| As co-founder of Vector
Communications, Laurna Godwin is a three-time Emmy award winning broadcast
journalist who spent nearly twenty years in television as a news anchor,
reporter, talk show host and producer. She worked at a variety of
cities and television stations throughout the country including WNET-TV
in New York City and serving as a mid-west stringer for CNN in St.
Louis, Missouri. Prior to co-creating Vector, Laurna was the sole
owner of Godwin Communications, a media relations and video production
company.
As the partner responsible for Vector’s communications department,
Laurna has won several international and national journalism awards,
including top honors from the “Communicator” Awards
for a video she produced on the City of St. Louis’ economic
development program. The award is given to those whose ability to
communicate puts them “among the best in the field and whose
work serves as a benchmark for the industry.” In April 2006,
Laurna received the Federation of Press Women – Missouri affiliate’s
Quest Award, which recognizes professional communicators whose work
“reflects an enduring quest for the highest standards of professional
ethics and excellence".
In addition to Vector, Laurna is Contributing Publisher of St.
Louis Woman Magazine.
The mission of the three-year-old publication is to inspire, educate
and motivate women.
Laurna has also won several awards for her professional and civic
leadership. Last fall, the St. Louis Business Journal named her
one of the most influential minority business leaders in the region.
In 2004, Women of Achievement honored Laurna in the category of
community leadership. That same year she received the African-American
Woman of Distinction award from POW, the Professional Organization
of Women. In 2003, Laurna was recognized as one of the 25 most influential
businesswomen in St. Louis.
Laurna currently serves on several civic and corporate boards.
Laurna is a corporate director for the Journal Register Company,
a leading U.S. newspaper publishing company based in Pennsylvania
that owns 22 daily newspapers and nearly 320 non-dailies. She is
Chair of the Board of the Girl Scouts of Eastern Missouri, one of
the largest Girl Scout Councils in the United States serving more
than 63,000 girls with 17,000 volunteers. Laurna also serves on
the Board of Directors of the Greater St. Louis Community Foundation,
the St. Louis Regional Chamber and Growth Association (RCGA) and
Women of Achievement. Appointed by Mayor Francis Slay, Laurna is
a Commissioner in the City of St. Louis serving on the Downtown
Economic Stimulus Authority.
Laurna received her undergraduate degree in English Literature
and American Studies from Princeton University and her masters in
journalism from Columbia University in New York City.
|
