USA Karate Records Historical First During Colorado Springs Meeting

CONTACT:
Jake Lease
Director of Member Services & Events
USA Karate
 
USA Karate
1631 Mesa Ave, Ste A1
Colorado Springs, CO 80906
(719) 477-6925
Fax: (719) 634-5198
www.usankf.org

Colorado Springs, January 12---The popular sport of Karate made history in Colorado Springs this week.

The Board of Directors of the USA National Karate-do Federation (USA-NKF) met for the first time on January 10 at the United States Olympic Training Center in Colorado Springs, the first time the sport of Karate has operated under a member- elected Board of Directors since a United States Olympic Committee (USOC) mandated organizational restructuring in July, 2007.
 
The Board of Directors reached a consensus and chose John Dipasquale (Palatine, IL) as its Chairman in its first official action after taking control of the governance of the USA-NKF. 

Others on the new Board include Phil Hampel (Barrington, IL), Tokey Hill (Long Island, NY), Tim Howell (Colorado Springs, CO), Roger Jarrett (St. Albans, WV), Alex Miladi (Yuba City, CA), Clay Morton (Hernando, MS), Cheryl Murphy (Jamaica, NY), and Doug Stein (Coral Gables, FL). 

The Board of Directors expressed its commitment to moving the organization forward and continuing the growth that the USA-NKF has experienced over the past three years.  Also reviewed during this initial meeting were the organization’s operation budget, athlete support strategy, strategic plan, and fundraising goals.
 
"We believe that the new Board of Directors for the USA-NKF represents the diversity within the sport and contains the right mix to lead Karate forward in the sports world," said Eric Parthen, Director of Organizational Development for the USOC.  "We are very pleased with the leadership skills of the Board and look forward to great success for the athletes under this Board's direction." 

The Board completed a day of a Governance Workshop conducted by Kae Rader of Rader Consulting during the weekend that covered numerous aspects of non-profit leadership and management.
 
USA-NKF is the National Governing Body for Karate in the United States under the authority of the USOC.  It is the largest karate organization in scope and vision, and is responsible for the selection of the official USA Junior and Senior Karate Teams.  A full medal sport in all major International Multi Sport Competitions including the Pan American Games and the World Games, Karate narrowly missed out on the vote for inclusion into the 2016 Olympic Games and will be considered again in 2013 for inclusion in the 2020 Olympic Games. 

For additional information on the USA-NKF and its programs, visit the organization website at www.usankf.org.