Mr. French is President and Chief Executive Officer of the Company, where he is responsible for the overall leadership and strategic direction of the Company. He has served as President since 1988, and has been a member and Chairman of the Board of Directors since 1996. Prior to appointment as President, Mr. French held a variety of positions with the Company, including Vice President Network Service and Executive Vice President. Mr. French holds a BS in electrical engineering and an MBA, both from the University of Virginia. He has held board and officer positions in both state and national telecommunications associations, including service as a director of the Organization for the Promotion and Advancement of Small Telecommunications Companies (OPASTCO) and was president and director of the Virginia Telecommunications Industry Association. Mr. French is currently a member of the Leadership Committee of the USTelecom Association.
Richard A. Baughman
Vice President - Information Technology
Mr. Baughman is Vice President - Information Technology of Shentel. He began his career in 1991 working with the Navy and entered the telecommunications industry in 1995, working for companies including Bellcore/Telcordia, AT&T, Lucent, WINfirst and SureWest. He joined the Company in 2006 and is responsible for all of the back-office software and infrastructure systems at Shentel. Mr. Baughman has a BS in Electrical Engineering from Lafayette College and an MS in Optics from the University of Rochester.
Thomas A. Whitaker
Senior Vice President - Operations
Mr. Whitaker is Senior Vice President - Operations for Shentel. He was promoted to Senior Vice President in September 2015. He was previously the Vice President - Cable with responsibility for Shentel cable operations. Mr. Whitaker joined Shentel in 2004 through the Shentel acquisition of NTC Communications. Mr. Whitaker is responsible for the ongoing development, operations and maintenance of Shentel’s wireless, wireline and cable operations. Additionally, he supports the Shentel Network Operations Center. Mr. Whitaker began his career in 1983. He previously was COO of NTC Communications, and served as Vice President of Network Operations at Broadslate Networks, Director of Wireless Operations for nTelos, and was Co-Founder and Vice President of Nat-Com, Incorporated. Mr. Whitaker is a graduate of West Virginia Wesleyan College in Buckhannon, WV.
Brian P. Brooks
Vice President - Wireless Sales
Mr. Brooks is Vice President - Wireless Sales for Shentel, a position he has held since August 2015. He is responsible for all sales, distribution and operations of the Sprint, Boost and Virgin products under Shentel affiliate agreement. He began his wireless career in 1990 with Atlantic Cellular and also worked for United States Cellular. He joined Shentel in 1995 and has experience with Sales, Marketing, Operations and multi-channel distribution. Mr. Brooks has a B.A. in Psychology from Shepherd University.
Kevin R. Folk
Vice President - Wireless Network Operations
Mr. Folk is Vice President - Wireless Network Operations. He is responsible for all operational aspects of Shentel’s Wireless Network, including switch and cell site operations. He joined Shentel in 2005 as a Field Operations Manager in our Converged Services business and was promoted to Director of Customer Service in March, 2009 and VP of Customer Service in April 2012, then promoted to VP of Wireless Network Operations in September 2015. Mr. Folk began his telecommunications career in 1992 with various levels of responsibility in the communications field of the U.S. Air Force. Before joining Shentel he was a Program Manager on several multi-million dollar Telecommunications and Records Management contracts with the Department of Justice and Department of Homeland Security. Mr. Folk is a graduate of the University of Maryland with a B.S in Criminal Justice and a M.S. in Information Technology Management from Colorado Tech University.
