Vol 24/Issue 6
greater owensboro chamber of commerce
JUNE
CHAMBER MATTERS 2026
Rooster Booster, Sponsored by WKU in Owensboro Featuring Renee Shaw The Chamber will host Rooster Booster breakfast on Thursday, June 4, at 7:30 a.m. at the Owensboro Convention Center (501 West Second Street). The program is sponsored by Western Kentucky University in Owensboro, and the featured speaker will be Renee Shaw, Director of Public Affairs and Moderator at KET. This month’s program will also feature baked goods from Becca Bakes as our Member Spotlight!
Reserve your spot now at www.chamber.owensboro.com or by calling the Chamber office at (270) 926-1860 by 2:00 p.m. on Wednesday, June 3. COST IN ADVANCE: $16 for Chamber Members and $26 for Future Members. COST AT THE DOOR: $21 for Chamber Members and $26 for Future Members.
Renee Michelle Shaw
WKU in Owensboro: Building Opportunities, Workforce Growth and Regional Impact For more than five decades, Western Kentucky University in Owensboro has helped students across the region pursue affordable, high-quality education right here. Today, we offer 14 degree programs on our campus—each strategically selected to address the needs of local students, working adults and area employers. We are proud of our close partnership with Owensboro Community & Technical College, and we work together to create a smooth transfer process for students so they can complete their four-year degree close to home. Students can earn their degree in a variety of areas, including Management: Business Administration; the NEW Management: Human Resource; Interdisciplinary Studies; Workforce Administration; Psychology; Sociology; Social Work; Criminology; Health Sciences; or Education, including Elementary Education, Elementary Education/Special Education Dual Certification, Interdisciplinary Early Childhood Education and Middle Grades Education. We also offer a master’s degree in Student Affairs in Higher Education. 39% of our students are working adults seeking advancement opportunities, so it’s vital for them to remain rooted in the community they call home while they continue to work. We provide personalized support for students in areas of academic advising, financial aid counseling and other student-centered services designed to help them succeed, from enrollment to graduation. Access to higher education and workforce development remain essential to long-term economic success. As Daviess County grows, we will continue to help students fulfill their higher education goals and prepare them for meaningful careers within their home communities. For more information about WKU in Owensboro, visit wku.edu/owensboro or contact us at (270) 684-9797 or owensboro@wku.edu.
Renee Shaw is the Director of Public Affairs and Moderator at KET, currently serving as host of KET’s weeknight public affairs program Kentucky Edition, the signature public policy discussion series Kentucky Tonight, Election coverage and KET Forums. A more than 30-year veteran in broadcast journalism, garnering nearly four-dozen community recognitions and industry awards, Renee was inducted into the Kentucky Journalism Hall of Fame in April of 2025; inducted into the Western Kentucky University Hall of Distinguished Alumni in 2023; earned a place in the Silver Circle of the National Academy of Television Arts and Sciences (NATAS) in 2023, one of the industry’s highest honors recognizing television professionals; and inducted into the Kentucky Civil Rights Hall of Fame in 2017. She has been recognized twice as the 50 most notable women in Kentucky politics and government by The Kentucky Gazette. Since 2001, Renee has been the producing force behind KET’s legislative coverage that has been recognized by the Kentucky Associated Press and the National Educational Telecommunications Association. Under her leadership, KET has expanded its portfolio of public affairs content to include a daily news and information program, Kentucky Supreme Court coverage, townhall-style forums, and multiplatform program initiatives around issues such as opioid addiction, youth mental health and aging. She has been honored by the McConnell Scholars in receiving the 2023 Outstanding Leadership in Kentucky award; the Kentucky Association of School Administrators 2023 William T. Nallia award for her work in elevating education issues statewide; the AKA Beta Gamma Omega Chapter with a Coretta Scott King Spirit of Ivy Award; the AKA Legacy of Social Justice Award in 2024; the 2021 Berea College Service Award; and was named “Unapologetic Woman of the Year” in 2021 by the Community Action Council. In 2014, Renee was awarded the Anthony Lewis Media Award from the KY Department of Public Advocacy for her work on criminal justice reform. Two Kentucky governors, Republican Ernie Fletcher and Democrat Andy Beshear, have commissioned Renee as a Kentucky Colonel for noteworthy accomplishments and service to community, state, and nation. A former adjunct media writing professor at Georgetown College, Renee traveled to Cambodia in 2003 to help train emerging journalists on reporting on critical health issues as part of an exchange program at Western Kentucky University. And, she has enterprised stories for national media outlets, the PBS NewsHour and Public News Service. Shaw is a 2007 graduate of Leadership Kentucky and a longtime member of the Frankfort/Lexington Chapter of The Links Incorporated, an international, non-profit organization black women committed to volunteer service. She has served on the boards of the Kentucky Historical Society, Lexington Minority Business Expo, and the Board of Governors for the Ohio Valley Chapter of the National Academy of Television Arts and Sciences and is a current board member of CASA of Lexington that advocates for abused and neglected children.