Lexington journalist Barb Batie has been named the 2022 Communicator of Achievement (COA) by Nebraska Press Women (NPW). This award, which was presented at the organization's fall conference in Kearney, is one of the highest honors for NPW members. Selection is based on the nominee's professional achievements, community service and service to the organization.

Batie is well-known for her reporting, particularly on agricultural issues. A farmer as well as a journalist, Batie has won awards for her columns, photos and reporting for the Midwest Messenger, Tri-City Tribune, Lexington Clipper-Herald and, in her early days, for the North Platte Telegraph and Norfolk Daily News.

Batie is a board member and secretary of the International Farm Youth Exchange (IFYE) Association of the USA, and has hosted several IFYE students at her home.

In 2019, she traveled with Gov. Pete Ricketts on the Nebraska Trade Mission to Germany. Batie was also appointed by him to the 17-member Nebraska Sesquicentennial Commission that planned and organized the celebration.

Batie is a past board member of the Nebraska Environmental Trust as well as a past executive committee member of the Nebraska Alumni Association Women’s Leadership Network.

She has been a 4-H leader for decades, is a board member for the Lexington’s volunteer movie theater, and is active at Trinity Church, Dawson County Museum, and in county and state Farm Bureau.

Barb and her husband Don were selected this spring for membership in the Nebraska Hall of Agricultural Achievement. Together they participate in On-farm Research studies with Nebraska Extension and often host groups that want to visit a Nebraska farm, such as the NASA Earth Scientists.

A 40-year member of both NPW and the National Federation of Press Women (NFPW), Barb has held every state office, organized numerous conferences, hosted the NFPW pre-conference tour and represented NPW at the national conference numerous times.

Nebraska Press Women organization is open to women and men in all facets of the communications industry. It offers professional development, supports the First Amendment and nurtures the next generation of communicators.