Issue link: http://read.uberflip.com/i/701202
T he 14th annual North American Rink Conference & Expo (NARCE) has come and gone, and by all accounts from the students, instructors, volunteers, exhibitors and sponsors that participated, this year's event has to be ranked as one of the best! The total attendance just missed an all-time high, and there were a significant number of first-time students and exhibitors. As is the case every year, the best part of the event—aside from the industry leading educational courses and tradeshow—was the networking that took place inside and outside of the classrooms during the week. On behalf of the STAR staff and Board of Directors, I would like to thank everyone that has supported NARCE over the past 14 years; we can't wait to celebrate the 15th anniversary next year in Columbus, Ohio! If you weren't able to make it to NARCE this year, there are still plenty of opportunities to invest some time and resources into your own professional development. STAR's 2016 Regional Training Programs will be held at various locations around the country this summer. Course information, dates and locations are included in the Regional Training Program brochure inserted in this issue. In this section of the last issue of RINK, I alluded to changes that will be taking place with Serving The American Rinks (STAR) as we implement initiatives outlined in our four-year strategic plan. The most significant of those initiatives is the rebranding of our organization. Starting in January 2017, STAR will officially be doing business as "United States Ice Rink Association." Along with the name change will be a new logo, which was chosen from four options by our members this past May during NARCE. The next initiative is to create a new website that will incorporate a "Member Resource Center" which will only be accessible by Individual, Facility and Vendor members using their membership username and password. The resource center will include: • A keyword-searchable database of current and past RINK Magazine articles • Best-practices papers and documents • "How-to" training videos • Sample business forms, policies, procedures, job descriptions, contracts, etc. • Member surveys and market research • Classifieds/job board • Much more I hope you enjoy this issue of RINK, and have a great summer! — Jeff Theiler, Chief Operating Officer, Serving The American Rinks Opening ADDRESS Welcome from Jeff Theiler 12 / JULY.AUGUST.2016 RINKMAGAZINE.COM The Next Step for STAR THE OFFICIAL PUBLICATION OF STAR JULY/AUGUST 2016 // VOL. 19, NO. 4 RINKMAGAZINE.COM // INFO@RINKMAGAZINE.COM C E O Steve Farbman P R E S I D E N T James McEwen S E N I O R V I C E P R E S I D E N T David Jensen V I C E P R E S I D E N T, M A R K E T I N G & S T R AT E G I C D E V E L O P M E N T Pat Sullivan C O N T R O L L E R Mike Schwarz C R E AT I V E D I R E C T O R Rob Johnson A RT D I R E C T O R Mike DeArmond D E S I G N E R S Brandon Favre, Karli Seman A D S A L E S Bryan Nelson M A R K E T I N G & AC C O U N T M A NAG E R Jessica Disch E D I T O R S : Karl Anderson, Aaron Paitich, Jessi Pierce M A R K E T I N G C O O R D I NAT O R Grace Famestad RINK Magazine is the definitive business publication for professionals in the ice rink industry and is the leading source for information on facility management, operations and programming. Mission of STAR: "To advance the ice rink industry through membership, world-class education, training, resources and events." C H I E F O P E R AT I N G O F F I C E R Jeff Theiler D I R E C T O R , M E M B E R S H I P Cory Portner D I R E C T O R , E D U CAT I O N John Monteleone PUBLISHING PARTNER 505 North Highway 169, Suite 100, Minneapolis, MN 55441 P H : (763) 595-0808 FA X : (763) 595-0016 E - M A I L : info@touchpointmedia.com W E B S I T E : touchpointmedia.com P H : ( 719) 538-1149 FA X : (719) 538-1160 E - M A I L : info@starrinks.com W E B S I T E : starrinks.com | narce.com STAR is a program of USA Hockey and U.S. Figure Skating. E D I T O R Aaron Paitich M A NAG I N G E D I T O R Jessi Pierce C O N T R I B U T I N G W R I T E R S Brandon Klement, Dan Marrazza, Craig Peterson, Cory Portner, Ben Ruggles, Jeff Theiler E D I T O R I A L B OA R D Mike Bauer, T.C. Lewis, Craig Petersen, Ben Ruggles, Dave Wescott D E S I G N E R S Mike DeArmond, Karli Seman, Brandon Favre