FirstLight Fiber (formerly known as Tech Valley Communications), which offers wholesale capacity in Upstate New York and Northern New England, has announced that former CEO Bill LaPerch, now president and director of AboveNet, will join as an esteemed member of FirstLight’s board of directors.
A 25-year veteran of the teelcom industry, as CEO of AboveNet LaPerch was responsible for expanding it into offering fiber-based services to Fortune 1000 companies and service providers in both the U.S. and UK.
“We are delighted that Bill has chosen to join the FirstLight board of directors,” said Steven Kaplan, general partner at Riverside Partners and chairman of FirstLight’s board of directors. “Bill’s extensive experience in this industry, including his relationships with customers, partners and vendors as well as his experience in operations and strategic planning will undoubtedly provide additional insight to our Board and assist the company in executing on its plans for future growth.”
LaPerch has also served in key executive management positions at MCI Telecommunications and NYNEX. He presently serves on several boards including Imation, a global scalable storage and data security company, and Digital Realty Trust, the leading owner and manager of corporate datacenters and Internet gateways.
LaPerch is a graduate of the U.S. Military Academy at West Point and received a Master of Business Administration degree from Columbia University.
“I am honored to join FirstLight’s board during this exciting time of growth and innovation,” said LaPerch. “I look forward to leveraging my experience to assist in the continued success and expansion of FirstLight.”
