KentuckyTop story
KET CEO Shae Hopkins, who led the network for more than 17 years, has died at 69
Hopkins' KET career in numbers
- 40
- years as a KET employee
- 40
- regional Emmy awards during her tenure
- 144
- Emmy nominations
- 83
- national and state awards
Source: NKyTribune
If you grew up on Kentucky Educational Television, this one lands close to home. Executive director and CEO Shae Hopkins died Thursday at 69. The NKyTribune reported she died after "a brief but courageous battle with cancer," according to associates.
- Led KET: more than 17 years
- Retirement: planned for the end of the year
- Announced retirement: this past August
- Replacement: a search committee has been looking
Under her leadership, KET's programs and services doubled their use. She launched The Kentucky Channel, created production studios in the Kentucky Capitol Annex and established the Louisville Production Center.
2 millionviewers and users of KET each week, and more
Use of KET's programs and services has doubled under Hopkins, growing steadily to more than two million viewers and users each week.
Source: NKyTribune
“For more than 40 years, Shae dedicated herself to Kentucky Educational Television and understood the important role it plays in bringing people together.”
House Speaker David Osborne, in a statement
