Steve Patterson, City of Athens, Ohio

Mayor Steve Patterson, ITGA Past-President, is the mayor of Athens, Ohio, a town of about 30,000 people that is home to Ohio University. A former associate professor of health psychology at Ohio University, Steve holds a Doctor of Philosophy in medical psychology and has served in the U.S. military for 23 years. Having been a presenter at annual ITGA conferences for a decade, he says that the ITGA budget and membership recruitment/retention and recruitment are the primary board challenges this year. Among his numerous board commitments are serving on the National League of Cities (NLC) Board of Directors, Co-chair for the NLC Race, Equity and Inclusion Council (REAL), President for the Ohio Mayors Partnership for Progress and serving on the Athens County Economic Development Council and the Southeast Ohio Public Energy Council. "I felt that because of what ITGA had to offer I wanted to be even more involved as a member of the board," he says. Experience and expertise in academia, local government and the armed forces are the primary skill sets he brings to ITGA.