The Indiana State Fair Commission will soon have a new Executive Director at the helm.
“I started [at the Indiana State Fairgrounds and Event Center] as a 19-year-old college intern with no real connection to the fair other than attending it as a child. I fell in love with the Indiana State Fair and what it means to this state to our community and everything that it stands for,” says Ray Allison, who officially takes the new role on April 1st.
Cindy Hoye, the current Executive Director, is set to retire on March 31st after serving in that role for more than 20 years.
“Cindy is quite honestly a legend—not only here at the Indiana State Fair, but also in the fair industry around the country and around the world,” he says. “Cindy has left huge shoes to fill, but I’ve had the great fortune of working with Cindy for more than 30 years. I worked for her when she was our Marketing Director back in the 1990’s, so I’ve had the great pleasure of learning under her, watching her lead, and see how she’s really transformed this organization from the early days of the Indiana State Fair commission into this dynamic year-round business that we operate today.”
Ray tells Hoosier Ag Today that Cindy has also paved the path for the future of the Indiana State Fairgrounds and Event Center and points to the growth of the fairgrounds during her tenure.
For example, Cindy led the way on renovating the old Swine Barn into the Indiana Farm Bureau Fall Creek Pavilion, which opened in 2023. She also helped make the Glass Barn a reality by working hand-in-hand with the Indiana Soybean Alliance to open the facility in 2014 to educate fairgoers about the importance of Indiana’s soybean crop. Cindy also helped cut the ribbon on the recently renamed Corteva Coliseum in April 2025.
“We have a great product here in the Indiana State Fair. We’ve turned our year-round business into this dynamic, thriving business that is multifaceted,” he says. “We host 400 events on our campus throughout the year. We started hosting track-and-field events at the Indiana Farm Bureau Fall Creek Pavilion. We just continue to grow and evolve, and I look forward to building upon that,” he says.
“The Indiana State Fairgrounds and Event Center is a place that means so much to so many people,” he adds. “It’s a big responsibility to take the lead and to make this place better than what I found it. That’s the way Cindy has operated all these years, and I look forward to continuing that.”
Since his time as a college student Bradley University, Ray has worked the annual Indiana State Fair every August—a total of 32 Fairs altogether! Ray joined the Indiana State Fairgrounds & Event Center staff full-time in 2007 as the Public Safety Manager. He was promoted to Public Safety Director in 2009, Director of Operations in 2012 and VP of Administration in 2014.
Ray will continue to serve in his current role as Chief Operating Officer until Hoye’s retirement on March 31.
The Indiana State Fair Commission is the governing body overseeing the year round operation of the Indiana State Fairgrounds & Event Center and the annual Indiana State Fair.
