Native of: Michigan
Industry: Chamber of Commerce
Region: Dallas/Fort Worth
Dale A. Petroskey was named President and CEO of the Dallas Regional Chamber on March 14, 2014.
Mr. Petroskey brings to the Chamber a strong background in public policy, strategic communications, and non-profit management, having held leadership positions in all three sectors – public, private, and non-profit – for more than 30 years.
After graduating from Michigan State University, he lived 18 years in Washington, DC, where he served as Chief of Staff to Congressman Bill Goodling (R-PA), Assistant White House Press Secretary to President Ronald Reagan, and Assistant Secretary for Public Affairs at the U.S. Department of Transportation under then-Secretary Elizabeth Dole.
At The White House, Mr. Petroskey served as a spokesman for President Reagan and led the staff responsible for the preparation of every official White House document released to the media. In addition, he traveled extensively, and accompanied the President to his historic first meetings with Soviet General Secretary Mikhail Gorbachev, in Geneva, Switzerland in November 1985, and in Reykjavik, Iceland in October 1986. He also accompanied the President and Mrs. Reagan to Camp David on 10 different weekends.
From 1988-1999, Mr. Petroskey served at the National Geographic Society, the world’s largest educational membership organization. He was named the first-ever Vice President of Public Affairs in 1988, and was promoted to Senior Vice President of Mission Programs in 1996. In that role, he was the senior executive responsible for the committee which funded scientific research and exploration projects for well-known scientists and explorers such as Jane Goodall, Bob Ballard, and Sylvia Earle. He also oversaw a 50-state geography education program, which still includes the National Geography Bee, hosted by Alex Trebek, as well as exhibits, the public lectures program, and fundraising.
From 1999-2008, Mr. Petroskey was President of the National Baseball Hall of Fame and Museum in Cooperstown, New York, where he was the primary link to all living Hall of Famers and their families and led the day-to-day operations of one of the nation’s best-known and most respected museums, a premier symbol of American achievement. While there, he was instrumental in launching the museum’s first-ever national traveling exhibition, Baseball As America, which was seen by more than 2 million visitors in 15 respected museums throughout the U.S., including the Dallas Museum of Nature and Science in Fair Park. Membership grew from 4,000 to 32,000 during his tenure, and he also helped create the Hall of Fame’s Development Office, which now provides an important source of revenue. One of his greatest sources of satisfaction and pride was working closely with the Board to initiate and implement a one-time-only, 5-year study and process for considering and electing Negro League players, managers, and executives. That process culminated in the election of 17 Negro Leaguers in 2006, nearly doubling the number in the Hall of Fame.
From 2008-2010, Mr. Petroskey served as Executive Vice President of Marketing and Community Development for the Texas Rangers, where he led the reorganization of the Texas Rangers Foundation, which resulted in a focus on children in need and a much greater awareness in the community. He also made more than 70 speeches throughout North Texas to share the story of the Rangers on the field and in the community. While with the Rangers, Mr. Petroskey served on the North Texas Super Bowl XLV Host Committee; the Arlington Chamber of Commerce Foundation Board; the Arlington Convention and Visitors Bureau Board; and the United Way of Greater Dallas campaign.
Most recently, Mr. Petroskey has been Vice President, Public Affairs, for Occidental Petroleum Corporation, the nation’s fourth largest energy company. He worked mostly with Oxy’s five general managers throughout California and other key senior-level managers on challenging legislative and regulatory issues, local community engagement, public education, and charitable contributions.
Mr. Petroskey and his wife, Ann, both graduates of Michigan State University, have been married for 35 years. They have three grown children: Kathleen, an SMU graduate living in Dallas and working for Worldwide Express; Frank, a Tufts University graduate living and working in New York City; and Claire, a College of Charleston graduate living and working in Charleston, SC.
