Mountain State Spotlight is pleased to announce that Kathambari “Kat” Ramkumar has returned to the organization as audience manager, a role where she will work with reporters to grow our audience and broaden the newsroom’s efforts to incorporate the experiences and perspectives of all West Virginians into our work.
Kat will also run our membership program to strengthen the organization’s financial sustainability.
Kat worked with Mountain State Spotlight last summer as a Reynolds Journalism Innovation Fellow. She helped the organization launch new products to better serve West Virginians, including audio stories, an SMS story alert line and a reader-curated West Virginia reading list.
“Kat made a lasting impact during her short time here last summer,” said Deputy Managing Editor Tyler Dedrick. “It is flattering and a privilege to both Mountain State Spotlight and to West Virginians that she has chosen to bring her talents back to the Mountain State.”
Most recently, Kat served as an audience engagement intern with The Connecticut Mirror. At the Mirror, she produced newsletters and vertical videos about everything from primary elections to bear sightings, published articles and managed social media.
Kat graduated from the University of Missouri in May with a degree in Journalism. She covered Missouri state government and higher education for The Columbia Missourian and KBIA.
She previously interned with Community Impact, Under the Radar Music Magazine, Kansas City Beacon, Ms. Magazine and Reynolds Journalism Institute.
In her free time, she likes to read (anything by Mohsin Hamid), listen to music and go on walks.