NPR names Rachel Evans Chief Development Officer

NPR President and CEO Katherine Maher announced that Rachel Evans will be NPR’s Chief Development Officer, driving the organization’s national fundraising efforts. Evans will be a key ambassador for NPR’s mission and journalism with major donors and high-level stakeholders, building and strengthening relationships that promote and support an effective, stable, growing and vibrant public radio ecosystem. She starts November 17 and will be based in Washington, D.C.

I’m thrilled to join NPR at a moment when access to high-quality, nonprofit journalism is more essential than ever for the health of our democracy" said Evans. "I’m especially passionate about the opportunity to support public radio stations that are lifelines for communities across America where local news sources are increasingly scarce"

Rachel’s experience in strategic development for organizations with essential, outcome-driven missions is well aligned with our goals and the opportunity of this moment" said NPR CEO Katherine Maher. I’m excited to partner with her in advancing fundraising efforts that will safeguard independent journalism and sustain the ability of NPR and Member stations to provide high-quality news and programming in service to the American public"

Evans most recently served as Chief Revenue & Development Officer at Teach For America, where she led a national fundraising team that increased revenue, first-time donations, and donor dollar retention. Prior to that, as CEO of CityBridge Education, she partnered with D.C. schools, government stakeholders, and community partners to invest millions into the local education ecosystem. As a former White House Fellow — a selective non-partisan public service and leadership program — Evans served as Chief of Staff to the Under Secretary of Defense for Personnel and Readiness. She also held multiple leadership roles at TNTP (formerly The New Teacher Project). She began her career as a Teach For America high school teacher in Baltimore.

In addition to her full-time career, Evans serves as an officer and chaplain candidate in the US Army Reserve. She is completing her Master of Divinity at Duke Divinity School and holds a BA in English Literature from Texas A&M, an MA in Teaching from Johns Hopkins University, and an Executive MBA from the Quantic School of Business & Technology.

About NPR

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