Andrea Schoeny has been elected president of the board of directors for Kent News, Inc., the publisher of the Kent Good Times Dispatch.
Kent News, Inc. (KNI), the publisher of The Kent Good Times Dispatch, has announced the results of its recent election of its Board of Directors, as well as an appointment of a new member to its board.
At its June 10 annual meeting, the board approved the slate of 2024 officers as presented for the positions of president, secretary, and treasurer.
All board members are volunteers and serve terms for one or two years, depending on the office to which they are elected. Their terms of service begin immediately.
Andrea Schoeny was elected president and will serve a 2-year term. Andrea is a founding member of Kent News, Inc., and has served for two years as secretary of the board.
Barin Rovzar was elected treasurer, and will serve a 1-year term. Barin joined the KNI board as a member in November 2022.
Kariny Amorim was elected secretary. Kariny joined the board as a member in September 2023.
Deborah Rose will continue to serve her term as vice president, which ends June 2025. Deborah joined the board in the fall of 2022.
Founding board president Karen Chase will step down as president and stay on as a member to focus full-time on KNI’s fundraising efforts, including reader donations and grant development. She has been the driving force behind bringing a local newspaper back to town.
Additionally, John Schoen has been appointed as a new member to the board. John brings to KNI experience from a multi-decade career in journalism, including expertise in audience and product development, that will greatly benefit this phase of the newspaper’s development as it serves the Kent community.
John’s passion for local news dates back to the early days of his career at local papers in Fairfield County. At the Fairpress, a now-defunct Norwalk-based paper, John covered government and politics in seven local towns.
He then moved to the Stamford Advocate, where he reported and later supervised local coverage as city editor. Over the next 30 years, John reported, edited, and managed newsrooms across print, radio, TV, and digital platforms at Dow Jones, CBS News, NBC News, MSNBC, and CNBC.
Since leaving NBC in 2021, John has worked as a consultant for several news organizations and an academic institution, advising on digital content production and distribution, including the application of AI.
“In addition to my professional background, my interest in Kent News also stems from my personal search for reliable local news sources as a relatively new resident of Warren,” John said, expressing excitement about joining Kent News, Inc.
“My wife and I moved here full time four years ago from downstate, and as newcomers to a small town, we are eager to become more involved in the community and stay informed about local news and events,” he said.
Kent News, Inc. was incorporated as a nonprofit in May 2022 and published its first weekly online edition of The Kent GTD in October 2023, with part-time Editor Kathryn Boughton at the helm. Kathryn was the last editor of the original GTD, having served as managing editor from 2001-2009.
In February 2024, Lynn Mellis Worthington was hired as a copy editor and freelance writer. Lynn was formerly managing editor of the original GTD, taking the helm in 1988 and moving to town in 1990.
The KNI board consists of lifelong Kent residents, new full- and part-time residents, along with residents of neighboring towns with decades of experience in journalism. The board continues to work to ensure there is a sustainable, capable business to support journalism for decades to come, according to its president.
“John’s addition to KNI’s Board of Directors further strengthens our commitment to building community and enhancing the lives of our residents, businesses and organizations by providing trusted local information and covering topics of interest to Kent,” the president said.
“We look forward to John’s valuable contributions as we work together to expand our donor support, grow our advertising business, and continue to build upon the Kent GTD’s role as a reliable and trusted local news source,” she said. For more information about the publishers of The Kent GTD, visit https://kentgtd.org/about/.
