NATAS Announces Two New Board Members and COO Promotion

The National Academy of Television Arts and Sciences (NATAS) has announced that Laurens Grant and Jacob Ullman have joined its Board of Directors. Chief of Staff Lara Gates has been promoted to Chief Operating Officer.

Grant, a Spirit, Peabody, and three-time Emmy Award-winning documentary filmmaker, fills the board position previously held by Megan Chao. Ullman, a ten-time Emmy Award winner and SVP of Production and Talent Development at FOX Sports, fills the position previously held by Ronit Larone. Both represent their respective peer groups in Documentary and Sports programming, filling vacancies created by the November 2025 officer elections.

Also joining the Executive Committee as Secretary is Bob Boden, who also chairs the NATAS Membership Committee. Past Secretary Julie Lucas and National Awards Committee Vice Chair David Solomon join as at-large E.C. appointees. Ronit Larone moves to Second Vice Chair of the Executive Committee and Board of Directors.

The work of our academy is more critical now than ever and I'm proud of the team of exceptional Directors we have leading the charge, says Terry O'Reilly, Chair, NATAS. At a time when the hard working broadcasters are up against unbelievable odds, we owe it to our members, the industry and the communities we serve to bring our A team and this group is definitely that.

Laurens Grant has made films for MGM+, WBD, PBS, Showtime, CNN, BET, and others. Recent projects include the Spirit Award-winning docuseries Hollywood Black as Co-Executive Producer and For All Humankind as director, writer, and showrunner, with Trevor Noah as executive producer.

Jacob Ullman is in his 11th year as SVP of Production and Talent Development at FOX Sports, overseeing NFL, NASCAR, and IndyCar broadcasts and talent development. He identified Kevin Burkhardt, Greg Olsen, and Kevin Harvick for FOX Sports during his career.

Lara Gates joined NATAS national office in January 2022 after more than a decade as Executive Director of the Rocky Mountain Southwest Chapter of NATAS, preceded by a 20-year career in television news and production.

NATAS will present the 53rd Annual Daytime Emmy Awards on October 30, 2026 in Hollywood, and is currently accepting submissions for the 77th Annual Technology and Engineering Emmy Awards. The 48th Annual Sports Emmy Awards, 48th Annual News and Documentary Emmy Awards, and 5th Annual Children's and Family Emmy Awards are all planned for 2027.

LINK:	https://www.sportsvideo.org/2026/06/17/natas-announces-two-new-board-m...
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