Dr. Godsey is Chairman of the Board of Birch Communications.   Prior to becoming Chairman of the Board at Birch in 2007, Dr. R. Kirby Godsey served as the 17th president of Mercer University from 1979-2006. Prior to his appointment as President, he served as Executive Vice President and as Dean of the College of Liberal Arts. Prior to coming to Mercer in 1977, Dr. Godsey was Vice President and Dean of the college at Averett College in Danville, Virginia.

Dr. Godsey earned his undergraduate degree in history and religion from Samford University in Birmingham, Alabama. He holds Master of Divinity and Doctor of Theology degrees from New Orleans Baptist Theological Seminary, and a Master of Arts in Philosophy from the University of Alabama. In 1969, he earned a Ph.D. in Philosophy from Tulane University. The University of South Carolina, Averett College and Samford University have all awarded him honorary degrees.

Vincent M. Oddo serves as President and Chief Executive Officer of Birch Communications. In this capacity, he is responsible for the overall strategic direction of the company as well as playing a critical role in the many acquisitions that have been completed to date. Mr. Oddo is a 25+ year veteran of the telecom industry and has specialized in growing, restructuring and managing wire-line, wireless and broadband telecommunications businesses. Prior to joining Birch in 2003, he served as SVP and COO of Network Telephone; SVP and CIO of NuVox Communications; SVP of BellSouth; and SVP of Graphic Scanning Corp.

Mr. Oddo holds both a Bachelor of Arts degree and Masters degree in Public Administration from Long Island University.

Chris Aversano serves as Chief Operating Officer and Executive Vice President of Birch Communications. In this capacity, he is responsible for managing the overall Operations and Engineering efforts of the company. Mr. Aversano is a 20+ year veteran of the telecommunications and engineering industries and has specialized in wire-line, wireless, and satellite communications. Prior to joining Birch in 2004, he served as VP of Service Delivery and Engineering Operations at Network Telephone Corp; VP of Provisioning at Nuvox; Director of Process Design at Covad Communications; and Program Manager for the United States Air Force responsible for Global Positioning System (GPS) Satellites.

Mr. Aversano holds a Bachelor of Science degree in Electrical Engineering from Clemson University, as well as an Associates Degree in Telecommunications from the United States Air Force.

Allan Samson serves as Chief Sales and Marketing Officer and Senior Vice President of Birch Communications. In this capacity, he is responsible for managing the overall Sales and Marketing efforts of the company. Mr. Samson is a nearly 20 year veteran of the telecommunications industry. Prior to joining Birch in 1999, he served in various leadership positions, of increasing responsibility, in product management, regulatory and network operations at AT&T.

Mr. Samson holds a Bachelor of Science degree in Industrial Engineering from the University of Missouri and a Masters in Business Administration degree from Southern Methodist University.

Edward James serves as Chief Financial Officer and Senior Vice President of Birch Communications. In this capacity, he is responsible for maintaining and reporting the financial health of the company and overseeing the corporate assets of the company. Mr. James is a nearly 20 year veteran of the telecommunications and finance industries. Prior to joining Birch in 2008, he served as CFO of American Telecom Services, Inc.; Director of Finance of Carter’s Inc.; various accounting, operations and finance positions at United Parcel Service (UPS).

Mr. James holds a Bachelor of Arts degree from Mississippi College, and a Masters in Business Administration degree from Cumberland University.

Mr. Hill serves as Vice President and Chief Information Officer for Birch Communications. In this capacity, he is responsible for developing, implementing and managing the information technology needs of the company. Mr. Hill is a 25+ year veteran of the Information Technology industry. Prior to joining Birch in 2000, he provided software consulting to a variety of industries, including Health Care, Financial Services, and Restaurant Operations. He is a nationally recognized leader in software design and development on the Microsoft Windows Platform.

Mr. Hill holds both a Bachelor of Arts and Masters degrees in Business Administration from Mercer University.

Mr. Bunce serves as Vice President and General Counsel for Birch Communications. In this capacity, he is responsible for managing the legal operations, legal compliance and regulatory compliance functions of the company. Mr. Bunce is a 15+ year veteran of the telecom industry. Prior to joining Birch in 2000, he served as legal counsel for: GST Telecom, CallAmerica, ICON Networks, TotalNet and other telecommunications and Internet firms.

Mr. Bunce holds a Bachelor’s degree in both History and Journalism/Mass Communication from Iowa State University, and a Juris Doctor degree from the University of Iowa College of Law.

Ms. Ovell serves as Vice President of Finance for Birch Communications. In this capacity, she is responsible for the financial reporting, general ledger, accounts payable, accounts receivable, payroll and collections functions of the company. Ms. Ovell is a 10+ year veteran of both the telecommunications and finance industries. Prior to joining Birch in 2001, she served in financial leadership roles within the public accounting, medical testing and manufacturing industries.

Ms. Ovell holds a Bachelor of Science degree in Accounting from Penn State University, and is currently pursuing a Masters in Business Administration degree from the University of Scranton.

Mr. Stachowiak serves as Vice President of Engineering for Birch Communications. In this capacity, he is responsible for the overall design and management of our IP and TDM networks. Mr. Stachowiak is a 13+ year veteran of the telecommunications and information technology industries. Prior to joining Birch in 2005, he spent several years at Verso Technologies building and operating VoIP softswitches and application servers. He also worked for 4 years at Syracuse University conducting research on applying IP technologies to military command and control systems and distance learning.

Mr. Stachowiak holds both a Masters of Science degree in Computer Science and a Masters in Business Administration degree from Syracuse University.