Andrew “Skipper” Martin has spent almost four decades serving the Commonwealth of Kentucky and its citizens through public service. Martin has served at both the local and state levels, including as key adviser to one of the most successful Kentucky governors of the 20th century. Most recently, Martin was chief of staff for eight years to Kentucky Gov. Paul Patton, whose historic 1997 postsecondary education reforms helped revolutionize the way Kentuckians view and support higher education. In addition to transforming the Council on Higher Education into the Council on Postsecondary Education, Martin was a key adviser in the decision to merge Kentucky’s technical schools and community colleges into the highly successful and nationally acclaimed Kentucky Community and Technical Colleges. Also during Patton’s two terms as governor (1995-2003), Martin helped overhaul Kentucky’s workers’ compensation laws. Martin also was chief of staff to Patton during his four years (1991-95) as Kentucky lieutenant governor. Martin was also commissioner of local government for Kentucky Gov. John Y. Brown Jr. (1979-83), and he also served as Brown’s appointment on the Appalachian Regional Commission.

On the local level, Martin served under Jefferson County judge-executives Todd Hollenbach III, Bremer Erhler and Harvey Sloane. Martin held key executive positions in those administrations in which he advised the chief executive of Kentucky’s most populous county on political strategy and public-policy issues.

Martin has a great deal of political experience on the local, state and federal levels. In addition to managing Paul Patton’s successful bid for lieutenant governor in 1991 and then his two subsequent successful gubernatorial bids, Martin has directed several congressional and senate campaigns in Kentucky. He served as Kentucky Democratic Party executive director and director of the coordinated campaign, and he was organizational director of the National Democratic Telethon.

Martin is also very involved in Kentucky’s civic life. He is an elder at Middletown Christian Church, where he has taught seventh- and eighth-grade Sunday school for 32 consecutive years; he serves as chair of the Portland Promise Center; he is a member of the E.P. “Tom” Sawyer Foundation; he is a trustee at Lindsey Wilson College; and he is president of THE MARTIN NETWORK. A native of Louisville, Ky., Martin graduated from Fern Creek High School. He earned a bachelor’s degree from Eastern Kentucky University and a master’s degree from the University of Louisville. He and his wife, Hana, have three children and six grandchildren.

Email: skipper@themartinnet.com
or skipper@mssgov.com