Author’s Note: I am not a podiatrist, nor am I an orthopedist. The recommendations in this post come from common sense and anecdotal experience. For the best recommendations on shoes specific to you, discuss it with a medical professional. The other day I was leading a footwork class. I looked down. I stopped. I called … Continue reading Parents: We Need to Talk About Your Kids’ Shoes →

Another NAC done, another round of 12+ hour days, and some gross food. Here are my nuggets from the Columbus NAC. The P-Card Rules Interpretation will be Changing to that of the FIE’s: Take this section of my write-up with a grain of salt, and consider this the “hey, something resembling this is coming” statement. … Continue reading Epee Referee Nuggets from the December 2021 NAC: P-Card Interpretation Will be Changing →

Note: this post was made on October 27, 2021. Given the nature of this novel coronavirus, data is constantly changing, news studies are being published, and our understanding of this virus and the effectiveness of the vaccination is evolving. The author of this post is not a medical professional in any way, shape or form … Continue reading In Support of USA Fencing’s Vaccination Mandate →

Kick them out of your club until they do. That's it. That's the post. Thanks for coming to my TedXTalk.

Intro If you’ve ever approached Peter Burchard and told him: “I want NAC’s to be exclusively in Richmond, VA,” chances are, you’re talking to the wrong person. If you’ve ever approached Kris Ekeren and said: “I want you to put Justin Meehan in the USA Fencing Hall of Fame,” you’re also talking to the wrong … Continue reading Understanding the Relationship between USA Fencing Operations (CEO) and Governance (Chair) →

Introduction: This post was written in response to ongoing confusion regarding roles and responsibilities between that of the US Center for SafeSport (USCSS) and USA Fencing. It is not intended to go into the weeds of their unique disciplinary processes, rather, to establish who takes jurisdiction over a particular case and why. We also wrote … Continue reading Understanding the Relationship Between USA Fencing and the US Center for SafeSport →

On August 31, 2021, the USA Fencing Board of Directors convened to discuss a number of sweeping new bylaw amendments to overhaul the current Governance Structure of USA Fencing. I previously posted an assessment of the amendments based on a Board Maturity Model, but today’s post will focus on the shortcomings of these changes from … Continue reading Assessing the Organizational Change Management Process in the Passage of the 2021 Bylaw Amendments →

Note: the following article has a personal anecdote on the grooming of minors. Trigger warning and so on, so forth.Update: A previous version of this article stated that USA Archery mandates SafeSport training for children. This was incorrect, and has been edited out. When I was a little kid, we would go to visit my … Continue reading On Mandatory SafeSport Training for Minors: a Personal Story →

Alen Hadzic. Image Courtesy of Wikimedia Note: this post was written to to discuss the complex procedures that have gone into his case thus far and clear up some of the misinformation snowballing on social media. What is Mr. Hadzic being accused of? Those allegations are outlined in the BuzzFeed and Insider articles pretty clearly. … Continue reading Answering some Frequently Asked Questions Regarding the Alen Hadzic Case →

Introduction: On July 12, 2021, USA Fencing proposed the following changes to the bylaws in order to revolutionize the Board’s reporting structure and as stated by the Governance task force, “improve membership experience.”These amendments will be voted on in the upcoming August 31 executive session with a membership feedback session to be held on August … Continue reading Assessing USA Fencing’s Proposed Governance Structure – From the Perspective of an Organizational Design Expert →