Nominating Committee Confirms 2017 Board Candidates; Election Details

October 26, 2016

Dear USA Ultimate Members,

Voting for USAU board members is a giant chance for you to directly influence the future of Ultimate. Board members have outsized influence and voice, and as a USA Ultimate member, you get to choose who gets that outsized influence and voice.

We’re announcing the candidates now for each of the 2 seats open (1 at-large and 1 elite athlete). You have five days to consider them. On Monday night, Halloween, we’ll be hosting a debate on Reddit where you can ask them anything. Then the polls open and you have four days to vote.

We have an exceptional slate of candidates for you this year:

AT-LARGE CANDIDATES (1 seat open)

DeAnna Ball:

One of the top volunteers of our era, DeAnna is a longtime USA Ultimate board member and current board president. She is the coach of Ohio State Fever and Columbus Rival, was an assistant coach of the silver-medal-winning U-20 Women’s U.S. National Team, and was the Kathy Pufahl Spirit Award winner in 2007. VIEW CANDIDATE STATEMENT FOR DEANNA BALL.

Mandy Eckhoff:

A former USA Ultimate board member who took on the grinding job of rewriting our organizational bylaws to meet Olympic standards. Mandy is a commercial finance lawyer, is super sharp, and shares your passion for Ultimate. VIEW CANDIDATE STATEMENT FOR MANDY ECKHOFF.

Harvey Edwards:

An early Hall of Famer, Harvey "The Legend" Edwards has maintained his passion for our sport through his son Cassidy who played on Slow White for many years. An advocate of mixed play, Harvey is an eloquent spokesman for everything we all love about Ultimate. VIEW CANDIDATE STATEMENT FOR HARVEY EDWARDS.

ELITE ATHLETE CANDIDATES (1 seat open)

Heather Ann Brauer:

One of the great contributors of our era, Heather Ann co-founded the Girls’ Ultimate Movement (GUM), coached YCC teams for the past nine years, and has served in three different regional director positions. Heather Ann is known for her raw brain power, determination and effort, and is a current World Champion in Beach Ultimate. VIEW CANDIDATE STATEMENT FOR HEATHER ANN BRAUER.

Jacob Luria (formerly Goldstein):

An elite player with lots of experience at the highest levels of the game both nationally and internationally, Jacob has some new ideas on how we can engage with the semi-pro leagues. VIEW CANDIDATE STATEMENT FOR JACOB LURIA.

Sincerely,

Henry Thorne

Vice President, USA Ultimate Board of Directors

Chair, Nominating Committee

NUTS AND BOLTS

WHAT: USA Ultimate 2017 Board of Directors Election

WHO: All eligible USA Ultimate members are asked and encouraged to participate in the 2017 USA Ultimate Board of Directors election

WHEN: Monday, Oct. 31, 7:00 p.m. MT – Friday, Nov. 4, 5:00 p.m. MT

TO VOTE: 1) Login to your member account on usaultimate.org. 2) Click on the "voting" box.

VOTER ELIGIBILITY: All active members of USA Ultimate in good standing may vote in the At-Large election. Only Elite Athletes, as defined in Section 5.6(b) of the USA Ultimate bylaws are eligible to vote in the Elite Athlete election.

ENGAGE: Review individual candidate statements and participate in a virtual debate on Reddit, scheduled for Monday, Oct. 31, from 9:00-11:00 p.m. ET. The debate will occur on the ultimate subreddit, reddit.com/r/ultimate.

Have any questions or comments? We welcome community feedback and discussion made in a respectful manner. Please refrain from profanity or personal attacks, as such public comments negatively reflect on our sport and community.