Dr Gooch's passion for the manufactured housing industry is infectious, and her relationships and an excellent reputation across Washington should be a huge help promoting and growing our industry. She has become the CEO-Elect of MHI, and will take over the position when President Dick Jennison retires at the end of the year.
MHI shared the following bio for Dr Gooch:
Lesli Gooch, currently MHI’s Executive Vice President of Advocacy and Communications, joined the organization in 2014. Because of established, long-standing and bipartisan relationships across Washington, Lesli has helped MHI become an influential and relied upon resource for housing policy, including with Congress, the Administration, the GSEs, the media and other housing industry groups. She has secured appearances by key Administration officials and Members of Congress at association events, including multiple addresses by the HUD Secretary. During her tenure, she has achieved a number of legislative and regulatory successes and a significant increase in bipartisan support for MHI priorities. By completely revamping the approach for grassroots outreach, she significantly improved the efficacy of the deployment of these assets. Lesli has a doctorate in political science from the prestigious Carl Albert Congressional Research and Studies Center at the University of Oklahoma with concentrations in American government, public policy, and public administration. Her dissertation, which explores the motivations of members of Congress in selecting issues to champion, provides her with valuable insights and experience about how best to advocate on behalf of the industry.
Mark Bowersox has been chosen to become the President-Elect for MHI:
Mark Bowersox is currently MHI’s Executive Vice President of Industry Relations. Since joining MHI in 2015, Mark has overseen the development of new training programs for community managers, salespeople, and installers which have been migrated to an online learning platform to create a user-friendly experience for members. With Mark heading up MHI’s industry relations efforts the organization’s membership has grown from under 300 members in 2015 to over 900 today. Event attendance increased by more than 50 percent during the same time period. He joined the organization after serving as the Executive Director of the Indiana Manufactured Housing Association — Recreation Vehicle Indiana Council, where he led all aspects of the organization including financial and personnel management, membership recruitment, board member and volunteer development, industry promotion and advocacy. Representing both industries as a legislative and regulatory lobbyist, he developed relationships with employees and elected officials in local, state and federal offices. Working at the state level for more than 10 years, Mark built his knowledge of the industry from the ground up with the first-hand experience in zoning, titling, installations, and other challenging issues. He began his trade association career at an association management firm where he managed national trade associations.
We couldn't be more excited about the knowledge, professionalism, and enthusiasm these two will be bringing to the industry - the best is yet to come!