President & CEO
WXXI, Rochester, NY

Norm Silverstein has served as President & CEO of WXXI Public Broadcasting Council in Rochester since December 1995. Under his leadership, the station has been recognized nationally and locally for service to the community and for its commitment to education.

As Chair of the New York Public Television Association, Norm works to use the capacity of public broadcasting for education, public service, community development and Homeland Security. He also represents public broadcasting as a Director of the New York State Broadcasters Association. Norm is a founding member of the Joint Licensee Affinity Group and works to promote partnerships between public radio and public television. A past member of the PBS education task force, Norm is dedicated to quality educational children's television. He initiated a "safe haven" of television programming at WXXI – 11 hours of non-commercial, non-violent children's programs that air each weekday. Norm was named Educator of the Year by Phi Delta Kappa in 2001.

Before joining WXXI in 1995, Norm served as senior vice president of Maryland Public Television (MPT), where his duties included corporate communications, state and national government relations, and testifying before numerous legislative committees on behalf of public television. Prior to joining public broadcasting, Norm was a broadcast news correspondent in Washington, DC, where his assignments included Capitol Hill and state and local government. He also served as a Deputy News Secretary and senior aide to the Governor of Maryland.

Norm is a graduate of The American University in Washington, D.C., where he studied political science and communications. He earned a master's degree in management from Johns Hopkins University in Baltimore.