Shirley Bloomfield Stepping Down From NTCA

Many of you know my creed in leadership that we all have a finite time to leave our world better than we found it. And part of that recognition is knowing when the time has come in the life cycle of an organization to have fresh leadership, perspective, vision and a longer runway to get the job done. While this is a bittersweet message to deliver, this is the right time for our industry to make that change. We just came through a crisis over the past four years where we didn’t know if the essential Universal Service Fund would survive. But through our hard work together, it did. And now that the debate is shifting to a new phase of challenges, it’s the perfect time for the NTCA Board of Directors to start looking for that next leader to take you all over the next mountain! So, after considerable reflection, I have made the decision to retire from my role as CEO of NTCA at the end of March 2026. This was not an easy decision, because serving this incredible community and advocating for rural broadband has been the honor of my career. Over the past 36 years, I’ve had the privilege to work alongside dedicated members, a passionate board and an exceptional staff team. Together, we’ve helped elevate the importance of rural connectivity in the national conversation, built stronger partnerships, expanded members’ services and most importantly made meaningful progress in closing the digital divide. I am proud of what we’ve accomplished.