Judy Woodruff: 5 Fast Facts You Need to Know

PBS anchor Judy Woodruff is co-moderating Thursday night’s Democratic debate in Wisconsin alongside her colleague Gwen Ifill.

The debate between former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton and Vermont Senator Bernie Sanders is set for 9 p.m. Eastern on PBS.

Here’s what you need to know about Woodruff:

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1. She Is the Co-Anchor of PBS NewsHour With Ifill

Judy Woodruff is currently the co-anchor of PBS NewsHour with her fellow debate moderator Gwen Ifill.

According to the PBS website, Woodruff, 69, has been the show’s co-anchor since 2007. She previously worked at PBS from 1983 to 1990, as a Washington correspondent.

She also is the founding co-chair of the International Women’s Media Foundation, and serves on the boards of trustee for the Freedom Forum, the Newseum, the Duke Endowment and the Urban Institute.

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2. Her Father Was in the Army & Her Family Moved Often When She Was Growing Up

Woodruff was born in Oklahoma, but was an “army brat” and moved around the country and to foreign military bases with her family while growing up.

She told TV Newser she, “lived on or near several U.S. Army bases, in New Jersey and Missouri, as well as in Germany and Taiwan — where my father was stationed before he was transferred to Fort Gordon, Georgia — near Augusta. Moving there, in 7th grade, exposed me to a part of the United States I’d never known — and to a way of life that was all new. Though I’ve always considered myself only half a Southerner, because I’d lived all over the world before moving there, to this day, I can’t shake that hint of a Southern accent! I guess that’s because I don’t want to!”

She was named Young Miss Augusta 1963.

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3. She Graduated From Duke University & Began Her News Career in Atlanta

Woodruff attended Meredith College and transferred to Duke University, where she graduated with a degree in political science, according to the PBS website.

She began her journalism career as a news anchor for WAGA-TV, the CBS affiliate in Atlanta, Georgia, in 1970. She moved to NBC News in 1975, and then on to PBS in 1983.

After leaving PBS in 1993, she worked for 12 years at CNN.

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4. She Is Married to a Fellow Journalist & Has 3 Children, Including a Son With Spina Bifida

Woodruff is married to fellow journalist Al Hunt, formerly of CNN and the Wall Street Journal, who currently works for Bloomberg News.

They have three children, including a son, Jeff, who was born with spina bifida. Woodruff has helped raise awareness about the birth defect.

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5. She Has Been Honored With Several Awards During Her Distinguished Career

Woodruff has received several awards and honors during her career, according to the PBS website.

She has received the Cine Lifetime Achievement Award, a Duke Distinguished Alumni award, the Edward R. Murrow Lifetime Achievement Award in Broadcast Journalism/Television and the University of Southern California Walter Cronkite Award for Excellence in Journalism.