Board Representation Gap - Who Looks Out for Fencing Families?
The Background
The USA Fencing Board sits at the apex of governance, strategy and policymaking for the sport of fencing in the US, and the Board provides the leadership that sets the tone and culture of the organization. The CEO executes on the Board’s strategies and policies, and follows the Board’s lead in setting organizational and member priorities. Board members have a fiduciary duty, whether elected or appointed to the Board, to represent the interests of USA Fencing and its members as a whole, and not just the constituency within USA Fencing that they come from. The various committees to whom the Board delegates its functions are held to the same fiduciary standards and must make recommendations in the best interests of all members.
However, Board members and committee members like the rest of us are humans, and they will bring perspective to and evaluate situations based on our own personal and professional experiences and values. It is quite hard to walk a mile in someone else’s shoes.
Which is why diversity on the Board is critical for optimal decision-making. Board members with diverse experience bases are better equipped to take into account the various competing interests and make the most equitable decisions.
The 2 main issues for fencing families
Despite minor aged fencers forming the largest constituency in USA Fencing (62% of membership):
The interests and perspectives of minor aged fencers and fencing families are not well represented on the Board.
Minor aged fencers and their families have no voice in how the Board is selected. To buy a voice to represent their kids, parents must purchase an Access membership on top of the Competitive membership they purchased for their kids just so they can vote in Board elections.
There is no current Board member who has recent and direct experience with the challenges and issues faced by fencing families with minor-aged fencers under 18.
Currently, about 11,120 adult members (out of an adult membership of about 13,600) equivalent to 31% of the membership of USA Fencing are eligible to vote in Board elections. Based on the track record at Board elections, less than 15% of eligible members actually cast their votes meaning that about 4% of the total membership decides Board elections. A small number of members call the shots for everyone else.
Note: We provide you with a detailed breakdown of current USA Fencing membership later in this article.
the unhappy history
There is a long, unhappy history of issues concerning USA Fencing’s minor-aged fencers and their families that are a direct result of their lack of voice in the organization.
The issues we highlight demonstrate the risks for fencing families if they do not have enough strong voices on the Board advocating for their interests. The risks are not confined to just the organizational indifference, the risks include actions from different constituencies within USA Fencing who may have competing or conflicting interests with those of fencing families as evidenced by the effort to eliminate youth fencing at the national level.
There are vocal and insistent minorities who consistently refer to youth fencers as “petri dishes” and parents as “clueless” within their constituency forums, displaying a remarkable lack of respect for fencing families. This hostility towards fencing families is disturbing.
Fencing families should not be treated as “fair game” for condescension, and mocking by other USA Fencing constituencies.
The most recent examples of risk to fencing families involves:
The multi-year effort by several USA Fencing constituencies to eliminate youth fencing at the national level without proper consultation with parents and coaches.
Fortunately, Board member Donald Alperstein’s timely intervention and motion for a Task Force to study the issue led to a satisfactory resolution by the Youth Fencing Task Force in February 2023 when it recommended that Y10 and Y12 events be enshrined in the USA Fencing national tournament calendar.
You can read more about it in the following FP articles:
Task Force Recommends Enshrining Y10 and Y12 As Part Of National Competition Schedule
Board Wisely Shoots Down Proposal to Mandate 2nd Activity for Youth Fencers
Task Force to Consider Elimination of Y10 and Y12 Events at National Tournaments
No, Donald Alperstein Did Not Try to Eliminate Youth NACs
Discussion on Cutting National Youth Events and “No Show” Fees
Scheduling Junior and Cadet NACs and SJCC During Final Exams
Cadet and Junior events are age-based events for fencers who are in high school, and a small minority who are college freshman. For these fencers, June and December are typically when final exams are scheduled.
Without regard for the academic schedule, USA Fencing, for 2 years in a row (2021 and 2022), cancelled the November NACs for Cadet, Junior and Y14 events, and rescheduled them for December on weekends that directly conflicted with final exams for the majority of fencers. The reason given was that USA Fencing could not find suitable venues to hold the November NACs for 2 years in a row. Given that USA Fencing commits to long term contracts with venues, and that they should reasonably be expected to know that end of term exams have always been scheduled then, the re-scheduling of the November NAC to December was very inconsiderate to these fencers and their families.
You can read more about it in the following FP articles:
NAC Locations and Permanent NAC Changes in the New Season
The November NAC, Event Composition and NAC Locations in the Future
2021/2022 NAC Schedule - Departures from the Norm
In 2023, USA Fencing has scheduled a Division 2 NAC together with an SJCC for June 2023, again on a weekend that coincides with final exams for many high school and college fencers.
In line with a culture that appears to be inconsiderate of the interests of minor-aged fencers and their families, USA Fencing has again scheduled important fencing tournaments with potential to earn national points during final exam periods for high school and college students.
While fencing is an important extracurricular activity for committed high school fencers, USA Fencing should not create unnecessary and avoidable scheduling conflicts for fencers when the academic timetables are as regular as clockwork and known far in advance.
Other operational issues with serious financial implications for fencing families over the years include:
Years long fight for earlier announcement of NAC check-in times
It is only in the last year that an equilibrium has been reached where parents are now given a reasonable amount of notice of check-in times so that they can book flights early enough to lock in reasonable airfares. For many years, fencing families faced resistance and indifference from the USA Fencing organization which remained largely unsympathetic to pleas from fencing families to help them control flight costs, and lost work and school days due to the late announcement of check-in times.
The timely announcement of check-in times is an operational issue involving the National Office and the Tournament Committee, it is not a policy issue. However, the general culture at USA Fencing did not prioritize the interest and well-being of fencing families, and their concerns generally fell on deaf ears.
It was only when Board member, Donald Alperstein, ran interference on behalf of fencing families a few years ago was there any real effort to resolve the issue around timely announcement of check-in times.
You can read more about it in the following FP articles:
The Risks of Booking Flights Before Check-In Times are Announced
How much notice should US Fencing give for NAC day schedules, check-in times and policy changes?
Years long fight for better NAC locations
The NAC locations for the 2022/2023 season are the best ever selected by USA Fencing in more than 10 years. For many years, fencing families in the west (includes everyone who lives west of Colorado) paid a heavy travel penalty due to the poor choice of location for NACs. USA Fencing seemed quite happy to shift the costs onto fencing families while the organization enjoyed substantial savings from locating NACs in 3rd tier cities with poor transportation connections, especially for those living in the West.
FP first took up this fight for better NAC locations in 2018, and it was only with sympathetic help from Board member, Donald Alperstein, who ran interference with the National Office were steps taken to resolve the issue over a prolonged 5 years.
Again, the selection of NAC locations is more operational than policy. However, the general culture of USA Fencing did not prioritize the interests of fencing families, and it was this culture that led to the indifference and unresponsiveness to the plight of fencing families.
You can read more about it in the following FP articles:
Holding national competitions in hub cities
October NAC Milwaukee Debrief for Parents - Security Lines and Flight Times
US Fencing is exploring new cities for NACs
Email to Board and Management of US Fencing Regarding NAC Organization
New Policies for How NAC Locations are Selected Starting in 2020/2021
The November NAC, Event Composition and NAC Locations in the Future
Raising NAC Fees Despite Multi-million dollar surpluses
Outside of the pandemic, which disrupted USA Fencing’s ability to run NACs, NAC surpluses have been USA Fencing’s single largest source of funds for operations and support of Team USA. In 2019, the NAC surplus was about $1.9 million. In 2022, USA Fencing budgeted for a NAC surplus of about $2.2 million, to be achieved through a combination of fee increases and increases in NAC registrations.
More than three-quarters of NAC revenues are generated from fencing families with minor-aged fencers who compete at NACs.
Despite a track record of growing surpluses at NACs, USA Fencing not only increased NAC fees without explanation in 2019, they imposed a $5 daily entrance surcharge on parents to enter NAC venues, which parents could avoid by becoming Supporting (now called Access) members for $25 a year.
USA Fencing, at the time, viewed fencing families as a convenient ATM machine that could be used to increase revenues to support its various activities, none of which benefited fencing families directly.
You can read more about it in the following FP articles:
Without Board members pledged to prioritize the interests of fencing families, families will continue to encounter decisions made by USA Fencing leadership that run counter to their best interests.
how many minor-aged fencers are there in usa fencing?
Based on the USA Fencing membership database as of April 27, 2023, USA Fencing has a total membership of 36,171 members across all membership types, both adult and minor aged. The table and chart below make it quite clear that minor-aged fencers at 62% of total membership form the majority of USA Fencing members.
USA Fencing Membership breakdown chart of minor aged and adult fencers
Minor-aged fencers form 62% of USA Fencing’s total membership and those with Competitive memberships form the single largest member bloc at 30% of total membership followed by those with non-competitive memberships who form 21% of the total membership, and those with Access memberships form 8.5% of total membership. College-aged fencers form 10% of total membership and adult, non-college-aged adult members including coaches and referees form 27% of total membership.
Chart of Fencers by age and Membership Type
Fencing families need more representation and voice
Minor-aged fencers form a substantial majority of the membership and their families provide a substantial proportion USA Fencing’s revenues, yet they are not accorded the full rights of membership that gives them a voice in the organization, neither are they treated as valued customers.
There are several possibilities to give voice to the interests of minor-aged fencers:
Give every minor-aged fencer a vote in Board elections that can be exercised on their behalf by a parent or legal guardian
This will give about 14,000 fencing families the right to vote in Board elections if that right is given only to those membership types that carry voting rights for the equivalent adult membership.
Due to a lack of awareness on the part of parents that they must be Access members in order to vote, parents have been minor participants in Board elections. We estimate based on USA Fencing’s current membership database that parents make up less than 800 out of 11,000 plus adult members eligible to vote. This must change.
Parents should not be asked to pay a premium in the form of an Access membership in order to cast a vote representing their fencer’s interests.
We believe that giving every eligible minor-aged fencer a vote exercisable by their parent or guardian is the fairest and most principled option as it places fencing families on equal footing with other voting members in USA Fencing. And it gives fencing families a rightful voice in who gets on the Board and looks out for their interests.
Enshrine a Minor-Aged Fencers Committee as a Principal Committee of the Board
The Principal Committee’s purpose will be to make recommendations to the Board and to review proposals before the Board on matters that affect the interests and well-being of minor-aged fencers as a result of proposed strategic, policy-related and operational decisions of USA Fencing.
Committee members must include parents and coaches as well as representatives from the Tournament Committee, Referee Commission, National Office and the Board. Parents on the committee should be representative of the various age groups and membership types and should also include at least one parent with a fencer on the cadet or junior travelling team.
reinstate town hall meetings and put them online
The town hall meetings at NACs orchestrated by Donald Alperstein sadly came to end due to the pandemic. These town hall meetings between parents, the Board and National Office should continue online.
An online forum is logistically easier for parents and will garner better attendance than the NAC forums which by their nature limited who could attend.
What can parents do now to get their voices heard
Every parent with Access membership acquired on or before February 1, 2023 should cast their vote in the Board elections. If the estimated 800 parents cast a vote, they will have a strong influence on the election.
Remember that elected Board members are likely to be the most responsive to the needs and interests of members who elected them to office.
There are candidates in this Board election who will be strong and effective advocates for the interests of fencing families. We must give them our votes!