Kurt Roger Cherry
Kurt Roger Cherry has been working at the intersection of media finance, public media, and the black press for over 40 years. He is CEO of Fertile Ground Factory, LLC (“Fertile Ground”) a social enterprise that is building enterprises in collaboration with social entrepreneurs’ intent on developing wealth and human capital in their communities. Prior to founding Fertile Ground, Cherry was COO and board member of Caligoo, Inc., an Italian based cognitive enterprise software company.
In 2003, he became one of the first principal owners and Managing Member of Real Times Media (formerly, Sengstacke Enterprises), publisher of the Chicago Defender, New Pittsburgh Courier, Michigan Chronicle and Tri-State Defender of Memphis, outside of the Robert Sengstacke Abbott Family since its founding in 1905. During his brief time as the Managing Member of Real Times Media, Cherry led the financial and organizational restructuring of the enterprise.
In 1990, Cherry, along other civic Chicagoans, co-founded Chicago Public Media (“CPM”), home to WBEZ 91.5 FM, Vocalo.org and the Chicago Sun-Times (“CST”). In 2022, CPM became the largest nonprofit local news organization in the nation. From its inception and during his 11-year tenure at CPM, Cherry’s leadership was foundational to the nascent organization – as Treasurer, Chair of the Finance Committee and Chair of the Navy Pier broadcast platform oversight committee. As a representative of CPM, he led the structuring, negotiation and documentation of the 100-year air-rights lease and public/private financing that provided CPM its foundational capital structure and funding to build its Navy Pier broadcasting platform. In addition, he chaired the Programming and Strategic Planning Committee that greenlit the investment in the national syndicated and Peabody award winning broadcast and global podcast – “This American Life” hosted by Ira Glass. Cherry remains affiliated with CPM as an Emeriti Director.
Cherry is Executive Producer of Mister Abbott – an Emmy nominated revelatory documentary short about the life and times of Robert Sengstacke Abbott, founder and publisher of the Chicago Defender, and produced by Fertile Ground.
Kurt holds an MS, Public Management and Policy, from Carnegie-Mellon University, and a BS, Physics, from Tougaloo College. He attended the Professional Accounting Program at the Kellogg School, Northwestern University. The Honorable George H.W. Bush presented Kurt with the Presidential Volunteer Action Award at a White House ceremony for his volunteer efforts on behalf of Jobs For Youth/Chicago in May 1990.