COMMUNICATIONS, MEDIA AND PRESS OFFICE

Office of the Press Secretary
For Immediate Release | May 29, 2024

Grace Sawyer Appointed Interim Senior White House Correspondent

WASHINGTON - AKSM News is pleased to announce that Grace Sawyer will join the White House correspondents team effective Wednesday, May 29, 2024 as interim senior White House correspondent.

Sawyer will temporarily fill the position through August 19, 2024 which is currently held by Dean Millard who will be taking a leave of absence to serve in the office of Pennsylvania’s lieutenant governor Austin Davis. Upon Millard’s return to the White House correspondents team, Sawyer will take the role of assistant chief White House producer where she will help lead the team’s White House coverage.

Millard said, “I am incredibly humbled and honored to begin working on policy in the Office of Pennsylvania Lieutenant Governor Austin Davis this summer. […] I am confident that Grace will flourish in this role during my absence from AKSM Media. I look forward to returning to my White House role with AKSM Media in August after completing my term in Harrisburg.”

An award-winning photojournalist, Sawer has previously served as a photographer and columnist The Breeze newspaper for which her role of photojournalist won Photo of the Year in 2023. Additionally, Sawyer has worked for NBC Sports on their production team previously to her transition to the White House.

Assistant White House editor Georgia Simon said, “Although I am looking forward to Dean eventually coming back as our senior correspondent, I am ecstatic to have Grace taking over the position during his absence. She has shown so much improvement and professionalism over her career so far and I cannot wait to see what she does in this next chapter.”

Originally from Huntingtown, Maryland, Sawyer is currently pursuing a Bachelor of Arts Degree in Media Arts and Design with a Journalism concentration at James Madison University in Harrisonburg, Virginia. Sawyer has also been given the leadership positions of Director of Historian and Committee Head of Social Media for her professional sorority, Alpha Omega Epsilon.

Sawyer said, “I could not be more excited to join this team full of incredible journalists and passionate documentarians. Everyone at AKSM Media is someone I look up to and can learn from and I know they will help me grow both personally and professionally. I am so elated to cover historic events, meet incredible people with similar passions, and gain experience in a truly crucial area of journalism. I can’t wait to learn, contribute, and hopefully make change!”

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