Kristin Henning ’75 has been and continues to be a significant change agent in journalism. Throughout her long and successful career, Henning has demonstrated not only strong entrepreneurial courage and leadership, but also forward-looking insight on 45 years of shifting demographics, emerging cultural trends, and rapidly changing modes of media consumption. In 1979, Henning and her husband, Tom Bartel ’73, debuted Sweet Potato, a monthly newspaper focused on the Twin Cities music scene. Sweet Potato went weekly in 1981 and rebranded as City Pages, going on to win numerous awards. In 1990, Henning and Bartel purchased the magazine Minnesota Parent. Under Henning’s leadership, Minnesota Parent broke with the traditional parenting magazine genre to include more literary content and redesigned the publication to include art and photography illustrating personal essays. The magazine won multiple first-place awards from Northwestern University’s Medill School of Journalism, including two for best parenting publication nationwide. From 2000 to 2008, Henning and Bartel published the ground-breaking literary city magazine The Rake.
In 2010, after selling their publications at the conclusion of 30 years in publishing, Henning and Bartel set out on a journey to see the world. Out of this transition, they developed Travel Past 50, which is hailed as a leading resource for travel stories and useful suggestions for intelligent and curious travelers. Henning has now received a dozen awards for Excellence in Travel Journalism from the North American Travel Journalists Association and SATW, the Society of American Travel Writers, among others. Over the past eight years, she’s been a regular contributor to Travel Writers Radio, based in Melbourne, Australia.
Henning’s work has been recognized by print and online publications, industry influencers, and professional associations. As a publisher, she served as the first female president of the Association of Alternative Newsweeklies. Her freelance work has appeared in the Star Tribune; International Living; Food, Wine & Travel Magazine; Green Global Travel; American Craft; and online for various outlets. Henning has been a successful and recognized entrepreneur and leader in an industry that has experienced significant change in the past four decades. Throughout her career, Henning has reached—and no doubt entertained, informed, and influenced—millions of readers.