Meet Lift Her Up Awardee: Cheryl Renee

Cheryl Renee is an award-winning broadcast journalist who has been a trusted voice in the Chattahoochee Valley for more than two decades, anchoring Columbus’ top-rated morning and midday newscasts with professionalism, credibility and a deep connection to the community.

For 22 years, Renee has served as anchor of News Leader 9 Morning and News Leader 9 at Noon on WTVM, becoming one of the region’s most recognizable and respected journalists. Her path to television news, however, began outside the newsroom.

A graduate of Spelman College with a bachelor’s degree in economics, Renee later earned a master’s degree in business from Case Western Reserve University in her hometown of Cleveland, Ohio. She began her career in marketing and sales in Chicago before discovering her passion for journalism during a visit to a FOX-affiliated newsroom.

Determined to pursue storytelling, she earned a master’s degree in broadcast journalism from Syracuse University’s Newhouse School of Public Communications. She later worked in Savannah, Georgia, at WTOC-TV and WSAV-TV as a producer, reporter and anchor before joining WTVM in 2003.

Renee has received multiple Associated Press awards for breaking news and team coverage. In 2025, she was inducted into the Silver Circle of the Southeast Chapter of the National Academy of Television Arts & Sciences.

Active in community and professional organizations, Renee also serves as a licensed Georgia real estate agent. She and her husband, Todd, a retired Army Ranger, live in the Columbus area.