence, KS

DeNeen Brown, The Washington Post, Staff Writer, Washington, D.C.

Sally Buzbee, The Washington Post, Executive Editor, Washington, D.C.

Kim Byrnes, Heartland National Life Insurance Company, Director of Agency Services, Blue Springs, MO

Jenni Carlson, The Oklahoman, Sports Columnist, Oklahoma City, OK

Francesca Chambers, White House Correspondent for USA Today, Washington D.C. 

Sandra Clark, WHYY, Vice President for News and Civic Dialogue, Philadelphia, PA

Kathleen Conkey, The Law Offices of Kathleen Conkey, Media Law Attorney, New York, NY

Kent Cornish, President/Executive Director, Kansas Association of Broadcasters, retired, Topeka, KS

Lewis Diuguid, The Kansas City Star, retired, Kansas City, MO

Greg Farmer, The Kansas City Star, Executive Editor, Kansas City, MO

Gina Ford, Angela Alsobrooks for U. S. Senate, Director of Communications, Annapolis, MD

John Frazee, CBS News, Sr. Vice President, retired, New York, NY

Steve Frazier, Canadian Tore Corporation, Director, Mercer Island, WA

Phil Garcia, Sacramento State, VP for Public Affairs and Advocacy, retired, Sacramento, CA

Patricia Weems Gaston, Lacy C. Haynes Professor of Journalism, William Allen White School of Journalism and Mass Communications, Lawrence, KS

Dave Giles, The E.W. Scripps Company, Senior Vice President, Deputy General Counsel, and Chief Ethics Officer, Cincinnati, OH

Mike Goff, Goff + Marketing, Founder & Principal, Overland Park, KS

Vanessa Gordon, Mount Sinai Health System, Associate Director, Communications, New York, NY

Annie Gowen, The Washington Post, Midwest Correspondent, Lawrence, KS

Alison Gwinn, Denver Life magazine, Managing Editor, Denver, CO

Liz Hawks, Fleishman-Hillard, SVP and Partner, Global Influencer Lead, Kansas City, MO

Steve Haynes, Haynes Publishing, Nor'West Newspaper Inc., Publisher and CEO, retired, Oberlin, KS

David Hunke, Saskan Group, President, Arlington, VA

Jonathan Kealing, Institute for Nonprofit News, Chief Network Officer, Minneapolis, MN

Michelle Keller, University of Kansas Endowment Association, Assistant Vice President, Communications and Donor Relations, Lawrence, Kansas

Kris Kennedy, Reddit, Inc., Manager, Creative Strategy, Kansas City, MO

Sarah Kessinger, The Marysville Advocate, Owner and Publisher, Marysville, KS

Jane Lee, Jane Lee Communications, Kansas City, MO

Pat Lowry, Community Care Network of Kansas, Director of Communication and Governmental Relations, Topeka, KS

Susan Lynn, The Iola Register Inc., Editor and Publisher, Iola, KS

Ben Marshall, Marshall Publishing Inc., Editor & Publisher, retired, Sterling, KS

John T. Marshall, Thorne Media Group, LLC, Editor, retired, Lindsborg, KS

Cindy Maude, Callahan Creek, CEO Emeritus, Lawrence, KS

Colleen McCain Nelson, The Sacramento Bee, Executive Editor, and McClatchy News, Regional Editor, Sacramento, CA

Mark McCormick, Deputy Executive Director of ACLU of Kansas, Mission, KS

Eric Meyer, Marion County Record, Editor & Publisher, Hoch Publishing, President, Marion, KS

Randall Mikulecky, Sullivan, Higdon & Sink Inc., Managing Partner, retired, Kansas City, MO

Grey Montgomery, Pro Farmer and Doane Advisory Services, CEO and President, Chicago, IL

Eric M. Morgenstern, Morningstar Communications, President and CEO, APR Fellow PRSA, Overland Park, KS

Eric Nelson, McClatchy News, Senior Director, Content Distribution & Platforms, News, Sacramento, CA

Laura Okmin, GALvanize, Girls Compete. Women Empower. Co-founder, Los Angeles, CA

David Peacock, Schnucks Markets Inc., President and Chief Operating Officer, St. Louis, MO

Paul Pierce II, Boys and Girls Clubs of Metro Denver, Associate Chief of Club Operations, Denver, CO

David Powls, The Holton Recorder, Editor and Publisher, Holton, KS

Janet Rose, Agency Director and Professor of the Practice, KU School of Journalism and Mass Communications, Lawrence, KS

Barbara Rosewicz, The Pew Charitable Trusts, Research Director, retired, Washington, D.C.

Tonda Rush, Six Ideas, LLC, Attorney, Falls Church, VA

Dena Sattler, The Garden City Telegram, Editor and Publisher, Garden City, KS

David Allen Seaton, The Arkansas City Traveler, Publisher and Editor, Arkansas City, KS

Gerald Seib, The Wall Street Journal, Executive Washington Editor and Chief Commentator, retired Washington, D.C.

Jay Senter, Johnson County Post, Publisher, Prairie Village, KS

Susanne Shaw, WAW School of Journalism and Mass Communications, University of Kansas, Professor Emerita, Lawrence, KS

Dolph C. Simons Jr., The World Company, Chairman, Lawrence, KS

Tom Slaughter, Inland Press Association & Foundation, Executive Director, Des Plaines, IL

Scott Stanford, Fort Wayne Newspapers, President and CEO, Fort Wayne, IN

John H. Stauffer, Topeka Capital-Journal Editor, retired, Stauffer Communications Inc., Topeka, KS

Peter Stauffer, Oppenheimer & Co. Inc., Financial Advisor, Topeka, KS

Tim Stauffer, Managing Editor, The Iola Register, Iola, KS

Paul Stevens, Associated Press Connecting newsletter, Editor, Lenexa, KS

John Suhler, Veronis Suhler Stevenson Partners, LLC, Founding General Partner & President, retired, New York, NY

Kelly Smith Tunney, Associated Press, VP for Central Region, retired, Chicago, IL

Harry E. Valentine Jr., The Clay Center Dispatch, Publisher, Clay Center, KS

Michael J. Vrabac, Media and Communication Professional, Kansas City, MO

Stephen Wade, City of Topeka, City Manager, Topeka, KS

Chris Walker, The Emporia Gazette, Editor and Publisher, Emporia, KS

Vickie Walton-James, NPR News, Chief National Editor, Washington, D.C.

Hannah Wise, Kansas City Star, Assistant Managing Editor, Engagement & Experimentation, Kansas City, MO

Katrina Yoakum, University of Kansas Comptroller's Office, Comptroller, Lawrence, KS