Executive Director
Mr. Rager began his tenure as SD1’s Executive Director in 2012. He brings with him 36 years of executive management experience and demonstrated success at bringing together diverse entities for more efficient service and superior customer care.
Prior to this role, Mr. Rager spent 18 years as CEO of the Greater Cincinnati Water Works (GCWW), a metropolitan utility serving approximately 1.2 million people over an 800 square mile area in southwestern Ohio and northern Kentucky. During his tenure at GCWW, Mr. Rager served as Deputy City Manager for the City of Cincinnati, and served for a year as Interim City Manager at the request of the Mayor and City Council.
In an earlier chapter of his career, Mr. Rager served as Director of the Department of Public Safety in Cincinnati, overseeing police, fire, emergency medical and emergency response services for the city and leading the emergency operations center for the City of Cincinnati as it responded to the 1997 flood and a 2005 railroad car styrene gas release.
Mr. Rager has served on the Board of Trustees for the Water Research Foundation and the Association of Metropolitan Water Agencies. He currently serves on the Board of the American Water Works Association. He also served on the Cincinnati Planning Commission and as a trustee on the Cincinnati Retirement Board as well as on task forces and boards for the National Academy of Sciences, the United States Environmental Protection Agency, the International Water Association and the Cincinnati Chamber of Commerce.
He earned his Masters of Business Administration from Xavier University in 1985 and his Bachelor of Urban Planning and Public Administration from the University of Cincinnati in 1978.