David Anderson is the Director of Marian Wright Edelman Institute for the Study of Children, Youth and Families at San Francisco State University (SFSU). Formerly a Professor and Chair of the Department of Kinesiology at SFSU, David has been engaged in a wide range of service, teaching, and research activities. His research centers on understanding motor skills, and how motor activity influences psychological functioning. He has authored and co-authored numerous peer-reviewed articles, book chapters, presentations, an activity manual, and a popular textbook, and has received significant funding for his research from the National Institutes of Health, the National Science Foundation, and the Department of Education. David is an Active Fellow in the National Academy of Kinesiology and serves on several advisory and editorial committees.
Steve Barnes has been in the pool industry since 1984. Director of Science and Compliance for AquaStar Pool Products, Steve began his career as an R&D lab technician, moving into new product development designing swimming pool circulation systems and drowning preventions alarms that use in-water sensors and perimeter laser barrier systems. His career passion is driven by events as a teenager, when he was entrapped on a surf park suction outlet for over a minute. Instead of shying away from water, he remains focused on suction safety and drowning prevention, while working to improve the industry he loves.
Karllee Barton has a BS in biology from the University of Tennessee. He has over a decade of experience presenting at various conferences, such as the World Aquatic Health Conference, the International Pool | Spa | Patio Expo, and AOAP, and has a wide scope of fields including sanitizer technologies, chemical safety, water quality, analytical chemistry, lean manufacturing, food safety, statistics, and regulatory and hazard testing. A lifelong aquatics enthusiast, he has a passion for training industry professionals about chemical safety, water quality, and aquatic regulations.
Dennis Berkshire has over 40 years of experience in the aquatics industry, with field experience in swimming pool design, construction, operation, and training. He has a strong background in water chemistry and has been involved in the design of automated filtration, chemical feed, and water chemistry control equipment. As an expert on swimming pool operation, he has worked with several states on swimming pool environmental health codes. Dennis was named as part of the “Power 25” by Aquatics International Magazine again in February 2023 for his work as a technical committee chairperson for the Model Aquatic Health Code (MAHC). Dennis is a member of the National Sanitation Foundation Standards 50 board and is currently serving as chair of the Commercial Council for the Pool & Hot Tub Alliance. Dennis has authored dozens of technical articles for national trade magazines and is the chairperson of the PHTA/ICC Standard Writing Committee for the new commercial pool and spa operations and maintenance standards.
Paul has worked in the field of Recreation and Parks since 1971, beginning as a part-time Recreation Attendant, and holding numerous jobs through the years, including as Superintendent of Recreation in the Village of Garden City from 1994 to early 2001.
After leaving Garden City in 2001, Paul worked for the Town of North Hempstead as a Deputy Commissioner of Parks. He held this title until he took retirement in 2010.
Paul operated a successful training and consulting firm, teaching CPO and doing consulting work from 2010 until spring of 2019, when he was hired as a consultant by Garden City to assist in the operation of the Recreation Department while a new Parks Commissioner was sought.
After several months as a consultant, Paul was encouraged to apply for the Parks Commissioner job, and after an extensive search and interview procedure, was hired as the Commissioner in October of 2019. Back where it all started as a 17-year-old kid working in the local neighborhood park.
Ernest “Chip” Blatchley, Ph.D., P.E., BCEE, F.ASCE
Ernest R. Blatchley III is the Lee A. Rieth Professor in Environmental Engineering at Purdue University, where he holds a joint faculty appointment in the Lyles School of Civil Engineering and the Division of Environmental & Ecological Engineering. The Blatchley Group has been active in research related to swimming pool chemistry for roughly 15 years, with a recent focus on volatile compounds in water and their effects on IAQ in indoor pool facilities.
Paul John Boulifard is a designer and architect with a wide range of professional and academic experiences. He has worked on large-scale projects ranging from skyscrapers, healthcare facilities, and performing arts centers while at Pelli Clarke Pelli Architects in New Haven, CT, to small-scale civic buildings at Cherry Huffman Architects in Raleigh, NC. More recently, he has collaborated with Manuel Zeitlin Architects, Van Pond Architect, William C. Johnson Architect, David Kidd Architect, Root ARCH, and Centric Architecture in Nashville, TN. In conjunction with these professional activities, he has taught at the university level on an adjunct basis at such notable institutions as Wesleyan University and Connecticut College, and locally at Watkins College of Art. He holds a Bachelor of Environmental Design in Architecture from the North Carolina State University College of Design and a Master of Architecture from the Yale University School of Architecture. He also has studied in France and Spain.
Kevin Boyer has been a part of the Aquasol family of companies since 1996. For the last 15 years he has served in the role of COO. The Aquasol companies develop and distribute chemical automation and feed equipment in addition to operating Poolsure, a mini-bulk chemical supplier and service company that currently serves over 8,000 commercial sites in TX, LA, MS, AZ, and FL. He has been a CPO Instructor for over 20 years and has participated in many industry panels and task groups, including CMAHC and NSF. Kevin has led the development of many products and processes in the industry, including the first wireless-internet-enabled pool controller and the largest and safest fleet of mini-bulk chlorine bleach delivery trucks in the U.S.
Andrea Coletto graduated summa cum laude in environmental engineering. He is working as the leader of the Computational Engineering and MEP design teams for Myrtha Pools. He is concluding a Ph.D. course in Mechanical Engineering. During his studies, he investigated the fluid dynamics of swimming pools and the removal of chlorinated disinfection by-products.
Lauren Dinauer is an REHS/RS with the Consumer Health & Safety Division of the Pima County Health Department and is currently working as a program manager. She was previously a speaker at the CDC’s InFORM virtual conference in 2022 and has been a speaker on foodborne illness outbreaks at NEHA’s AEC, ADHS Foodborne Illness Taskforce, and the AZ Sanitarians Council regarding sampling techniques and environmental sampling. Lauren was recently awarded the Jacob Joseph Corby Achievement Award from AFDO as a result of her team’s successful identification of a major outbreak source and successful remediation at a facility with 44% surface contamination. Lauren has a Bachelor of Science in Biology and a Bachelor of Art in English Composition from the University of Arizona. She recently served as a voting member of Council III at the Conference for Food Protection in 2023 and is currently serving on CFP Committees and subcommittees in addition to serving on multiple national foodborne illness work groups.
Rowdy Gaines is a three-time Olympic gold medalist and iconic figure in the pool world. Rowdy's story is one of dedication, perseverance, and exceeding expectations. A late bloomer in swimming, he went on to dominate the freestyle events, capturing gold at the 1984 Los Angeles Olympics in the 100-meter freestyle, 4×100-meter freestyle relay, and 4×100-meter medley relay. His 10 world records stand as a testament to his relentless pursuit of excellence.
Rowdy's passion for swimming extends far beyond competition. He currently serves as a proud advocate for the Pool & Hot Tub Alliance (PHTA) drowning prevention initiative Step Into Swim, using his platform to promote the enjoyment and benefits of pool ownership and saving lives through swim lessons. Rowdy leverages his position as PHTA’s Vice President of Partnerships and Development to champion water safety initiatives.
Jennifer Hill joined the WTI Texas team in 2023. She has a deep passion for aquatics and has worked as a swim instructor, swim coach, and lifeguard, and she has over 20 years of experience in aquatic operations management. Jenn has certifications as a CPO Instructor, OSHA 30, EMT-B, USA Swim Coach, Illinois High School Association Swimming Official, as an instructor in American Red Cross, Ellis & Associates, and YMCA in lifeguarding and swim instruction. Jenn’s passion also granted her the opportunity to work on The WWA Safety Committee, The CMAHC Bylaws Revision Committee, and the Model Aquatic Health Code Committee. As a Project Manager, Jenn has the opportunity to help many clients through the entire process of designing their facility, oversee construction, quality control procedures, and continue to support clients as they begin operations. Jenn is the client’s primary contact throughout all project phases, actively maintaining the project schedule while exceeding client expectations.
Stacey Hoaglund is the President of the Autism Society of Florida, Coordinator of Florida Partners in Policymaking, author, Family Support Specialist with Family Network on Disabilities, and parent to a young man with autism. She has trained on autism teaching strategies and including children with behavioral challenges in traditional programs for more than 20 years. She has trained swim instructors at more than 100 recreational programs across the state of Florida and beyond, as well as at the National Drowning Prevention Alliance Conference, International Boating and Water Safety Summit, and World Aquatic Health Conference. She has trained parents, teachers, school administrators, physicians, places of worship, school districts, state universities, and organizations such as the United Way, Boys and Girls Clubs, Early Learning Coalition, Family Central, Early Steps, the Pediatric Society, and others.
Brian Howell is the Director of Strategic Initiatives at Life Floor. After initially having had a decades-long career in the document management and office technology space, he joined the Life Floor team eight years ago. Since then he has had various positions including serving as National Director of Waterparks, and then in an educational role as Director of Design Partnerships where he assisted a wide range of Architectural firms, helping them better understand the significant benefits that safety surfacing provides to every guest.
Brian is currently working with a wide range of various State Public Health Departments, educating their staff on aquatic safety surfacing, along with helping coordinate Life Floor efforts with both the NSF/ANSI/CAN Standard 50 task group and the ongoing ASTM F24.61 discussions regarding aquatic play environments. He enjoys being a resource for the expansive number of professionals Life Floor now serves across the entire aquatic industry, including engineers, manufacturers, park operators, health inspectors, certified installation partners, architects, and designers, as Life Floor assists all of them to help create beautiful and safe aquatic play areas around the world.
Michael Mancini has had a lifelong love for aquatics, from swimming, lifeguarding, and water parks to surfing and aquarium science. As a former NCAA Division I swimmer, swim lesson teacher, lifeguard, swim coach, program director, and lifesaving instructor, Michael is passionate about competitive swimming and drowning prevention. Michael is an experienced account and project manager with expertise in aquatic programming products, aquatic filtration technology, and water chemistry equipment.
Lindsay Mondick is the Director of Movement Engagement, Innovative Priorities and Aquatic Safety at YMCA of the USA. She is an advocate for water safety and drowning prevention and maintains a portfolio of work related to aquatic safety, aquatic programming, drowning prevention, and training. Mondick received a bachelor's degree in biology and psychology from the University of New Mexico.
Dr. Larry Newell is the Chief Operating Officer for Ellis Aquatic Innovations, LLC and Vice President and Medical Operations Director for Jeff Ellis & Associates, Inc, International Aquatic Risk Management Consultants, and Jeff Ellis Management, LLC. In his roles he leads the expansion of technological services to clients involving the use of a proprietary artificial intelligence video surveillance platform known as EAVS to reduce the likelihood of drownings. He also directs educational services, regulatory affairs for safety and health, and emergency response protocols for Ellis companies.
Prior to his current positions, Dr. Newell served as Executive Vice President of Jones and Bartlett Learning; National Executive Director for the Emergency Care & Safety Institute (ECSI); Director of Program Development for the American Red Cross, NHQ.; and Director of Undergraduate Physical Education at Baylor University. In his positions then and now he has been responsible for the development and delivery of national education, certification, and licensure programs impacting millions of people annually.
Dr. Newell holds a Bachelor of Science degree from the University of Pittsburgh, Master’s degree from Baylor University, and Doctoral degree from Texas A&M University. He has also been licensed for over 25 years as a national registry paramedic and critical care transport paramedic. He has authored extensively, has been an invited presenter at many state, national, and international conferences, and has provided expert consultation and testimony in more than 200 incidents involving drowning and emergency medical services operations.
Johnathan Nies is an accomplished Project Director and Manager with extensive experience in safety services, new facility pre-opening training, the Aquatic Examiner Service, and Operations Consulting. He is currently a Project Director for CHAMP, where he manages projects from initial kickoff to its final completion. He has overseen and managed multiple initiatives such as equipment purchasing for new and existing facilities, the delivery of the Aquatic Examiner Services, pre-opening training, loss control surveys, and operations consulting.
Johnathan has also worked as a Project Manager for HydroApps, where he managed the sale development of new software to users and internal staff.
Nicholas Pawley is the Vice President of Maintenance & Water Quality at the Qiddiya Water Theme Park in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia. He began working in the Aquatic / Water Quality industry in the mid-1990s.
During the past decade his work has been Middle East-based, focused upon waterpark maintenance and water quality, establishing industry best practices, introducing new technology, developing cost-effective methods, and efficiencies in manpower.
His work over the past 2.5 years can be summarized as pre-opening responsibilities, where he is establishing all processes and documentation associated to the technical services division and, most exciting, building a maintenance team that will pioneer maintenance practices for the region.
Jennifer Poteat became the Executive Director of Colin’s Hope in January of 2023. She has previously served in nonprofit leadership roles in Texas, focused on increasing access to quality, affordable education and healthcare for her community. Jennifer earned the Executive Master of Public Leadership from the LBJ School of Public Affairs at the University of Texas in 2016. While serving as a regional ambassador for the Texas Hospital Association, she became interested in the patient experience as it relates to outcomes. During the pandemic, she pursued a Master’s of Health Care Transformation, a dual degree from UT’s Dell Medical School and McCombs School of Business. Today she is proud to advocate for safer behaviors around water and continue the legacy of Colin Holst, who tragically drowned in 2008.
She has been appointed to the Governor’s EMS & Trauma Advisory Council’s subcommittee on injury Prevention and Public Education for 2024. At Colin’s Hope, she has provided training sessions to Texas Child Care Licensing agencies and organizations (Healthy Child Texas/Child Care Health Consultants), professional training to the Texas Department of Family and Protective Services agency (prevention and Early Intervention), and multiple preventions to nationwide organizations (Au Pair in America, Jack and Jill Foundation, and corporations such as 3M and Q2 Software) on water safety awareness and drowning prevention.
Jessica Salas-Brooks, MPH, Ph.D.
Jessica Salas-Brooks is a Research Scientist at NORC at the University of Chicago with over a decade of experience focusing on sexual and reproductive health, health equity, and injury prevention. At NORC, she utilizes quantitative and qualitative research methods to evaluate national-level programs focused on reducing health disparities. Salas-Brooks received a Ph.D. in Biobehavioral Health from Pennsylvania State University and an MPH in Epidemiological and Biostatistical Methods from Johns Hopkins University.
Craig Sears has been in aquatics for over 30 years. He founded Sears Pool Management Consultants, Inc. in 1997, which provides pool management services to community and commercial pools in the metro Atlanta area. He also founded Greater Atlanta Water Safety Alliance in 2012, which provides free water safety education and subsidized swim lessons and aquatic training to Atlanta area residents. He has served continuously on the Georgia Chapter of the Pool & Hot Tub Alliance (PHTA) since 2007, currently serves on PHTA's CPO Advisory Council, and has earned various industry designations including ARC LGIT, CPOI, PHTA CSP, and CBP. He has also received multiple industry awards and recognitions, including being named a PHTA Fellow in 2018, PHTA CSP of the Year in 2020, and AI Power 2023.
J.B. Smith is a retired aquatics professional, having spent 4 years with the YMCA, 10 years in a high school setting, 9 summers as a country club setting pool director, and 24 years as a tenured/full professor in higher education. He is Professor Emeritus at the Indiana University of Pennsylvania in Indiana, PA.
Dr. Roy Vore has been a CPO and PHTA CPO Instructor for over a decade. He began developing treatments for microbial growth in recreational water in 1991. Roy was a major contributor to the Disinfection Water Quality module of the CDC's MAHC, and the lead author of PHTA's RWI handbook. Roy holds a Ph.D. in bacterial physiology in addition to a master’s and bachelor's in microbiology. He has over 100 scholarly papers and presentations on the selection and use of industrial biocides, biocide testing methodology, the microbiology of swimming pools and spas, and the governmental regulation of biocides.
John Weber is a Senior Formulation Chemist with BioLab where he is primarily responsible for new product development, supporting existing products, and evaluating new technologies.
p>John has been in the pool and spa industry for over 26 years and has worked for several pool and spa manufacturers prior to coming to BioLab for the past 7 years. John has been a manager in quality control, technical services, as well as new product development. John is currently the Vice Chair of the Pool & Hot Tub Alliance (PHTA) Recreational Water and Air Quality Committee (RWAQC) as well as a member of the PHTA Code Action Committee. John is proud to have been a member on the original and current team that drafted the PHTA-11 Standard for Water Quality in Public Pools and Spas. John teaches numerous courses on algae and water quality at trade shows annually. John earned his B.S. at Old Dominion University and M.B.A. at Georgia State University and holds 2 patents for new product development.
Angela Wild is a water safety advocate and longtime swim teacher with a motor control and public health background. She brings over 20 years of experience in the learn-to-swim and drowning prevention industry. Currently, Angela operates a boutique swim school in San Diego County, while also devoting time to her 2 non-profit organizations and volunteering on several boards that advocate for water safety and drowning prevention.
