Who’s Who on the FBA 2024 Board of Directors

On December 5, 2023, the Fiber Broadband Association (FBA) gathered at its annual Premier Members Meeting in Palm Springs, Calif., to elect a new Board of Directors. With the industry coming into its largest investment cycle yet, the new Board is comprised of a diverse assortment of industry leaders who have demonstrated a long-term commitment to FBA and its mission to accelerate fiber broadband deployments and close the digital equity gap across North America.

“The fiber broadband industry is set to experience the biggest and best year in fiber broadband history, and our 2024 Board of Directors is an excellent group of experienced leaders to guide us through it,” said Gary Bolton, President and CEO at the Fiber Broadband Association. “Collectively, they represent a broad range of companies within the fiber ecosystem, serving a diverse assortment of roles within their own organizations. They bring unique, knowledgeable perspectives to FBA and our members that will help us advance fiber broadband deployments until every community is connected.”

Jimmy Todd, CEO and General Manager for Nex-Tech, was elected as the new Board Chair for a one-year term beginning on January 1, 2024. Todd has dedicated his time and leadership to the Association for many years, serving as Board Vice Chair in 2023, and Secretary in 2022. He also served as board liaison for FBA’s In-Home Experience Working Group Committee and serves as co-chair of the FBA’s newly formed Precision Agriculture committee. 

The full 2024 Board of Directors includes the following fiber broadband industry leaders:

Chair: Jimmy Todd, CEO and General Manager, Nex-Tech

Vice Chair: Kimberly McKinley, Deputy Director and Chief Marketing Officer, UTOPIA Fiber

Secretary: Sachin Gupta, Director of Business Development, Centranet

Treasurer: Gregg Logan, Vice President of Engineering, C Spire

Mark Boxer, Technical Manager – Solutions and Applications Engineering, OFS

Ashley Brown, Senior Director Field Marketing, Adtran

Evann Freeman, Vice President, Government & Community Relations, EPB of Chattanooga

Scott Jackson, National Market Manager – Broadband, Graybar

Ariane Schaffer, Government Affairs & Public Policy Manager, Google Fiber

Joining the board as newly elected members are Ashley Brown, Evann Freeman, and Sachin Gupta. Each will serve three-year terms beginning in 2024. 

Brown has contributed to FBA’s Conference Committee and Women in Fiber Committee for the past two years. Freeman has worked with FBA’s Public Policy Committee and continues to serve on FBA’s Conference Committee as chair, helping to plan and coordinate the annual Fiber Connect conference and Regional Fiber Connect Workshops. Gupta served as co-chair on the Tribal Broadband Roundtable. He has also contributed to FBA’s Power Utilities Roundtable Steering Committee, Workforce Development Committee, and helped create a Working Group for Middle Mile Networks.

Departing Board members who reached the end of their three-year terms in 2023 are Katie Espeseth, Vice President of EPB of Chattanooga; Joe Jensen, Director of Market Development at Corning; and Joseph “JJ” Jones, President of On Trac, Inc., All three board members will continue to serve FBA on its Senior Council Committee, each for a three-year term.

Espeseth served on the board for six years, including as Chair in 2020 and 2021, and acted as the board liaison for FBA’s Women in Fiber Committee. Jensen also served on the board for six years, held the role of Treasurer in 2022 and 2023, and was the board liaison for the Trusted Fiber Working Group Committee. Jones served as Board Chair in 2023 and Vice Chair in 2022. Additionally, Jones has served or chaired various FBA committees for the past 16 years, including serving as the Fiber Connect Conference Chairman for seven consecutive years.