What We Do
Our mission is to serve as a community forum that empowers all citizens to learn, create, and express their ideas through electronic media.

Learn
DATV provides various
workshops that teach you how to produce your own
local cable TV programs.

Create
Join DATV today and start your journey to creating your very own non-commercial cable TV programs, web programs, and podcasts.

Communicate
DATV is a nonprofit 501(c)(3) organization that, since 1978, has given Dayton the “Freedom to Communicate.”
Our Staff

Randy is a graduate of Campbellsville University and Southern Seminary.
Randy comes to us from the Non-Profit sector where he served as Executive Director of a local non-profit organization where, equality for all, was at the forefront of their mission. While Randy is new to the role of Executive Director at DATV, he is not new to DATV. Randy is an award-winning producer/director and member of DATV for over 20 years. He has served as a board member for the past 9 years and has served as board chair for the last 3 years. We welcome him as our New Executive Director of Dayton Public Access Television.

Steve is a 1982 graduate of Fairmont State College in Fairmont, WV. After graduating from college, Steve was hired by WKEF-TV Ch. 22 in Dayton as a Production Assistant. In 1984, Steve was promoted to Director and began directing news, commercials, promos, and various public informational programming for WKEF.
In 1989, Steve left WKEF to take over the reins of Operations Manager of DATV (then Access 30 Dayton.) In his 19 years with DATV, Steve has seen many changes in Dayton’s public access facility. With a new building in 1992 and nearly 10,000 square feet, DATV has become more vital to the community and to the mission of public access television in Dayton.
Steve became Executive Director in August of 2008. In 2018 Steve returned to his previous position of Operations Manager.

Melissa was hired at DATV, June 12th, 1984 as the receptionist. Since then she has advanced to the position of Program Director beginning in 1994.
Melissa was very active in the Alliance for Community Media, she served from 1997-2004 as the Grassroots Chair of the Central States Region. As chair, she was responsible for raising money to help send people to Regional and National Conferences.
From 2001-2004 Melissa became the Vice Chair of the Central States Region of the Alliance for Community Media and the Ohio/Kentucky Chapter of the region.
She was elected to the National Board of the Alliance for Community Media for a 2 year term from 2002-2004.
Melissa has produced various programs at DATV, including The Dayton Ambassadors In Concert, Here at Home and Hot Country Video Hits. You can also see her on DATV as host of the 1999 Children’s Parade, the 1999 Southeast Dayton Days Parade and the 2000 & 2001 Children’s Parade.
In 2001, Melissa received a Hometown USA Video Award for her program A Road of Memories: The Life And Times of Roxie Cole, which she produced with Rick Latimer of DATV.
Has produced the Dayton Air Show since 2010, Won Roxie Cole Leadership Award in 2014 from the Central States Region of the Alliance for Community Media.

Dale started as a volunteer producer for Dayton Access Television in 1995. He was hired on as a full time Production Assistant a couple of years later. Dale has worked in a freelance capacity for ESPN, The Nashville Network and Fox Sports Ohio.

Eric began working at MVCC in 2006 and was a summer staff member for three years afterward. Since then Eric has worked as an independent filmmaker with work consisting of music videos, commercials, freelance editing and short films along with more projects on the horizon. Eric is also a writer for the heavy metal website Metalmasterkingdom.com
Our Board of Trustees
“DATV is a community forum that empowers all citizens to learn,create and express their ideas through electronic media.”
Maggie Barlow – Treasurer
Dayton Business Communications
Erica Fields
Dayton HRC
Jeffrey J. Mims, Jr.
City of Dayton Commission
Judy Johnson
Amaha Sellassie
Marlese Durr – Board–Chair
Wright State University
Jodi Owens – Secretary
Rev. William Harris
Joyce Willis
*Affiliations are for identification purposes only. All Board members must be residents of the City of Dayton.
(DATV’s Trustees are appointed for three year terms. Membership is by application to, and approval of, the trustees in accordance with DATV’s Constitution.)