USA Field Hockey Announces New Board of Directors Members

COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo. - Following the annual USA Field Hockey Board of Directors meeting on December 3, in Charlotte, N.C., the organization is pleased to add three new individuals to the Board of Directors in Stefanie Fee, Billy King and Stephen Martin.

“I am excited to welcome Stefanie, Billy, and Stephen to the Board of Directors,” said Cathy Bessant, USA Field Hockey’s Board of Directors Chair. “They bring new and diverse experiences, which will be integral as we move toward our strategic goals in 2023 and beyond.”

Serving as new At-Large Directors are King and Martin. These individuals are replacing Bree Gillespie and Mark Vittese, who will each complete two four-year terms on December 31, 2022. Fee was elected to serve as an Athlete Director, replacing Melissa Gonzalez, who served a one-year term.

“We welcome Billy, Stef and Stephen, who bring broad expertise into the Board in the sports industry, legal, and with Stef the experiences of the elite athlete as well as club leadership perspectives,” commented Simon Hoskins, USA Field Hockey’s Executive Director. “Thank you for serving USA Field Hockey.”

Michael Barminski, Cathy Bessant, Dan Friedberg, William Holt and Chip Rogers have been re-elected to the Board. Following her re-election, Bessant said, “USA Field Hockey exemplifies everything an Olympic governing body should be. I am honored to be returning to the Board as Chair of this incredible organization for another four years and look forward to continuing to advance our game, athletes, coaches, umpires, staff and fans.”

Fee joined the U.S. Women’s National Team in 2012 after her graduation from Duke University, and played for the following six years, retiring in 2018. During her time on the team, Fee competed in 111 international caps and represented USA at many major international competitions. These included finishing fifth at the Rio 2016 Olympic Games, winning gold at the 2015 Pan American Games, and participating in the 2014 and 2018 World Cups, in The Netherland and England respectively.

Fee has more than a decade of coaching experience and became a USA Field Hockey Certified Level 1 Coach in 2013. She is the owner and coach of PowerHouse Field Hockey Club and served as the head coach of the U.S. O-60 Women’s Masters Team at the 2022 World MastersHockey (WMH) World Cup in Cape Town, South Africa this past fall. She previously was the head coach at Episcopal Academy and led the program to a state championship, while earning NFHCA All-South Region Coaching Staff of the Year. In 2016, she was the volunteer assistant coach at the University of Maryland, and then in 2017 served as an assistant coach.

In college, Fee served as captain for two years, received the Blue Devil Award, Underdog Award and had an award named in her honor. The Stef Fee Duke True award is presented to one athlete annually who shows the highest degree of leadership on and off the field and has a contagious passion for field hockey.

Fee earned her Bachelor of Arts in 2012 from Duke University in Psychology, with minors in Education and Culture Anthropology. Outside field hockey, she has worked in marketing both in the sports and health industries.

King’s extensive professional and athletic resume spans more than three decades, beginning his post-college basketball career by acting as assistant coach of the Indiana Pacers for four season. In 1998, King transitioned to the front office, joining the Philadelphia 76ers, where he eventually served as president and general manager before leaving the organization in 2007.

Following his departure from the 76ers, King joined the New Jersey (later Brooklyn) Nets, where he served as general manager of the organization from 2010 to 2016. During this time, he increased team average gate receipts 100%, planned and designed the new practice site and offices in Brooklyn, and established community initiatives in Brooklyn with the athletes.

More recently, King acted as a co-host on WIP morning radio sport talk  show, provided NBA analysis through Turner Sports, and worked as president of both ReachTV and Elfus Sports Management. He currently works as a senior partner at Modern Executive Solutions. In this role, he leads business development in sports, media and entertainment, researches and writes contracts, agreements, and proposals, and provides services to all individuals promoting effective and lasting business relationships.

Beyond his professional career, King has served on several sport, non-profit, and charitable boards over the past 30 years.

King attended Duke University, where he earned a Bachelor of Arts degree in Political Science in 1988. During his tenure with the Blue Devils, the team played in two Final Four appearances, 1986 and 1988. His daughter is an avid field hockey player.

Martin joins USA Field Hockey ‘s Board of Directors with extensive legal, compliance and governance experience. He began his legal career almost 30 years ago, working in the Office of the Attorney General for the State of Missouri, before moving to the United States Attorney’s Office in 1997 to act as an assistant United States Attorney. Throughout his career, he has acted as a partner at three law firms, in addition to several other notable legal positions.

Currently, Martin works for Skillsoft Corp as the Senior Vice President of Legal Compliance. His previous experience in compliance includes his time at Corpedia Corporation as General Counsel anp Chief Compliance Officer from 2006 to 2011 and Adelphia Communications Corporation as vice President of Law, Litigation and Compliance.

Martin earned his Bachelor of Arts in Public Affairs and Political Science from the University of Denver in 1991. Since completing his undergraduate, he earned three advanced degrees, including A Juris Doctorate from Creighton University School of Law, Master of Law from Georgetown University Law Center, and Master of Business Administration from the University of Denver. Martin is a member of the Bar in Colorado, Missouri and District of Columbia.

Martin became interested in field hockey through his daughter, an enthusiastic player who is committed to the University of Michigan. He has supported the Colorado Bears Field Hockey Club and Colorado Academy high school program.