Cleveland State University College of Law alumni and OverDrive co-founders Steve (’78) and Loree (’79) Potash will deliver the commencement address at CSU|LAW’s graduation ceremony for the Class of 2023. The ceremony will take place Sunday, May 21, 2023 at CSU’s Wolstein Center.
Steve Potash is President and Chief Executive Officer of OverDrive, a company he co-founded with Loree in 1986. Under his leadership, OverDrive has become the leading digital reading platform for eBooks, audiobooks, and other digital media for over 80,000 libraries, schools, government agencies, corporate learning centers, colleges, and universities worldwide. He is credited with pioneering many innovations for digital content use and applications. OverDrive has long-standing partnerships with thousands of publishers, authors, and media companies across the book industry. As a mission- based company, OverDrive became a Certified B Corp in 2017 dedicated to a "World Enlightened by Reading."
Prior to starting OverDrive, he served as Special Counsel to the Ohio Attorney General, as an acting Municipal Judge, and authored technology columns for the American Bar Association Journal. He was admitted to practice law before the United States Supreme Court in 2019. He serves on the Board of Directors for University Hospitals.
Loree Potash is a co-founder of OverDrive and active in NorthEast Ohio non-profit organizations. She is a Board member for the Cuyahoga County Law Library. Trained as a law librarian, she started her career at the Case-Western Reserve University Law School including serving as reference librarian, acting Director, and adjunct professor. She practiced law early in her career and then with Steve formed OverDrive and joined the company, serving in various leadership positions including publisher relations, human resources, and marketing. She presently serves as a board member of Park Synagogue, the Kol Israel Foundation, and the Gross Schechter Jewish Day School. Loree is an advocate for readers and access to books and education and is key funder for Uniteagainstbookbans.org and FreedomtoLearnAdvocates.org.
The Steve & Loree Potash Family Foundation funds literacy programs through www.believeinreading.org.
