Washington, D.C., – The Rural Wireless Association (RWA) announced the results of its Board of Directors elections and the 2017-2018 Board Officers. Elections were held during RWA’s Annual Meeting on September 13, 2017 in San Francisco, California.
Newly elected to the Board is Jake Baldwin, General Counsel of Oklahoma-based Bravado Wireless. He joins re-elected board members Bert Potts, Wireless Manager of STRATA Networks in Roosevelt, Utah, and Todd Houseman, CEO of United Wireless in Dodge City, Kansas, as carrier directors. Roger Schmitz, CEO of Minnesota-based Telsasoft, was re-elected as an associate member director.
RWA President and CEO Brian Woody, Chief Customer Relations Officer for Wyoming-based Union Wireless, completed two three-year terms of service on the board. He will remain on the board in an ex officio advisory capacity. “I look forward to working with RWA’s new leadership and continuing our rural advocacy in Washington,” Woody stated.
Mike Kilgore of Sagebrush Cellular has been named incoming President and CEO. He will begin his term October 1. Bert Potts of STRATA Networks will serve as vice president, Jana Wallace, COO of Panhandle Telephone Cooperative, Inc. will serve as secretary, and Roger Schmitz, CEO of Telsasoft, will serve as treasurer.
“RWA will continue to build on its strong advocacy program and our new leadership will continue to focus on ensuring that rural America is not left behind,” stated President Elect Kilgore. “Our industry is ever-changing, but mobile broadband deployment remains vital to public safety and economic development in rural America. RWA will continue its work to ensure that consumers have the voice and data services they need – regardless of where they live, work, or travel.”
Tanya Sullivan, president and managing partner of Plus One Strategic Communications, LLC, received the Rural Wireless Leadership Award for her years of service to RWA. Sullivan was a founding board member, and served as RWA’s Executive Director and then as CEO.
David Dengel received the Rural Wireless Lifetime Achievement Award. Dengel, who recently retired from his role as CEO for Copper Valley Wireless in Valdez, AK, served on the RWA board for six years and was RWA president from 2011 – 2014.
About RWA – Headquartered in Washington, D.C., RWA - the Rural Wireless Association is a trade association representing rural wireless carriers who each serve fewer than 100,000 subscribers. RWA’s members have joined together to speed delivery of new, efficient and innovative telecommunications technologies to remote and underserved communities. For more information visit
www.ruralwireless.org