Meet TNBA President Jason Shelton

With experience in large and small telecommunications companies, Jason Shelton brings a wealth of experiences to the TNBA as its current president.

After more than 25 years in the industry, Shelton’s served as general manager of Loretto Telecom since 2018. In five short years, he’s led the organization from zero fiber installed to needing to spend less than $1 million to complete construction that will connect the entire ILEC service area to a lightning-fast broadband network.

“It’s pretty phenomenal when you consider the changes for our customers,” says Shelton. “Fiber creates opportunities for people to move from urban areas, maintain a great quality of life and still also be just as connected as they were before.”

Career Path to President

Shelton’s experience in telecommunications started during his time in the U.S. Marine Corps. He began his civilian career as a technician for Nextel and entered his first leadership role with Qwest in Montana. After the CenturyLink/Qwest merger, he moved to Colorado Springs and was selected to launch Prism TV for CenturyLink, followed by work as a general manager for a rural, family-owned telephone company in Germantown, New York. Working for organizations of all sizes, Shelton learned the advantages of each.

“I really love working in the rural space because I feel like all of our association companies really understand our markets and the citizens within them,” Shelton says. “As decision-makers, we positively affect people’s lives. It’s extremely humbling, and it’s something I try to relate to our staff as much as possible. We’re truly changing people’s lives every single day.”

As the organization approaches the TNBA Annual Convention & Showcase on June 6, Shelton is excited to share the results of another successful year.

“I’m incredibly proud of the TNBA organization,” Shelton says. “We advocate for rural Americans and the issue of broadband access is going to continue, but our progress speaks for itself. We continue to set the standard. We’re not just making changes for the next few years. These changes impact the next several generations.”