Shortly after Jon Kreitz retired from the military seven years ago, US Equestrian announced we were accepting nominations for an independent director seat on the board of directors, and one of Kreitz’s neighbors suggested he should look into it. While Kreitz had previous experience serving on the board of other nonprofits and organizations, he’d never been involved with an equestrian one, so he started doing some research.
As he read through the requirements and looked at the Federation’s vision statement, “to bring the joy of horse sports to as many people as possible,” Kreitz realized just how excited he was about USEF’s mission and that he fit the bill for being an independent director.
“One key for being an independent director is that we don’t have a particular allegiance to any one breed or discipline,” said Kreitz, who has had horses in his life for 58 years. “Your allegiance is to all things horses and horse people and growing the sport. As an independent director, you get to be involved in every aspect of the horse world to try to help the sport and to reach more people who may want to become participants in this amazing sport.”
Of the 21 seats on the USEF Board, three of those are designated for independent directors, who are nominated by the general membership and voted on by the board. (You can read more about the composition of the board in this USEF Insider article.)
To be an independent director you cannot have held (or be related to someone who has held) a major position within the Federation or one of its affiliates in recent years, including, but not limited to, employment, consulting, or having interest in an entity that has provided or received payments or services to the Federation. In addition, one of the three independent director seats must satisfy (and maintain) stricter requirements throughout their term and any successive terms. (All requirements are outlined in the bylaws found here.) These seats are an opportunity for non-athletes, or even a non-equestrian to bring their professional experience and perspective to the board.
“USEF need people who want to make a difference in a constructive manner and who have a variety of backgrounds,” Kreitz said. “The more varied experiences and viewpoints people bring to the board, the better the outcome will be for our members.”
Like other board members, independent directors can serve a maximum of two consecutive four-year terms (or 11 years if they start off by filling a vacant seat). If they wish to rejoin the board, they can do so after a 350-day break.
The board plays an important role in running US Equestrian, and like all other nonprofits, they oversee the governance and finances and drive the strategic direction of the organization.
“If you want to make a difference, being on the board is the single most impactful way to do that,” said Kreitz. “The board is driving the strategic direction of the Federation. There’s nothing stagnant about the organization. Nobody’s sitting there thinking we’re just going to keep doing the same thing. The Federation is filled with a committed team who truly wants to grow and improve equestrian sport.
“We’re always looking for new ways to help make competition more affordable, which is not entirely controlled by USEF, but also our economy. We’re looking at ways to help make things easier for members, make communication better, improve the website, and find ways to improve horse welfare. We help push for more programs for young people and grassroots members, and look at how do we grow the equestrian base within all of the Federation’s affiliates? How do you make it fun, but above all, maintain the welfare of horse, rider safety, and fair and equal competition so people want to participate?”
Success in an independent director seat also relies on your ability to listen as well as participate in conversations, and Kreitz said the board takes member comments very seriously.
“It’s all about doing it constructively, but I can tell you that the best interactions all of us on the board ever have are when people are asking tough questions, raising points, and driving discussions so we ultimately make the best decision possible for a particular situation at that time. And we know we can revisit those at another meeting if we don’t have a good answer right now, so we’re going to do some more homework and talk about it again.”
The US Equestrian Nominating Committee is currently accepting nominations for an independent director seat, with a term from January 2027 through January 2031. Nominations for this board seat can be sent to [email protected] until September 30 at midnight. Nominees will be contacted and asked to submit an expression of interest packet no later than October 7, which provides the committee with information about the nominee’s professional and relevant sport background.