Connecticut Public president and CEO Mark Contreras, who has led the organization over the past seven years through the COVID-19 pandemic and Congress’ rescission of public media funding, announced Tuesday he will be retiring later this year.
Contreras, 64, has led the nonprofit since 2019 and has worked in media for more than four decades.
The company’s board of trustees has announced it has formed a search committee, and Contreras will stay with CT Public through the transition.
“My time at Connecticut Public has been both an honor and a privilege,” Contreras said in a statement. “I believe the time is right to create space for new energy, creativity and vision at the organization.”
Contreras said he is leaving Connecticut Public in a position of strength, saying that the organization is in “very good shape” and includes “many talented people who will continue to propel our mission forward.”
He said the organization is financially strong, even in light of Congress canceling funding for public media. Connecticut Public has received an influx of donations from audience members and contributions from donors, foundations, businesses and other groups. The organization also has an endowment fund.
Connecticut Public, which provides both NPR and PBS programming, was getting about $2 million each year in federal funds via the Corporation for Public Broadcasting. That’s about 10% of its budget. Contreras said last summer that the funding cut was a serious, but “surmountable” challenge.
“We have been able to substantially make up that loss because of work with our board of trustees as well as our major donors and members,” Contreras said in a Tuesday interview with Connecticut Public. “So we’re not out of the woods 100%, but we’re in pretty good shape. Our balance sheet is great. We have no debt, and we foresee this year and the year after a pretty good pathway for the organization."
Since the funding was cut, the company has not conducted layoffs. But in June 2024, CT Public laid off 4% of its staff, citing expenses growing faster than revenues.
Contreras told Connecticut Public that losing public media funding did not factor into his decision to retire.
“The institution is in very good shape, both competitively and financially,” he said. “Connecticut Public has its own story to tell, and it's a pretty good story.”
In addition, the organization’s audiences continue to get larger, he said.
“As long as we can maintain that, I think the future is extremely bright for Connecticut Public," he said.
During the pandemic, Contreras expanded the newsroom, creating new positions, adding new local radio shows and launching an investigative unit. He’s also led an initiative focused on Latino community coverage and strengthened the organization’s role as lead station with the New England News Collaborative, a group of public media stations covering local and regional issues.
Before joining CT Public, Contreras served in executive roles for various media organizations and was dean of the School of Communications at Quinnipiac University.
This story, which was prepared by the Connecticut Public newsroom, was not reviewed by Connecticut Public executives before it was published.
