Deborah Acklin, who was behind WQED's successful "Doo Wop" music specials and oversaw production of "The War That Made America," has been tapped to lead the multimedia company.

WQED Multimedia's board of directors on Thursday unanimously approved the appointment of Ms. Acklin as its president-elect and chief executive officer.

She replaces George Miles Jr., who is leaving the helm of the organization after more than 16 years. The change in leadership takes effect Sept. 23, at the end of WQED's fiscal year.

Ms. Acklin joined WQED in 1996 as an executive producer and has worn many hats at the organization, including launching the nightly "OnQ" program.

The vote was expected. In October 2009, Mr. Miles announced his plans to retire, and Ms. Acklin was promoted from general manager to the new position of executive vice president and chief operating officer.

"This is absolutely amazing" for someone who watched WQED as a kid growing up in Pittsburgh, Ms. Acklin said following the announcement. "There's something new and fresh every day" on both the TV and radio station, she said. "That's something to celebrate and something to build on. There's a lot of hard work ahead of us, but a lot of good work ahead of us."

Mr. Miles said he is leaving the company in good hands. "This is a person who's more than capable of taking over the reins and leading for the next 10 or 15 years," he said.

Board chairman Dick Stover said WQED has made "enormous progress" under Mr. Miles' leadership. "We're looking for the same kind of progress, if not greater. We're confident that the baton will be handed over with a minimum of disruption to this momentum."

In other board news, the organization reported a net gain of $423,258 as of May 31 and projects that it will end the fiscal year in September above the break-even point.

For the period ending May 31, contributions were $4.08 million, compared with $3.4 million during the same period in 2009. Funding from government grants, revenues from program production and investments were up, while foundation and institutional giving and broadcast underwriting declined.

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