About US Aerial Federation & Pole Sports
Vision & Mission
Vision
Our vision is "to enable our instructors, judges, practitioners, and much of the Pole and Aerial Sport movement to achieve their full potential in all aspects of the Pole and Aerial sport."
Our Mission
Our mission is to "inspire people to participate in safe & effective Pole & Aerial sports around the United States of America". Through our eight main goals listed below, we can achieve this vision and carry out our mission.
Pole & Aerial Sports Focus
We want to enable and inspire all coaches, judges, athletes, and enthusiasts to practice Pole & Aerial Sports, by providing opportunities for individuals to engage, develop, and realize their potential in all aspects of the sport, regardless of age, background, ability, or disability.
International Success
We want our sport to be recognized nationally & internationally with representation at several sporting events, the World Games, and eventually at the Olympic and Paralympic Games.
Deliver Partnership
We want to develop strong internal and external partnerships at all levels, to provide opportunities, structures, & support for Pole and Aerial Sports and our Pole and Aerial community.
Raise the profile of Pole Sports
We want to spread and inform the public about the full range of Pole sports activities, leading to increased recognition, sponsorship, funding, access, & participation in our sport.
Athlete Support
The development of a comprehensive Pole and Aerial Sport structure & the community to support athletes for careers once they have finished within the competitive context. We want
to build a long-term sustainable future for Pole and Aerial Athletes.
Trainer support
We want a cohesive, ethical, inclusive, and valued coaching system where talented coaches act as a support stick for athletes at all stages of their development.
Anti-Doping
Our goal is to maintain an Anti-Doping program in accordance with the World Anti-Doping
Agency (WADA) Code, which is recognized as the highest standard of fairness, equality, &
integrity in all sports and all countries.
Check & regulate
To fairly and comprehensively control and regulate Pole and Aerial Sports, from a national
perspective, in all regions.
Pole Sports News
"From the idea to create a sport from Pole to GAISF Observer Status has taken less than 10 years... The possibilities of our sport are endless!"
Katie Coates - President IPSF
The International Pole Sports Federation was founded in 2009 by Tim Trautman and Katie Coates to unite athletes, coaches, judges, and enthusiasts.
The concept of Pole as a sport dates back to 2006 after pole became a popular fitness form in 2000 and pole competitions started gaining popularity. Competitions had little or no scoring or judging criteria, no way of consistently awarding points to those athletes that were technically and artistically superior, and rules consisted of very little in the way of guidance on what the judges were and were not looking for.
The US Aerial Federation Board
President —Tanya Christopher
Tanya Christopher discovered Pole and Aerial at the age of 23 years old in the year 2007. Tanya was a competitive dancer and tumbler since the age of 4. She taught children dance and tumbling in over 20 schools and was also a contracted professional choreographer for over 10 years.
Tanya went to school for Business and Accounting and opened her studio, “Amorous Dance Pole and Fitness” on September 26th, 2011. Tanya is now going on over 12 years of strong, successful business and over 17 years of experience with teaching Pole and Aerial.
Tanya is the President of the US Aerial Federation. She focuses on the core functions of the organization to enable it to achieve its long-term vision. Areas of focus include strategy, finance, board management, fundraising, and program delivery.
Vice President/ Athletes Chair —
Alysa Helvig
Alysa Helvig (she/her) is originally from Emmaus, Pennsylvania, having moved to Virginia and later South Carolina in 2018. She has been practicing pole sports since 2015 and has a Pole Fitness Instructor Certification with the ADPAF. Alysa is also a certified Judge under the International Pole Sports Federation.
Professionally, Alysa has historically been a hands-on technician, whether it’s behind the scenes in stage and film production or repairing computers. By day, she works as a content risk program manager in Charleston, South Carolina.
As Vice President, Alysa plans, develops and enforces policies and objectives for the organization to ensure it maintains its values and meets established goals.
Alysa will also manage all facets of an athletic program, including scheduling, hiring coaches, promoting programs and events, ordering equipment, constructing budgets, and facilitating
the program.
Treasurer—Thomas J Emig
Thomas is a Certified Public Accountant with over 40 years of experience in the field of accounting and finance. He has extensive experience working as an auditor, controller, and chief financial officer.
Working in both the private sector as well as with non-profits, Thomas has expertise in developing and managing successful Finance, Human Resources, IT, and Operational Departments such as payroll and management reporting.
Thomas will oversee the organization’s financial administration. This includes managing cash flow, paying and recording bills, maintaining a record of debt, selecting a bank, and reconciling statements.
Secretary— Shannon Zeilinger
Shannon is a native Charlestonian and began her pole journey in 2013. She fell in love with pole sports as a fitness routine and loves the athletic aspect of the sport. She is passionate about promoting the sport to a wide audience. Shannon worked in various healthcare roles, including pharmacy technician and registered nurse, for more than 20 years and is now enjoying her role as a stay-at-home mom to an adorable boy. Shannon brings her time management, organizational, and great interpersonal communication skills to
this board.
The board secretary ensures that all critical documents are organized, safely stored, and readily accessible to other board members and staff leadership.
Governance & Ethics Committee Chair—JoAnn Galliano
JoAnn has had experience working with the pole association as an assistant to the judges. In this position, she was responsible for assisting the judges and ensuring the judges had the tools needed to fairly judge the completion. JoAnn had previous experience as president of a nonprofit in California and currently serves as an educational consultant to a California state board.
JoAnn will utilize her knowledge to oversee Board compliance with USAF Bylaws and Policies.
Media & Marketing Committee Chair—Alexandria Barnett
Alexandria Barnett is a dynamic force in the world of media and aerial arts, Beginning her aerial journey in 2019, she is dedicated to empowering individuals to reach new heights. With a diverse skill set and a passion for innovation, she plans to make a significant impact on the Pole & Aerial Community.
In addition to her extensive background, Alexandria proudly serves as the Media Director for the United States Aerial Federation (USAF). In this role, she combines her love of Pole & Aerial skills with her expertise in Media/Communications. She plans in this role to oversee the federation's media strategy, aid in managing content creation, and ensuring that the inspiring stories and achievements of aerial artists competing across the nation are shared with our global community.
With a Bachelor of Science degree in Marketing and a background in Social Media Analytics, Public Relations, and Media Training, Alexandria possesses a unique blend of skills that allow her to excel. She leverages her proficiency in communication and her passion for the aerial arts to elevate the visibility and impact of the United States Aerial Federation.
Membership Chair— Lexi Mueller
Lexi Mueller is an ambitious new Poler and Aerialist with just over a year of experience. Currently residing in Charleston after graduating with two bachelors degrees in may of 2022.
Outside of Pole and Aerial Lexi is an elementary teacher working with special education students.
Events Committee Chair—
Carissa Doig
Carissa has been a combination of a practicing aerialist/poler and instructor for over 5 years.
Carissa was diagnosed with Multiple Sclerosis over a decade ago, and discovered aerial arts after recovering from a relapse that left her blind and unable to move the right side of her body for over 3 months. After her MS relapse, she found that pole and aerial arts were both a crucial part of her recovery process both mentally and physically. Carissa is an advocate for Multiple Sclerosis awareness, and is also an advocate for para-athletes wishing to compete in aerial and pole.
Carissa has almost 15 years of experience marketing in the media (TV/radio) industry, as well as corporate events production, and digital marketing. Carissa has worked with sport related non-profits in the past, and is also a Digital Marketing for media Instructor for a national continuing educational program that specializes in training professionals in the media industry.
Carissa started an aerial arts and pole fitness program at a local fitness club called "The Foundry" in Beaufort, SC in early April of 2023. The Foundry aerial arts program is designed to train both adult, and youth aerial athletes who wish to perform and compete.
Volunteers Chair—
Jessica Bullock
I started taking pole dance/fitness classes in 2006 and quickly fell in love with them. I became a certified ADPAF instructor for Amorous Dance Pole and Fitness in 2012. My full-time day job is Office Manager for a home builder, but pole has become my happy place and a huge part of my life.
Through the course of being an instructor, I’ve learned to adapt and overcome my own physical and mental challenges working to channel those experiences into strength and confidence in
myself. I strive to help clients have the same experience. My focus as an instructor is on safety, technique, building strength, and improving flexibility.
Jessica will utilize her knowledge to help Competitions run smoothly with Athletes, Coaches, Judges, Spectators, and Competition Organizers.
Anti-Doping Chair= Stacey Shapiro
Sponsorship & Fundraising Committee Chair= Katherine Bostick
Finance Committee
- Virginia Marshall
- Katie Beavers
Policy of the US Aerial Federation—GDPR
The US Aerial Federation processes certain personal data. This data is used, among other things, to keep order in member registries, to organize the US Aerial Federation Championship in Pole & Aerial & the members' participation in the Aerial Championships & World Championships in Pole & Aerial. There are special rules for how personal data must be handled securely. In May 2018, the Personal Data Act (1998:294) (PUL) was replaced by the Data Protection Regulation (GDPR), which entails changed requirements for handling personal data. Due to these changes, we have supplemented the membership terms & conditions with a privacy policy which, among other things, describes how & why we save your personal data, as well as what rights you have with regard to your personal data.
Address
1706 Old Towne Rd
Charleston, SC 29407, USA
