Networking: 11:30 Lunch program: noon – 1:00 pm. Horace Mann headquarters, Springfield IL Lunch will be included, please share any dietary restrictions on the sign up form.

Join the Mid-Illinois Communications Association for a conversation on the future of local news.

Stacy Reed, chief program officer at the Community Foundation for the Land of Lincoln and director of Press Forward Springfield, and Kate McKenzie, CEO of Local Journalism Matters, which operates the Illinois Times and Springfield Business Journal, will discuss the national Press Forward movement, the work underway through its Springfield chapter and what a stronger, more sustainable local news ecosystem could look like in central Illinois.

Whether you work in communications, journalism or nonprofit outreach, this is a chance to hear directly from two people shaping how our community stays informed.