CHATTANOOGA, Tenn. ― William Kilbride, of Chattanooga, officially assumed his role as a member of the Tennessee Valley Authority board of directors on Thursday after taking the oath of office in a ceremony in Chattanooga. His term will expire on May 18, 2023.

Kilbride was nominated by President Donald Trump on March 6, and was confirmed by the U.S. Senate on Aug.1. He was sworn into office by Judge Travis R. McDonough, United States District Judge, Eastern District of Tennessee.

“TVA’s role in improving the lives of those in our area is just as important today as it was 86 years ago,” said Kilbride. “I look forward to being part of the TVA team in their ongoing mission of service.”

A long-time Chattanooga resident, Kilbride most recently was the president and CEO of the Chattanooga Area Chamber of Commerce, where he led multiple initiatives to attract and retain businesses to southeast Tennessee. He previously served as the president of the Home Division of Mohawk Industries after earlier holding positions with both Dean Witter Reynolds Financial Services and the New York Stock Exchange.

Kilbride holds a business management degree from Tennessee Wesleyan University and remains active in the Chattanooga community and serves on the boards of several non-profit and for-profit organizations.

Kilbride fills the last currently open position in the nine-member TVA board of directors. He will join current Board Chair James “Skip” Thompson of Decatur, Ala., and Directors Kenneth Allen of White Plains, Ky.; A.D. Frazier, of Mineral Bluff, Ga.; Richard Howorth of Oxford, Miss.; Virginia Lodge of Nashville; John Ryder of Memphis; Jeff W. Smith of Knoxville; and Ronald Walter of Memphis, at the board’s next meeting on Aug. 22 in Knoxville.

The Tennessee Valley Authority is a corporate agency of the United States that provides electricity for business customers and local power companies serving nearly 10 million people in parts of seven southeastern states. TVA receives no taxpayer funding, deriving virtually all of its revenues from sales of electricity. In addition to operating and investing its revenues in its electric system, TVA provides flood control, navigation and land management for the Tennessee River system and assists local power companies and state and local governments with economic development and job creation.