Minnesota Public Radio Elects Bo Thao-Urabe to Board of Trustees

Jan 4, 2023

ST. PAUL, Minn. Jan. 4, 2023 – Minnesota Public Radio (MPR) is pleased to announce the election of Bo Thao-Urabe to its Board of Trustees. She is the founder and president of Seed.Grow.Bloom LLC, a consulting company that partners with executives and organizations to design and advance systems change solutions. Thao-Urabe is a former member of the President's White House Commission on Asian Americans, Native Hawaiians, and Pacific Islanders under the Obama administration. 

“We are grateful to add the talent and experience of Bo Thao-Urabe to the MPR Board,” said Jean Taylor, CEO of MPR and American Public Media Group. “Her entrepreneurial spirit and eye for system-wide change, as well as her passion and commitment to our community will be invaluable as we move into the future of public media. I am energized to work with Bo and anticipate she will make significant contributions." 

Thao-Urabe has a long track record of leadership in the Asian American and Pacific Islander (AAPI) community. She is the founder and former executive director of the Coalition of Asian American Leaders (CAAL), where she led award-winning campaigns. Thao-Urabe has also served as executive director of Hmong National Development and the Women's Association of Hmong and Lao and was senior director of Asian Americans/Pacific Islanders in Philanthropy. 

“As a longtime listener and supporter of MPR, I have come to appreciate the power of public media to unite and influence a community,” said Thao-Urabe. “The oral tradition has a long and storied history, and it continues to be a vital part of our culture today. I am excited to bring my leadership and community experience to the table and support MPR's ongoing commitment to inclusion in all aspects of its storytelling." 

In addition to her work at CAAL, Thao-Urabe co-founded several organizations, including RedGreen Rivers, BMPP Giving Circle, MaivPAC, Building Our Future: A Global Community Campaign and the Asian Pacific Islander Institute on Gender-Based Violence.  

Thao-Urabe has received numerous awards for her leadership and impact, including a Bush Fellowship in 2019, the Facing Race Award, the National Philanthropy Day Award, AZNS Most Influential Asian Americans, the Augsburg College Courageous Woman Award and the Governor's MLK Day Commitment to Service Award. 

She currently serves on the Board of Regents at the University of Minnesota, Drake Bank and The Saint Paul & Minnesota Foundation.  

Thao-Urabe received her bachelor's from the University of Minnesota. She resides in Eagan and enjoys spending time with her family and traveling.  

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About Minnesota Public Radio 
Minnesota Public Radio® (MPR®) operates a 46-station radio network serving almost all of Minnesota and parts of surrounding states for more than 50 years. MPR reaches nearly 1 million weekly listeners. MPR and its three regional services—MPR News, YourClassical MPR and The Current®—produce programming for radio, digital and live audiences. Programs produced by MPR’s national programming division, American Public Media® (APM), reaches over 17 million listeners with nearly 1,000 public radio stations and over 400 commercial stations nationwide each week. APM is one of the largest producers and distributors of public radio programming in the world. APM Studios produces award-winning podcasts spanning the best in investigative journalism, food, business and entertainment. For more information on MPR, visit minnesotapublicradio.org.