American Trucking Associations’ board of directors elected Kevin Burch, president of Jet Express from Dayton, Ohio as the federation’s 72nd chairman.Burch replaces Pat Thomas, senior vice president for state government affairs at UPS, as ATA Chairman.

“Kevin has been one of our association’s most vocal and passionate advocates,” said Chris Spear, ATA president and CEO. “His enthusiasm for trucking and for improving its image is infectious and will serve him and ATA well as chairman.”

Burch has been president of Jet Express since 1990 and a commercial driver’s license holder since 2008. Burch is an active member of ATA and was the past chairman of ATA’s communications and image policy committee and of the Truckload Carriers Association, and works closely with the LEAD ATA program. In 2014, Burch won the Mike Russell Trucking Industry Image Award.

He currently serves as vice chairman of the Trucking Moves America Forward industry image campaign, is on the steering committee of Commerce, and is involved in several other community and civic groups, including the Boy Scouts of America and the Miami Valley Regional Planning Commission.

“I am honored and humbled that my fellow ATA members have chosen me as their chairman for the next year,” said Burch. “This is an industry filled with wonderful, dedicated professionals – from drivers and dispatchers to salesmen and executives – and I am privileged to represent them all as ATA chairman.”