Three Distinguished Athletes and Sports Industry Executives Join U.S. Center for SafeSport Board of Directors

Jessica Herrera-Flanigan Appointed Board Chair

DENVER, COLORADO, UNITED STATES, December 11, 2020 /EINPresswire.com/ -- The U.S. Center for SafeSport welcomes three new members with distinguished athletic and executive credentials to its board of directors. Kimberly Fields, April Holmes, and Pamela Wheeler officially began their terms on the Center’s all-volunteer board at last Friday’s quarterly board meeting. In addition, Jessica Herrera-Flanigan assumes the role of chair previously held by charter board member Frank Marshall.

“I am excited to work with our new directors and board chair. They all bring impeccable experience to their roles, along with a deep passion for the Center’s mission,” said Ju’Riese Colón, Chief Executive Officer, U.S. Center for SafeSport. “We are also incredibly fortunate to have someone of Jessica’s caliber as our new chair. She has the heart, capabilities, and drive to advance our mission while continuing Frank’s efforts to expand the Center’s resources and further its independence. We are grateful for his unwavering leadership.”

“Kimberly, April, and Pamela all bring distinguished athletic and executive credentials to the board. Their expertise will be instrumental as the Center works to engage more athletes and to represent the diversity of participants across the U.S. Olympic and Paralympic Movement,” said Herrera-Flanigan. “I am honored to carry forward Frank’s dedication to our mission to make athlete well-being the centerpiece of sport culture. He was a tremendous advocate for the Center and deserves much credit for getting us to where we are today.”

A charter member of the board of directors, Jessica Herrera-Flanigan is Vice President, Policy and Philanthropy, Americas, at Twitter. Her extensive experience includes roles as President of Univision Foundation, Executive Vice President of Government and Corporate Affairs at Univision Communications Inc., and Staff Director and General Counsel for the Committee on Homeland Security, U.S. House of Representatives. She earned her bachelor’s degree from Yale University and her J.D. from Harvard Law School.

Kimberly Fields is Senior Vice President of Partnership Development and Operations for the National Football League and one of few women to have achieved such a high ranking in the NFL. Prior to her current position, Fields served in other NFL leadership roles, including Senior Vice President for the Office of the Commissioner; Vice President of Football Strategy, Business Development, and Analytics; and Vice President for Player Engagement. She was an accomplished NCAA Division I track-and-field athlete while an undergraduate at the University of Virginia and went on to earn a graduate degree from UVA and her J.D. from William Mitchell College of Law.

April Holmes is a speaker and executive coach whose perspectives on overcoming adversity to achieve athletic success have her in high demand. After losing part of her left leg in an accident in 2001, she rebounded to become one of the century’s most accomplished athletes with four Paralympic Games appearances, three Paralympic medals (one gold, two bronze), six World Championship medals, and more than a dozen world and U.S. record performances in the 100-meter, 200-meter, and long-jump events. She is the cofounder and CEO of HeroHangout, a celebrity-driven learning community mentoring, engaging, and empowering youth through life experiences.

Pamela Wheeler is a lecturer in leadership and personnel management in Columbia University’s Master of Science in Sports Management program and serves as a consultant for the NFL. Among numerous firsts, Wheeler was the founding director of the Women’s National Basketball Players Association, the first woman to lead a professional sports union, and negotiated the first collective bargaining agreement in women’s professional sports. She was named one of the “101 Most Influential Minorities in Sports” by “Sports Illustrated” and one of the “50 Most Powerful Blacks in Sports” by “Black Enterprise”. She earned her bachelor’s degree from Dartmouth College and her J.D. from Boston University.

Entertainment titan Frank Marshall helmed the Center’s board of directors since its inception, and his contributions as board chair laid the groundwork for the nonprofit’s formal launch in March 2017.

About the U.S. Center for SafeSport
Headquartered in Denver, Colorado, the U.S. Center for SafeSport is an independent, nonprofit 501(c)(3) responsible for responding to and preventing emotional, physical, and sexual misconduct and abuse in the U.S. Olympic and Paralympic Movement. The Center’s mission is to make athlete well-being the centerpiece of our nation’s sports culture through abuse prevention, education, and accountability.

Under the Protecting Young Victims from Sexual Abuse and Safe Sport Authorization Act of 2017, the Center serves as the exclusive authority to respond to reports of abuse and misconduct in the United States Olympic & Paralympic Committee (USOPC) and their recognized National Governing Bodies (NGBs) and Paralympic Sport Organizations (PSOs). The Center also serves as an educational resource for sports organizations at all levels, from grassroots amateur sports organizations to professional leagues. For more information about the Center, visit uscenterforsafesport.org.

Media contact: media@safesport.org

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