Board of Directors
Our nine-member Board of Directors serves as a steady hand on the tiller of TVA. As provided by the TVA Act and the TVA Bylaws, the principle responsibilities of the Board are to establish broad strategies, goals and objectives; set long range plans and policies; and to ensure their implementation by the TVA staff, which is led by the Chief Executive Officer. Directors swear an oath to faithfully and impartially perform the duties of the office.
To learn more about the work of the Board of Directors, read about the rules and regulations that form Our Governance.
Meetings
Board Members
They are nominated by the President of the United States and confirmed by the Senate, and each serves a term of five years. The proceedings of their meetings are open to the public. When their terms expire, directors may remain on the board until the end of the current congressional session (typically in December) or until their successors take office, whichever comes first.
Chair Richard Howorth of Oxford, Miss., served two terms as mayor of Oxford and is founder and owner of Square Books, a leading independent bookstore in Oxford. As mayor, he was chairman of the authority overseeing the Oxford Electric Department. He served eight years as a director and officer of the North Mississippi Industrial Development Association and is former president of the American Booksellers Association. His term expires May 18, 2020.
Kenneth Allen of White Plains, Ky., was executive vice president of operations and chief operating officer for Armstrong Coal Company. With a 50-plus year career in the coal industry, he has served in numerous roles from field electrician to division chief electrical engineer to mine superintendent to operations manager to VP of resource development and conservancy for Peabody Energy. His term expires May 18, 2021.
A.D. Frazier of Mineral Bluff, Ga., has spent his entire 35-year career as an executive manager in the for-profit, not-for-profit and government sectors, principally in the financial services industry. After serving as the chief operating officer of the Atlanta Committee for the Olympic Games, he became the only COO to be awarded the International Olympic Committee’s Olympic Order in Gold, its highest service award. His term expires May 18, 2022.
Virginia Lodge of Nashville, Tenn. is currently CEO of FSI Inc., a position she has held since 2012. Prior to this, she served as commissioner of the Tennessee Department of Human Services from 2003 to 2011. She was the executive director for Kids Voting of Middle Tennessee from 1994 to 1999. During her entire career, Ms. Lodge worked on a number of political campaigns. Her term expires May 18, 2019.
Eric Satz of Nashville, Tenn., serves as a managing member of the Tennessee Community Ventures Fund (TNCV), a company he co-founded in 2009, and is executive chairman to three TNCV portfolio companies. From 2010 to 2014, he served as investor, advisor, and vice president of business development for Panopto Inc. He co-founded and was CEO of Plumgood Food from 2004 to 2008. His term expires May 18, 2018.
Jeff W. Smith of Knoxville, Tenn., is the executive vice president for operations for UT-Battelle and serves as the deputy of operations at Oak Ridge National Laboratory. His tenure at the lab has been accompanied by significant expansion and modernization, even while reducing operational costs. During a six-month special assignment in 2002, he assisted with the creation of the U.S. Department of Homeland Security. His term expires May 18, 2022.
James “Skip” Thompson of Decatur, Ala., is the president and CEO of Corporate Billing, a subsidiary of National Bank of Commerce, Birmingham, Ala. Previously, he served as the president and CEO of both First American Bank in Decatur and First Commercial Bank in Huntsville, Ala., as well as serving on the board of Decatur Utilities. His term expires May 18, 2021.
Ronald Walter of Memphis, Tenn. is currently the president and general manager of WREG-TV, a position he has held since 2004. Mr. Walter has served in a variety of positions at WREG-TV since 1987. Prior to WREG-TV, Mr. Walter was employed by Memphis Light, Gas and Water and was vice president of customer relations from 1982 to 1987, and served as assistant to the president from 1980 to 1982. His term expires May 18, 2019.