COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo. – The USA National Karate-Do Federation is pleased to announce its new Board of Directors after completing a comprehensive governance reform process in partnership with the United States Olympic Committee.  

The new Board will provide governance oversight of the organization beginning with their first face-to-face meeting which will be scheduled for later this year.  

“On behalf of the USA National Karate-Do Federation, I’m excited for what the future holds for our athletes and our organization,” said USA National Karate-Do Federation (USA-NKF) CEO Luke St. Onge.  “With the expertise and experience of the incoming Board, we are confident that the USANKF will have strong leadership for the foreseeable future.”

The new Board members, who were selected/elected under the revised USA-NKF Bylaws that were approved by the membership in July, 2007, are as follows (in alphabetical order):

John DiPasquale (Palatine, Illinois) – Approved Sports Organization Director
Phil Hampel (Barrington, Illinois) – Independent Director
Tokey Hill (Long Island, New York) – Coach Director
Timothy Howell (Colorado Springs, Colorado) – Independent Director
Roger Jarrett (St. Albans, West Virginia) – Affiliated Organization Director
Alex Miladi (Yuba City, California) – Referee Director
Clay Morton (Hernando, Mississippi) – Athlete Director
Cheryl K. Murphy (Jamaica, New York) – Athlete Director
Doug Stein (Coral Gables, Florida) – At-Large Director

Over the course of the last two years, a Transition Board guided the USA-NKF through a complete organizational overhaul that included building and supporting a new staff office in Colorado Springs, implementing thorough financial and budgeting policies and procedures, significantly reducing overhead expenses and supporting athletes with training and competition expenses at an unprecedented level.

“The last two years have been a challenging time for the USA-NKF but also a time of great growth and I’m proud of what we’ve been able to accomplish,” said St. Onge.  “I’d like to thank both the Transition Board for their leadership and the USA-NKF membership for its patience and I look forward to the opportunities that lie ahead.”

Please see below for capsule biographies on the new USA-NKF Board of Directors:

John DiPasquale (Palatine, Illinois) – Approved Sports Organization Director
John DiPasquale is a 38 year martial artist and father of four who founded one of the largest karate organizations in the United States.  He has been a member of the NGB for more than thirty three years and was a former national team athlete.
He continues to be an active coach and train national champions and U.S. team members.

Phil Hampel (Barrington, Illinois) – Independent Director
Phil Hampel has been involved in karate for 29 years and is the president and member of the board of directors of one of the largest not-for-profit support organizations for karate in the United States.  He is a proven Not-For-Profit Executive with expertise in the creation, management and execution of not-for-profit organizations. Mr. Hampel’s strengths include strong leadership skills in developing and sustaining volunteer based programs. In addition, he is strategically focused on utilizing technology and new media to reach a larger base of potential contributors and supporters. Using his career experience, Mr. Hampel has proven capable of leveraging professional experiences as an Information Technology Manager into the not-for-profit organizations.

Tokey Hill (Long Island, New York) – Coach Director
Tokey Hill has been actively involved in Karate for over 30 years as a world champion athlete (1980), a sensei (since 1983), a personal coach to National Team Members (since 1988), a national coach (1992-1997), Head Coach (1998-2002), appointed to PKF Technical Committee (2009), and Chairman FISU Technical Committee (2007). Mr. Hill looks forward to drawing from these experiences to develop a standardized certification program that services grassroots to elite, thus creating a mechanism utilizing our diverse and already accomplished National Coaching Staff.

Timothy Howell (Colorado Springs, Colorado) – Independent Director
Tim Howell is a Senior Vice President/Area Manager managing the business banking teams in Denver and Colorado Springs for JPMorgan Chase Bank. Mr. Howell holds a B.B.A. from The University of Mississippi.  A native of New Orleans, he and his family have resided in Colorado Springs for the past thirteen years.

Roger Jarrett (St. Albans, West Virginia) – Affiliated Organization Director
Roger Jarrett is a professional martial arts instructor with over 43 years experience in a variety of martial arts.  He became involved with the Karate NGB in the late 1970’s and has been an athlete, coach, and international official.  Within the USA-NKF, he has served as Secretary General from 1998-2006, and President from 2006-2007.  He also serves as President of the North American Karate Federation, a continental federation recognized by the PKF.  As Chief Instructor of both the USA Martial Arts Federation, an affiliate member of the USA-NKF, and the United International Martial Arts Federation, he oversees martial arts schools throughout the United States and Canada.  He, along with his wife Linda, is a lifelong resident of West Virginia, where he is a member of the Board of Deacons at Highlawn Baptist Church. 
 
Alex Miladi (Yuba City, California) – Referee Director
Alex Miladi is Founder/President of the Miladi Group, LLC and brings over 30 years of experience in the business world, which has enabled him to understand the intricate workings of the corporate world and has facilitated a successful career in real estate development, business management and business development.  In addition to his business acumen, Mr. Miladi brings 39 years of karate experience having participated as an athlete, coach and now referee.  During that time, he has held various roles including Vice-President Shotokan Karate USA, President Northern California Karate-do Federation, member USA-NKF Referee Committee and WKF/PKF/USA-NKF Karate Referee.

Clay Morton (Hernando, Mississippi) – Athlete Director
Clay Morton is a chiropractor from northern Mississippi.  Dr. Morton has been participating on the U.S. National Team since he was a junior athlete in 1991 and has won numerous national and international medals. He is currently serving on both the USOC's Athlete Advisory Council and the World Karate Federation's Athlete Commission.

Cheryl K. Murphy (Jamaica, New York) – Athlete Director
Cheryl K. Murphy has been involved with the USANKF for over 15 years including the last seven years as a U.S. National Team athlete where she won numerous national and international medals.  In addition to her karate experience, Ms. Murphy is an accomplished artist (theater, dance, and music) and brings nine years of experience as an office manager.  Holding a Bachelor’s degree and pursuing Master’s degree, Ms. Murphy looks forward to bringing all of her experiences to the Board to continue to support athletes both on and off the field of play.
 
Doug Stein (Coral Gables, Florida) – At-Large Director
Doug Stein is a partner in the law firm of Seipp & Flick in Coral Gables, Florida, specializing in appellate litigation, and an adjunct professor of law at Florida International University. Mr. Stein began his karate training in 1975 as a freshman at the University of Pennsylvania, and is a member of the Japan Karate Federation Rengo-Kai, a multi-style organization directed by Shihan Fumio Demura, where he serves as Director of Shotokan Karate. Mr. Stein is a member of the Amateur Athletic Union (AAU), where he sits on the Executive Board of Directors of the National Karate Program and serves as Director of Legal Affairs. He operates his own dojo in Miami, Florida, is a nationally certified coach and has competed successfully on a national and international level.