USA Climbing recently announced some changes to its Board of Directors. In particular, the board added two new members and named a new President and Treasurer as previous members Bruce Mitchell and Matthew Roberts concluded their tenures.
Of the new appointees, Steve Struthers brings many years of experience from the consulting and non-profit sectors, in addition to being a parent of competition climbers and a longtime volunteer and National Coordinator for USA Climbing events.
Another new board member, Alice Kao, is the co-founder and CEO of the Sender One gyms. Kao possesses extensive experience and knowledge related to international sales and marketing. During the onset of the COVID pandemic, Sender One—under the direction of Kao and her team—made headlines for its innovative COOL Camp program, which transformed its LAX gym into a veritable learning institution for grade-school children.
The accomplishments of outgoing USA Climbing board members Mitchell and Roberts are extensive, having served as Board President and Treasurer, respectively. Most prominently, Mitchell and Roberts played a part in climbing’s historic Olympic inclusion, which resulted in four USA Climbing athletes (Nathaniel Coleman, Kyra Condie, Colin Duffy and Brooke Raboutou) representing Team USA in Tokyo last summer. In the climbing gym industry, Roberts has also been an influential force in the development of the 5.Life group of gyms, which operates facilities in Ohio and Pennsylvania.
The new Board Treasurer for USA Climbing is Trace Harris, who has been involved in a variety of industries—from technology and video game development to media and finance. The new Board President is Kate Felsen Di Pietro, whose experience also draws on a variety of roles and career spheres, including working for ABC News and co-founding Feed the Frontlines NYC.
More information on all the members of the Board of Directors, as well as USA Climbing’s current “Strategic Plan,” can be found here.
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