November 23, 2022
For Immediate Release
Arlington, Va. — NTCA–The Rural Broadband Association today announced the election of board officers for 2022. Barry Adair, chief executive officer of Wabash Communications CO-OP (Louisville, Ill.), will serve as chairman, Mike Grisham, president and chief executive officer of Shawnee Communications (Equality, Ill.), will serve as vice chairman, and Roxie Jorgenson, director at MTA (Palmer, Alaska), will serve as secretary/treasurer.
Adair has served on the NTCA board since 2017, representing the Northeast Region’s cooperative members. He has worked in the rural broadband industry since 2000 and began working for Wabash Communications in 2014. He has also served as advisory council chairman for the Illinois Telephone Cooperative Association and is actively involved with the Illinois Telecommunications Association and the Illinois Independent Telephone Association. He earned a degree at Murray State University in accounting/computer information systems, and his MBA in business from William Woods University.
“I am proud to serve as the next chairman of the board for an organization whose primary goal is to bring independent, family-owned, and community-based telecommunications companies together to connect more people and businesses across rural America to fast, affordable, and reliable internet service over future-proof networks,” Adair said. “I would also like to thank the Board of Directors at Wabash Communications CO-OP for letting me serve this organization.”
In addition, Dale Merten, vice president and chief operating officer of ToledoTel (Toledo, Wash.), and Jonathan West, general manager and CEO of Twin Lakes Telephone Cooperative (Gainesboro, Tenn.), were welcomed as members of the board, representing NTCA’s Northwest Region commercial companies and Southeast Region cooperatives, respectively.
“I want to congratulate Barry, Mike, and Roxie, as well as Dale and Jonathan and the entire NTCA board,” said NTCA Chief Executive Officer Shirley Bloomfield. “As we mark one year of the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act, it is certainly an exciting time for rural broadband, and I look forward to working with all our board members to deliver the best possible broadband services to rural America.”