Who are these Board Election Candidates?
Rank your candidates from 1 to 11
With 11 candidates running for 3 at-large director positions, we are spoilt for choice.
I watched the Zoom sessions with the candidates twice, the first time I watched the sessions “ live”, and the second time, I watched the recordings to try and understand them.
The Board candidates are talented and passionate about what they stand for. They broadly fall into 2 groups, those who are passionate about DEIB and accessibility, and those who are passionate about representing the best interests of their fencing constituencies.
Donald Alperstein stands out as the Board member and candidate who desires to use his knowledge and experience to effectively represent the best interests of the sport of fencing, and best interests of USA Fencing and its various constituencies. Donald focuses at the macro-level as a Board member rightly should.
What to look for in a Board candidate
The USA Fencing Board provides the ultimate leadership for the sport of fencing - the Board sets the strategic direction, and makes policy that aligns with USA Fencing’s mission. The Board also leads the tone and culture of the organization. The Board’s role is in governance not operations.
Board members must be competent and effective at providing the required leadership to make USA Fencing a successful organization and meet the needs of its members.
Challenges can only be overcome and problems solved by Board members who clearly understand what those challenges and issues are.
Board members who have a firm grasp of the issues have the best shot at setting priorities and solving problems. Those who do not understand the issues are destined to be ineffective as Board members.
We have to choose wisely to give seats to those who will be effective and be careful not to give seats to those who will only take up space.
To choose effective as Board members, there are essential characteristics that we must demand of our candidates.
essential characteristics of good board members
Our elected Board members must possess demonstrated capabilities in more than one of the following areas:
track record of effective and inclusionary leadership
successful management experience (operational, and/or financial management)
visionary and strategic thinking
creative problem solving
analytical and unbiased decision-making
compassionate and empathetic
clear understanding of the priorities and current issues faced by USA Fencing
professional and respectful in all dealings with others
In other words, Board members must be accomplished individuals with clear achievements who can contribute relevant experience to lead USA Fencing.
Further, we must remember that the Board Chair is elected from amongst the 5 at-large directors on the Board which would include the 3 newly elected directors. The Board Chair serves as the de facto leader of the Board.
Can you picture the candidate you support filling the role of Board Chair? Does that person possess the skills and characteristics to fill the role of leader of USA Fencing? Would you be happy with that person presenting to the USOPC, IOC, FIE and other governmental and non-governmental agencies as leader of USA Fencing?
Regardless of which USA Fencing constituency a Board candidate comes from or where their passions lie, once elected to the Board, that director must make decisions in the best interests of USA Fencing as a whole.
Note: USA Fencing has about 36,100 members. The 10,000 adult members including collegiate fencers, young adults and veterans are very important too.
The 3 Pillars of USA Fencing
USA Fencing’s success stands on the strength of 3 pillars:
fencing families
coaches and clubs, and
referees.
Fencers under the age of 18 account for 62% of USA Fencing’s membership, and close to 70% or more of revenues. Fencing families keep the clubs going and they are the main revenue source for many fencing clubs and their coaches.
See: Board Representation Gap: Who Looks Out for Fencing Families
The clubs and coaches are essential to the sport of fencing, and they provide a firm foundation from which the sport can grow.
The referees make the fencing tournaments possible and they are the lynchpin to the sport of fencing.
It is USA Fencing’s responsibility to ensure that the needs of these 3 pillars of the sport are met, and that each group views the other as a member of the same fencing community. That responsibility starts with the USA Fencing Board.
As we go into this election, the relationship between coaches and parents on one side and referees on the other are badly strained. This is a serious problem that requires a long term solution sensitive to the needs and issues of all the groups concerned.
Let’s be clear that FP does not condone abuse or bullying of referees under any circumstances. We strongly support the referees in using the disciplinary tools at their disposal to enforce discipline on disruptive spectators.
In addition to education for parents on what to expect and how to behave at tournaments, there needs to be organized dialogue between coaches and referees to resolve ongoing issues between the 2 groups.
And most importantly, USA Fencing needs to implement a a new and updated formal referee training program. The existing system is outdated and has totally failed young referees. The sport of fencing has grown tenfold or more since the current (non) system was created. There are also no regular referee refresher courses or upskilling programs. Funding for training programs is unlikely to be an issue provided the organization actually comes up with a viable plan for referee training.
The Referee Commission is accountable to the Board, and the Board needs to call the RC to account for why there has been no forward momentum on a better program for training young referees.
The Board must get behind an initiative to constructively reset the relationship between USA Fencing’s 3 most important pillars of support.
What constituencies do the candidates belong to?
The 11 at-large director candidates come from various constituencies within USA Fencing, including coaches, referees, club owners, veteran fencers, fencing officials, incumbent Board members and parents. Several candidates belong in several constituencies at once.
Many of the candidates’ stated visions for USA Fencing appear to have been informed by their own experiences within the constituencies they come from, and we can expect that they will each have a clear understanding of the aspirations and issues specific to their constituencies.
This election, parents must cast their votes wisely to ensure that fencing families have a voice on the Board and that they have someone effective looking out for their interests.
See: Board Representation Gap - Who Looks Out for Fencing Families?
Who is currently on the Board?
In this election, we will be electing 3 at-large directors to serve on the Board.
At-large directors are the only category of director on the Board who are elected by the general membership of USA Fencing. There are a total 5 at-large directors on a Board with 15 members. The Chairman of the Board is selected from amongst the 5 at-large directors.
Of the 15 Board members, only 12 of them are eligible to vote on Board decisions. They include the 5 at-large directors, the 4 athlete directors and the 3 independent directors. The Treasurer and the 2 Special Board Members can only advise but cannot vote on Board decisions.
Here’s a snapshot of the current Board of Directors of USA Fencing
The current Chair’s term expires this year, and a new Chair will be elected from amongst the 5 at-large directors after the election. David Arias’ term as an at-large director expires in 2024.
The incumbents for the 3 at-large director positions up for election are Donald Alperstein, Lorrie Marcil Holmes and Abdel Salem. Donald Alperstein and Abdel Salem are running for re-election, while Lorrie Marcil Holmes will retire from the Board at the end of August 2023.
The 4 athlete directors are elected by the Athlete Council to represent elite athlete interests on the Board.
Independent directors and special board members are appointed by the Board to close any skills gap and provide expertise and professional skills that the Board needs to function effectively.
who are the candidates?
So, now let’s get down to the important business of who these Board candidates are, and what they stand for. Whose interests will they represent best?
The candidates have each issued a one page statement and a one minute video introducing themselves to members. The statements and videos are available for viewing on the USA Fencing website. We share the links to the statements and videos below as we discuss each of the candidates.
USA Fencing also held 2 one-hour long Zoom sessions with the Board candidates, where members could ask questions of the candidates and where each candidate was given one minute at the beginning and end of the session to state their vision and why they are running for the Board.
The recordings are available on the USA Fencing website. For your convenience, you can access these Zoom sessions below:
Zoom Session 1
Password: TE@Wq@4L
Donald Alperstein | Selina Kaing | Nancy Kirkpatrick | Ivan Lee | Damien Lehfeldt | Ann Marsh-Senic
Zoom Session 2
Password: q=J5b$.C
Igor Chirashnya | Andrey Geva | Joanne Pasternack | Abdel Salem | Rich Weiss
who will look out for parents’ interests
Donald Alperstein
Donald’s long service to fencing speaks as much to his passion as it does to his effectiveness as a leader. He is an accessible leader who listens to issues and will act objectively in the long term interests of USA Fencing.
Donald is an effective leader because he has a good grasp of the issues and has a strong body of knowledge and experience to support his decisions. Donald’s background as a lawyer (from Harvard) serves him well in analyzing issues and seeking solutions. He also has the respect of the USA Fencing Board.
We strongly believe that Donald’s heart is rooted in striving for the success of the sport of fencing and USA Fencing as the organization that leads the sport.
Amongst Donald’s recent successful projects is the initiative to enshrine DEIB in Section 12.12 of the USA Fencing Bylaws. Donald is also a Board member who has pursued reform to the Center for SafeSport through Congressional Committees. He consistently supports fellow Board members who need help drafting motions to support initiatives for consideration before the Board.
FP is in agreement with Donald that USA Fencing’s future lies with the growth of clubs and coaches, and that USA Fencing must be pro-active in growing the ranks of both. Clubs and coaches form one of the 3 key pillars that make the sport of fencing successful in this country, and they deserve the support to grow.
FP considers Donald to be a good friend of fencing families. He has been an effective voice speaking up for fencing families when it matters most and he has helped resolve many difficult issues affecting fencing families over the years.
Donald Alperstein also saved youth fencing and made it a stronger part of USA Fencing! Donald’s interest in youth fencing goes back many years and he is one of the few Board members who stays for the last 5 days of Summer Nationals when the youth events are held.
Read: No, Donald Alperstein Did Not Try to Eliminate Youth NACs
Watch the Video: Donald Alperstein did NOT try to eliminate youth NACs
Donald has made clear that this will be his last term on the Board if he wins election, and if he does not, he will not run again next year.
FP strongly supports Donald Alperstein’s candidacy for at-large director, and we urge parents to vote for him as their top choice.
Igor Chirashnya
Igor’s involvement in fencing is driven entirely by passion. He was a successful tech executive and entrepreneur before he became a club owner and a coach. Igor was a fencer in his youth and is today a parent of 4 fencers. Many of you will know him through his popular Academy of Fencing Masters blog.
Success as an entrepreneur has enabled Igor to freely pursue his passion with fencing. His experience with failure before he finally found success has taught him the humility necessary to be a good leader who seeks answers through enquiry and listening. He built AFM from scratch to one of the largest clubs in the country inside 10 years. He has plenty of know-how and experience to share about how to build and market a successful fencing club.
As a parent of 4 competitive fencers, Igor is immersed in the challenges faced by fencing parents everywhere. He gets it and he empathizes with parents. He has walked a mile in our shoes, and knows what needs fixing and how to do it. He will be a strong advocate on the Board for fencing families.
Igor brings the voices of fencers, parents and coaches to the Board.
While on the Board, Igor promises to be totally honest and transparent about what he believes in. His motivation to run is deeply connected to his belief that the Board must have people who are connected to the ground as he puts it - fencers, parents and coaches. He feels passionately that the wellbeing of these constituencies must be properly represented on the Board with professionalism and common sense, while minimizing political agendas and views.
Igor is interested in creating more opportunities in fencing for everyone, and he believes that the best way to do this is through the clubs. To him, the clubs will create the opportunities for continuity for fencers even after they graduate from college. And he is fully supportive of USA Fencing’s drive to create more college fencing programs.
FP strongly supports Igor Chirashnya’s candidacy for the Board and we urge parents to vote for him.
Andrey Geva
Before Andrey came to the United States, he lived in Israel where one of his jobs was coordinator and organizer of the refugee program for Jewish emigres from the Soviet Union. He tells FP that this was one of the hardest jobs he ever did, where he was constantly scrambling for scarce resources and negotiating with government organizations reluctant to part with their resources. It took patience, and a willingness to get to know people and work with them to get their support.
Today, we know Andrey as one of the most successful epee coaches in the country. He started his club from scratch in 2004, and built it into a 300 member club in 2 locations in Houston. His club, Alliance Fencing Academy, consistently tops the annual count for most epee fencers recruited to the Ivy League and other top colleges. He has coached many national and international champions. Andrey was also the National Coach for women’s epee for 8 years from 2013 to 2021.
Andrey is an immigrant success story!
Andrey is a parent of 4 fencers, and has walked in the same shoes as all parents of competitive fencers. As a club owner and coach, he understands the trials and tribulations of this important pillar of USA Fencing.
Andrey is motivated to bridge the disconnect between what the Board does and what the real needs of the clubs and the coaches are. He is also motivated to be the voice of parents, coaches and referees and to build a bridge across the current disconnects between the 3 key pillars of USA Fencing.
Success in building up his club from scratch means that Andrey has great insight and knowledge on how to do this right. And he has expertise to share at the Board level the most effective ways to support clubs and their growth.
Andrey’s experiences in Israel building the human connections to get what he needed for newly arrived Jewish emigres is invaluable in forming how he goes about building the networks and dialogues necessary to bridge the big divide that has formed between parents and coaches and referees.
FP strongly supports Andrey Geva’s candidacy for the Board, and we urge parents to vote for him.
Ann Marsh-Senic
An Olympian, a former USA Fencing Board member, an emergency room doctor, a coach, a club manager, a referee and a fencing parent. Ann has her hands full, and she is still brave enough to run for the Board again! Ann has spent almost a lifetime in fencing having started as a fencer at age 13. Ann’s passion for fencing shines through. She is a path breaking women’s fencing Olympian.
Her experience in so many roles related to the sport of fencing gives her an unique perspective and a special insight into the challenges of the various USA Fencing constituencies, an experience that is shared by few.
Today, Ann’s specific passion is youth fencing - it has a special place in her heart. As the club manager of Renaissance Fencing in Michigan, Ann has succeeded in building the club into a mecca for youth fencing in the Mid-West.
Her 2 children are competitive fencers, and she understands the issues fencing parents have. She will be a strong advocate on the Board for the interests of fencing families.
Ann believes that clubs will be the key to the expansion of the sport of fencing, be it youth fencing, para-fencing or the promotion of accessibility for fencers from low-income backgrounds. Understanding the challenges clubs face and the support they need to meet the growth goals for the sport is critical, and we believe Ann has the knowledge and experience in managing a successful club to help drive that growth. In particular, Ann believes that USA Fencing needs to seize the opportunity to promote fencing in the lead up to the LA Olympics in 2028 when exposure in the media to all sports including fencing will be magnified.
Ann is also highly supportive of the expansion of NCAA programs.
Ann believes that the disconnect between parents, coaches and referees must be bridged, and she is ready to do her part to facilitate the building of that bridge.
We strongly support Ann Marsh-Senic’s candidacy for the Board, and we urge parents to vote for her.
Ivan Lee
I have only ever met Ivan Lee online a few times, but each time, he left a deep impression that he is a man of passion, integrity, thoughtfulness and commitment. We can count on him to do the right thing always.
Ivan is an Olympian, an NCAA coach, a referee, a Special Board Advisor to USA Fencing, a deacon at his church and a board member of a charter school. He is also a former police officer.
Ivan found his feet as a fencer through the amazing Peter Westbrook Foundation, and he has a powerful desire to make fencing accessible to kids who are like him. We strongly support his passion, and admire his dedication to making it happen.
USA Fencing, Ivan believes, must take full advantage of the media exposure from Olympics in Los Angeles in 2028 to promote fencing to kids. This is a smart and cost-effective marketing strategy for fencing.
The NCAA fencing program at Long Island University has benefited hugely from Ivan’s leadership as head coach. He expanded the program to include a men’s fencing team, and he has successfully recruited top fencers to both the men’s and women’s programs in a short 4 years.
Having observed the USA Fencing Board up close as a Special Board Member, Ivan is cognizant that the Board needs a culture change. We are delighted that he points this out, and we look forward to him helping to nudge those changes forward.
Ivan believes that sexual harassment and abuse continues to be an issue in fencing for both adults and children, and he is committed to seeking reforms that make access to remedies faster and easier for victims.
Despite having limited exposure to fencing families, Ivan is aware of and sympathetic to the challenges fencing families face. He has spoken out on their behalf and shown empathy for the challenges faced by fencing families. We are deeply grateful to Ivan for his generosity of spirit and his clear capacity as a leader to think about the greater good of all USA Fencing constituencies.
We strongly support Ivan’s candidacy for the Board, and we urge parents to vote for him.
Special Mentions
Damien Lehfeldt
Damien is one of the most passionate and tenacious people I know in the sport of fencing. Damien and I share common views on many issues relating to the Board including the lack of transparency, the failure to consult stakeholders on important issues, and the generally poor communication with members.
You may know him as The Fencing Coach on Facebook.
Damien’s expertise is in change management, and we believe that his experience here will be an invaluable addition to the Board.
His tenacity in pursuing the issues relating to sexual harassment in the sport is without parallel. He has been pivotal in shaking up USA Fencing on this issue.
Damien is one of the strongest advocates for embedding DEIB principles into USA Fencing.
Selina Kaing
In her Zoom session and her candidate materials, Selina has demonstrated a clear understanding of the broad issues and challenges faced by the Board and USA Fencing. Her fellow Board members think very highly of her competencies. They talk about her execution capabilities and her ability to deliver on what she promises on time.
Selina is a senior executive at Google, a Special Board Member on the USA Fencing Board and a trustee of the USA Fencing Foundation Board. Selina is veteran fencer who started fencing as an adult.
Selina is teamed with Ivan Lee on a joint platform for building accessibility in fencing. They make for a powerful pair, one with management and fundraising capabilities and the other with experience and passion to drive accessibility programs.
How the Voting System Works
USA Fencing selected a voting system known as Single Transferable Voting, a system similar to Ranked Choice Voting, but which apparently works better in situations where there is more than one open seat up for election.
Voters are required to rank their choice of candidates from 1 to 11, with 1 indicating their top choice and 11 indicating the last choice. Make sure you thoughtfully rank your top 6 candidates.
In such a large field, it becomes hard to rank everyone thoughtfully given the gaps in knowledge and lack of familiarity with each candidate.