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I can definitively say: Scalawag is in a period of growth. We've ended our print publication and already launched two new products: Salt, Soil, & Supper, a weekly newsletter on agriculture, foodways, and the environment in the Gulf States, and we've joined Subtext, making it possible for folks all across the South to text us their questions about voting, the upcoming election, and send story tips about voter suppression. We're in the process of hiring a visual editor to help us translate the beautiful aesthetic of our magazine to our digital presence, thanks to the Sustainable Publishers Solutions initiative we're making the move to Newspack to maximize our ability to be responsive onsite, and we're hosting our sixth virtual event since the pandemic started as a part of Abolition Week. Things are moving.
As a small team, we depend on partners, supporters, and friends to get all of this done. That's why we are ecstatic to welcome Andrea Hart, Lindsay Foster Thomas, and Amber Richarson as our newest partners and members of our board of directors.
Andrea Faye Hart is an award-winning media-based organizer and interdisciplinary educator who co-founded the Chicago-based civic journalism lab City Bureau. She currently works as an organizational development consultant helping local news nonprofits push for good trouble across the country while pursuing a Master's of Divinity at Vanderbilt University as a Dean's Scholar. In 2019 she was honored as a catalyst by Northwestern University for their "150 Years of Women" celebration. She's a proud queer femme dog mama to a pitbull named Studs (as in Terkel) and shares her ramblings on Twitter at @lenifaye. Andrea will serve as Scalawag's board co-chair.
Lindsay Foster Thomas is a multiplatform journalist and audio storyteller with a background in public radio production and leadership that began at North Carolina Public WUNC where she currently serves as Content Director.
Lindsay was a producer, then managing editor for WUNC's midday talk show The State of Things. At Marketplace, she helped re-launch a weekend personal finance program and embedded with an investigative reporting team for the project "York & Fig," which examined gentrification through the study of one Los Angeles neighborhood. Thomas was senior producer for the first iteration of On Second Thought at Georgia Public Broadcasting with host Celeste Headlee. She was also part of the national production team at WAMU in Washington that launched NPR's 1A with founding host Joshua Johnson, serving as its senior managing producer.
Lindsay is a graduate of Columbia University's School of Journalism and Hampton University. Her expertise includes innovative audience engagement, live events and serial storytelling with an attention to diversity. She's on Twitter @LFTeveryvoice. Lindsay will serve as Scalawag's board co-chair.
Amber Richardson is a communications strategist specializing in social media, digital advertising and online storytelling. She began her career in the nonprofit sector, serving mission-driven youth organizations in North Carolina and Washington, DC. Today she uses her technical expertise, eye for design and commitment to excellence to help companies and organizations achieve tangible results.
Amber is a graduate of Duke University and the North Carolina School of Science and Mathematics. Previously, Amber managed all communications initiatives – including website redesign, social media, media relationships, press releases and more for the Center for Native American Youth (CNAY) at The Aspen Institute. She currently works at Management Leadership for Tomorrow.
Amber is a proud citizen of the Haliwa-Saponi Indian Tribe and grew up in Hollister, North Carolina.
In addition to Andrea, Amber, and Lindsay, Scalawag's co-founders Jesse Williams and Evan Walker-Wells will serve their second terms on the board.
We are overjoyed that these three diverse, brilliant women will be joining our board. Their wealth of knowledge and experience in journalism, communications, organizational development, and community-driven change work is a reflection of Scalawag's mission and commitment to the South. We cannot wait to build together. Onward!