For Immediate Release: Press Contact: Mary Stewart

For Immediate Release: Press Contact: Mary Stewart,

September 9, 2013Vice President, External Affairs, WETA

/ 703.998.2830

WETA Names Nonprofit Marketing Executive Jeff Regen

New Vice President of Development

ARLINGTON, VA — Jeff Regen will join WETA, the flagship public broadcaster in the nation's capital, as vice president of development, effective immediately. The appointment was announced today by WETA Executive Vice President and Chief Operating Officer Joseph B. Bruns. Regen comes to the organization with more than 20 years of marketing and fundraising experience in both the commercial and nonprofit sectors. Prior to joining WETA, Regen served as vice president and general manager of customer relationship marketing agency Merkle, Inc.’s nonprofit practice.

“Jeff’s talent, knowledge and passion for nonprofit fundraising are evident in his strong track record of creating innovative strategies to help organizations reach their supporters and build lasting partnerships,” said Bruns. “Individual gifts are the lifeblood of public media, and Regen and his team will play a vital role in ensuring WETA programs continue to serve the community.”

As vice president of development, Regen will be responsible for contributions from WETA individual donors across all giving levels. He will work closely with the WETA senior management team to increase WETA’s fundraising effectiveness for WETA Television, Classical WETA 90.9 FM and other WETA programs and services.

“I’m very excited to join the WETA team. WETA is a leader in the public broadcasting industry, both in terms of the programming and services it offers and stewardship of donor dollars. I’m looking forward to working with the team to leverage new technologies and innovations to even more efficiently and effectively raise funds for WETA’s mission,” said Regen.

Regen’s experience working with nonprofit organizations in the multimedia, multichannel environment includes a record of successful innovations in fundraising. Prior to Merkle, Regen worked at M+R Strategic Services from 2010 to 2012. While there, Regen spearheaded the creation of a new department to integrate fundraising efforts across multiple media channels; his department was the first of its kind in the nonprofit industry. He was recognized as a leading source for bringing new organizations to the firm, including work with the American Red Cross, Doctors Without Borders and Conservation International. Prior to M+R, Regen spent six years as vice president of online marketing and communications for Defenders of Wildlife. Regen’s leadership brought increased public awareness and financial support to the organization.

Regen began his career in the private sector working in financial services industries with Capitol One, McKinsey & Company and KPMG, where he managed USAID-funded privatization and capital markets development projects overseas in Eastern Europe. Regen is a graduate of Swarthmore College with Distinction and earned a Master of Business Administration from the Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania.

WETA is the premiere public media company in Greater Washington, serving Virginia, Maryland and the District of Columbia with educational initiatives and with high-quality programming on WETA Television and Classical WETA 90.9 FM. The company has an annual operating budget of $70 million, more than 200 employees, and over 100,000 contributing members. Classical WETA 90.9 FM brings classical music, concerts and specials to Greater Washington. WETA Television broadcasts on four channels: WETA TV 26, WETA HD, WETA UK and WETA Kids. WETA Television celebrates the people and history of this region through programs such as WETA Around Town, WETA Extras and The WETA Guide. For national PBS audiences, WETA produces PBS NewsHour; Washington Week with Gwen Ifill; films by Ken Burns such as The Roosevelts: An Intimate History, premiering Fall 2014; and performance specials from the White House, the U.S. Capitol, and the John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts. Embracing the educational mission of public broadcasting, WETA creates leading public service websites such as and and develops community outreach programs to engage people of all ages in the joy of lifelong learning. The WETA studios and administrative offices are located in Arlington, Virginia. Sharon Percy Rockefeller is president and CEO of WETA. For more information about WETA and its services, visit .

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