Patricia de Stacy Harrison

President and Chief Executive Officer, Corporation for Public Broadcasting

As president and chief executive officer of the Corporation for Public Broadcasting (CPB), Patricia de Stacy Harrison heads up the leading funder of public radio and public television programming in the United States.

Under her leadership, Harrison has strengthened public service media through the strategic focus of CPB in three important areas – digital, diversity and dialogue. To strengthen CPB’s commitment, she established the first Diversity and Innovation Fund for public media.

Under Harrison’s leadership in 2011, CPB launched American Graduate: Let’s Make It Happen, which supports community-based solutions to help young people succeed in school and life. To date, over 125 stations in 49 states are working with more than 1,700 local partners and schools to encourage students to stay on track to graduation. For her work and commitment to helping young people, she was honored in 2016 with a Promise of America Award from the America’s Promise Alliance.

She was formerly chairman of the Leadership Council of Women and Girls Lead, a public media initiative that educates and connects women, girls and their allies across the globe. She also was on the 2012 Forbes list of “Women Changing the World in Media.”

Prior to joining CPB in 2005, Harrison served as Assistant Secretary of State for Educational and Cultural Affairs and Acting Under Secretary for Public Diplomacy and Public Affairs. She is the recipient of many awards, including the David Lynch Foundation Lifetime in Service Award, the Ellis Island 2017 Medal of Honor Award, the 2008 Leadership Award from the White House Initiative on Historically Black Colleges and Universities, and the U.S. Secretary of State’s Distinguished Service Award. She is the author of two books, “A Seat at The Table: An Insider’s Guide for America’s New Women Leaders” and “America’s New Women Entrepreneurs.”