NDNC hires CEO to take organization to next level

With her background in rural newspapers and over three decades of experience as a print, TV and radio journalist, Sabrina Halvorson is poised to take on a new role leading the North Dakota News Cooperative as its first Chief Executive Officer. 

“We’re excited that Sabrina will be putting her skills and background to work for the North Dakota News Cooperative,” said Steve Andrist, co-chair of NDNC’s board, who announced the hiring on Feb. 17. “She has extensive journalism experience and understands the vision and mission that drive our passion for providing important, multi-sourced, edited and fact-checked information about North Dakota to North Dakotans,” Andrist said. 

Halvorson cut her teeth as a reporter at the The Ranchos News, a newspaper her father started in their small community nestled within the agricultural heartland of California’s Central Valley, in 1995. 

Through this she saw the importance of local newspapers to their communities and how having the paper helps bring the community together. 

Over the years the paper spurred efforts to get a volunteer fire station, a library, a senior center, and later an annual parade that continues to this day, she said. 

“That solidified to me how important rural newspapers are to communities,” Halvorson said. 

Halvorson went on to specialize in agricultural news, first in California, and since 2017, from North Dakota as a broadcaster for the American Ag Network, and later as a national correspondent for AgNet Media. 

Halvorson said she feels the position is something she’s been working toward her entire career, even if she didn’t fully realize that at first. 

She sees the community value of nonprofit news and aims to make NDNC a household name.

“I would like for us to be really involved in the community,” she said. “Community is truly important to me. I love North Dakota, and I adore the people here. So I would like for the news cooperative to be something that everybody knows, that they can rely on, and know that we are serving them.” 

Halvorson is excited to continue the mission of supporting North Dakota’s newspapers and stressed the importance of providing in-depth journalism and expanding news literacy across the state. 

Halvorson joins correspondent Michael Standaert on the NDNC team. She will be responsible for management, engagement, marketing and fundraising, among other things, for the nonprofit organization.

“Michael successfully carried us through the startup stage of the organization, and now we are primed to move to the next level so that we can sustain this work long-term,” Andrist said. “Sabrina has the necessary skillsets to lead that effort.” 

Board member Cally Peterson said she felt Halvorson has the background, experience and personality to be a great fit for the CEO role and take the news cooperative to the next level. 

“She's got a true passion for what we're trying to do,” Peterson said. “She had to be the scrappy journalist for a lot of her career and do really hard things. And I think this job is going to be hard, but I think she's got the guts to do it.” 

The North Dakota News Cooperative is a nonprofit news organization providing reliable and independent reporting on issues and events that impact the lives of North Dakotans. The organization increases the public’s access to quality journalism and advances news literacy across the state. For more information about NDNC or to make a charitable contribution, please visit newscoopnd.org. Send comments, suggestions or tips to michael@newscoopnd.org. Follow us on Twitter: https://twitter.com/NDNewsCoop.