|| Mark Cate ||
Introduction

Mark Cate is the Founder and President of Stones River Group, a Nashville-based public affairs firm serving both Tennessee, regional and national clients. He formerly served as Tennessee Governor Bill Haslam's chief of staff, where he was his top advisor, strategist and negotiator.

Achievements

I have been recognized by the Nashville Post list of In-Charge: Government & Politics for 2019, 2020, 2021, and 2022

Our firm was recognized nationally by the Public Relations Society of America for our comprehensive public affairs campaign to bring Major League Soccer to Nashville

Clients

1) Acadia Healthcare

2) ACT, INC.

3) Advantage Capital

4) Alliance Healthcare Services, Inc.

5) Alzheimer's Association

6) Aunt Bertha, a Public Benefit Corporation d/b/a findhelp

7) BlackRock Funds Services Group, LLC

8) Blount Partnership

9) BusPatrol America LLC

10) Campaign for Great Public Schools dba as City Fund Action

11) Catapult Learning

12) CG of Tennessee LLC

13) CHEEKWOOD BOTANICAL GARDEN AND MUSEUM OF ART

14) Client Network Services, LLC

15) CMH Services Inc.

16) Cognia

17) Communities In Schools of Tennessee

18) Critical Nurse Staffing, LLC

19) Curriculum Associates, LLC

20) DELTA DENTAL OF TN

21) DGA Residential LLC

22) Edmentum

23) Empower Schools

24) Energy Systems Group, LLC

25) Ernst & Young LLP

26) Family First, Inc.

27) FFF Enterprises, Inc.

28) Geographic Solutions, Inc

29) Graduation Alliance, Inc

30) Greater Nashville Regional Council

31) Ingram Barge Company LLC

32) INGRAM INDUSTRIES, INC.

33) Joe C Davis Foundation

34) Junior Achievement of East Tennesse

35) Junior Achievement of Middle Tennessee

36) Knox County

37) Knoxville Zoological Gardens Inc.

38) Koch Companies Public Sector, LLC and Affiliates

39) Koch Government Affairs, LLC and Affiliates

40) L3Harris Technologies

41) Liminex, Inc dba GoGuardian

42) Livanova

43) Lorraine Civil Rights Foundation dba National Civil Rights Museum

44) MARK43 INC

45) Maximus, Inc.

46) Memphis Brooks Museum of Art Inc

47) Memphis Shelby Crime Commission

48) Memphis-Shelby County Airport Authority

49) Merit International Inc

50) Methodist Le Bonheur Healthcare

51) Nashville Soccer Holdings, LLC

52) PathGroup

53) PayIt, LLC

54) Salesforce, Inc.

55) SAS Institute Inc.

56) SH Advisors LLC

57) Skinny Labs Inc. (dba Spin)

58) Southern College of Optometry

59) STV Incorporated

60) Tech901

61) Tennessee Charter School Allies

62) The Adoption Project

63) The Coalition for Better Health

64) The United Company

65) TN Development District Assn

66) Uptown Property Holdings LLC

67) WASTE MANAGEMENT

68) Wolf River Harbor Holdings, LLC

69) YMCA of Memphis and the Mid-South

Number of Years as a Lobbyist

6-10 years

Biography

Mark Cate is the Founder and President of Stones River Group, a Nashville-based public affairs firm serving both Tennessee, regional and national clients. He formerly served as Tennessee Governor Bill Haslam's chief of staff, where he was his top advisor, strategist and negotiator.

During his tenure with the Haslam Administration, Mark led several legislative policy initiatives, including K-12 education reform, workers' compensation reform, civil service reform, an alternative approach to Medicaid expansion, and postsecondary education reform, including the nationally-acclaimed Tennessee Promise program.

Prior to serving in state government, Mark successfully managed Governor Haslam's first gubernatorial campaign in 2010, which led to a record-setting general election victory. He previously worked as an executive in real estate management and development and served for 16 years as a higher education leader. Over the course of his career, Mark has served as a chief development officer, chief planning officer, chief marketing officer, and as a chief financial officer—working on budgets ranging from $10 million to $30 billion.

Mark grew up in Maryville, TN and currently lives in Brentwood with his wife Cathy who serves as the Executive Director of Leadership Tennessee. He and Cathy have two daughters, Bailey who is a recent graduate at Rhodes College and currently serves as a fellow at the Crop Trust in Bonn, Germany; and Abbie who is rising junior at George Washington University.

Cate received a B.S from Carson-Newman College, an M.S from the University of Tennessee, and Harvard University's Institute for Educational Management certificate program. He's served on a wide variety of non-profit boards and was an elected member of the Maryville Board of Education.

Last Updated: February 15, 2024