WRFI Board of Directors
WRFI is community owned and operated. Get to know the Ithaca Community Radio Board of Directors. You can read recent board minutes here, and learn about attending a board meeting here.
Peter Bakija (he/him)
President
Corinne Shanahan (she/her)
Vice President
John Young (he/him)
Treasurer
John caught the radio bug as a student, when he became a regular DJ and served as Assistant Engineer and board member at KRLX-Northfield (Minnesota), the voice of Carleton College.
As a professional musician, he has performed or been featured on national programs such as NPR’s Weekend Edition and World Café, as well as on many local stations across America. As a writer and researcher on the global environment and related issues, he has made hundreds of appearances on radio networks around the world, including NPR, Voice of America, Deutsche Welle, and the BBC. When he’s not on the radio, he’s probably listening to it.
Robin Elliot (she/they)
Recorder
Mike Cook (he/him)
Board Member
As for the nickname "Rocket", Mike has been a space junkie since he went to the Apollo 11 moon launch. "Morton" has something to do with the bass player of Capt. Beefheart's Magic Band.
Joe Romano (he/him)
Board Member
Joe Romano was the Marketing Manager at GreenStar Natural Foods Market for over a decade. Before his tenure at GreenStar, Joe played out in five bands in NYC and worked in film and television in NYC for 20 years. Before that, he taught English Literature and Creative Writing at the City University of New York. He has a wife, a daughter and two cats, (in that order), and currently resides in Ithaca, NY.
Amie Herman (she/her)
Board Member
Amie Herman has spent most of her 30-year career in marketing, organizational development, and non-profit management, serving in several senior leadership roles. Most recently Amie acted as the Senior Director of Marketing, Development and Organizational Advancement for a large regional YMCA in New Jersey where she was responsible for the direction and implementation of the Y’s development strategy and for the execution of a significant multi-year capital expansion campaign.
Amie founded an independent consulting practice in 2012 and has worked with a wide variety of corporate and non-profit organizations on key strategic efforts which have included crafting mission-forward impact messaging and branding, designing development plans, and acting as an expert facilitator to help align leadership teams to support organizational change. She received her bachelor’s degree in East Asian Studies from the University of Virginia.
Amie and her husband Tom have made Ithaca their hometown after living in their self-designed and self-built campervan for 13 months. They spent an “adult gap year” exploring the US -- hiking, biking and kayaking, and seeking out great food, drink, and live music. (blog: https://amie.substack.com) Of the many places they explored, Ithaca had the perfect combination of things they loved most, including thriving independent radio.
Joseph Haefeli (he/him)
Board Member
Joseph Haefeli was formerly the Director of Technology (including radio) for the College of Performing and Visual Arts of the University of Northern Colorado. Since his arrival as a volunteer in 2014, he has been a dynamo around the station. He has played a key role in the design and renovation of WRFI’s Studio B, the overhaul and reorganization of our signal chain, the installation of a new IP telephone system, as well as numerous other improvements.
Talaya Centeno (she/her)
Board Member
Talaya Centeno’s roots in radio began locally at WICB, where she was a local DJ and Programming Director while receiving her degree from Ithaca College in Photojournalism. A native of Manhattan, Ithaca has always been a second home where she spent summers as a child with family.
Talaya began her career as a Fashion Photographer in NYC, joining Conde Nast where she spent over ten years developing a rich portfolio of work.
Always having a passion for medicine, Talaya decided to pursue a medical career and returned to school to become a Physician Assistant. She joined the Mount Sinai Cardiothoracic unit and worked tirelessly, taking care of patients in a COVID ICU, at the height of the pandemic.
Talaya resides in Ithaca with her partner and three children, and is always happy to hear the local freight train rumble by her house.
Recent Board Meeting Minutes
March 2022 — Board Meeting Minutes
March 2022 – WRFI Board Meeting March 8, 2022, 6-8pm 6:00pm Board of Directors attendance: Present: Felix Tietelbaum John Young Alexandra Ackert-Smith David Walton Joseph Haefeli Joe Romano Chantal Thomas Robin Elliott Corinne Shanahan (staff) Absent: Carlos Gutierrez Godfrey Simmons Quorum achieved (6:06pm) 6:06pm Welcome, check-ins, call to order: Consent meeting agenda…
January 2022 — Board Meeting Minutes
WRFI Board Meeting January 11, 2022: 6-8pm Present: Felix Teitelbaum Alexandra Ackert-Smith Corinne Shanahan Carlos Gutierrez John Young Joe Romano Chantal Thomas Not Present: Godfrey Simmons Robin Elliott Joseph Haefeli David Walton Stephen Cope 6:00pm 6:03pm: Quorum achieved 6:07pm: VOTE: Adoption of Minutes & ED Report (Joe Romano motioned to approve minutes; John…
WRFI Board Meeting Minutes — December 2021
WRFI Board Meeting Minutes – December 14, 2021, 6-8pm Present: Alexandra Ackert-Smith Corinne Shanahan Robin Elliott Felix Tietelbaum Joseph Haefeli John Young Joe Romano David Walton Chantal Thomas Stephen Cope Not Present: Godfrey Simmons Carlos Gutierrez 6-6:10: Quorum achieved; Consent to agenda 6:10: Primary market research – Corinne shared report on five main zip…
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