American Sailing Association
Press Releases
West Coast National Meeting | Moratorium on New ASA Schools
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Media Contact: Susan O’Reilly
Kenton Smith Advertising & PR
susano@kentonsmithadv.com
Tel: 407-856-6680 Ext. 220
American Sailing Association to Host West Coast National Meeting
in Marina Del Rey from Nov 9-11, 2007
MARINA DEL REY (Aug. 27, 2007) – World-renowned sailor Yoh Aoki, the first Japanese sailor to circumnavigate the globe, will be the keynote speaker at the American Sailing Association’s West Coast National Meeting from Nov. 9-11, 2007 at the Santa Monica Windjammers Yacht Club.
Aoki was just 22 when he sailed a 21-foot boat around the world alone, in a voyage that took three years and two months. While today’s sailors can rely upon the modern technology of GPS systems and satellite phones, Aoki used only a sextant to calculate his position on the water. Today, Aoki is an ASA-affliated instructor and owner of the Aoki Sailing School in Japan.
Owners of ASA-affiliated sailing schools, ASA-certified sailing instructors, sailors and representatives will attend the three-day ASA West Coast Meeting, which will focus on teaching best practices that promote safety and high quality in sailing education. More than 270 professionally accredited schools worldwide are affiliated with ASA, which has established levels of expertise for the operation of sailboats and defined the skills and knowledge required for certification at each level. ASA produces educational courses, training manuals and exams and manages certification programs for sailing students and instructors.
Two new American Sailing Association endorsement courses will make their world debut at the West Coast national meeting. Starpath Navigation founder David Burch will speak about a new ASA weather course, while Captain Tom Tursi, founder and owner of the Maryland School of Sailing, will demonstrate the new ASA Docking Endorsement course.
Well-known experts in several facets of sailing, including weather, navigation, technology, advertising, public relations and web-based marketing, will speak at the ASA West Coast National Meeting, including:
• John Connolly and Paul Miller, two nationally recognized experts on crew overboard recovery methods, will hold on-the-water demonstrations and testing to share their knowledge and experience of the best crew overboard recovery methods testing.
• Richard Wesson, a leading software developer in the sailing industry, will discuss how to use technology to improve office efficiency for sailing schools and charter companies.
• Wanda Kenton Smith, president of Kenton Smith Advertising & Public Relations, an award-winning and leading marine agency, will discuss effective and innovative marketing, public relations and web promotional techniques for sailing school owners.
American Sailing Association Executive Director Charles Nobles said ASA meetings bring together ASA-affiliated sailing school owners and instructors from throughout the West Coast region for a mix of lecture-style seminars and on-thewater practice teaching exercises demonstrating the best methods for teaching children and adults.
“These meetings are a great opportunity for us to continue to work with our ASAaffiliated sailing school instructors to introduce them to new weather and radar courses and to give them strong, easily implemented ideas for building their sailing schools,” said Nobles. “Plus, our members enjoy the chance to meet and learn from one another.”
Nobles said the ASA East Coast National Meeting will be held in Jacksonville, FL, from Jan 18-20, 2008 at the Rudder Club of Jacksonville.
About The American Sailing Association
The American Sailing Association has been the leading authority on sailing instruction and sailing schools in the United States for two decades. With more than 270 professionally accredited schools affiliated with ASA worldwide, the organization has certified more than 232,500 sailing students and nearly 7,000 professional sailing instructors. ASA membership represents 85% of the viable professional sailing schools in the U.S. For further information, contact the American Sailing Association at www.american-sailing.com
For further information, contact the American Sailing Association at www.american-sailing.com. Editor’s Note: High-resolution photograph of ASA keynote speaker Yoh Aoki is available.
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FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Media Contact: Susan O’Reilly
Kenton Smith Advertising & PR
susano@kentonsmithadv.com
Tel: 407-856-6680 Ext. 220
Focus on Enhanced Quality Control Leads American Sailing Association to
Enact First-Time Moratorium on New ASA Schools
LOS ANGELES – (June 8, 2007) — As part of an enhanced focus on quality control, the American Sailing Association (ASA) will no longer accept applications for new sailing schools, beginning Sept. 15, 2007. For the first time in its 24-year history, ASA is enacting a moratorium on accepting applications for new sailing schools within the United States for at least one year. The moratorium is part of a dedicated effort to continue to improve quality at the 270 professionally accredited sailing schools currently affiliated with ASA worldwide.
ASA’s six-member board of directors unanimously made the moratorium decision at a recent meeting in Marina Del Rey, CA. During this minimum one-year moratorium, ASA will continue to certify instructors and students at schools affiliated with ASA. Schools already accredited with ASA before the Sept. 15 deadline will not be affected.
“We take seriously our mission to continue to improve quality control among our existing schools,” said ASA Executive Director Charlie Nobles. “This moratorium will provide important time to concentrate our efforts on enacting a comprehensive new program of quality control initiatives. By not bringing in new affiliates after September 15, our organization’s staff and resources will be available to fully support these quality control goals.”
ASA’s new online certification system will provide a key component of ASA’s new quality control efforts. The system streamlines the process for instructors to gain certifications for their students. Instead of submitting multiple pages of time-consuming paperwork via mail or fax, ASA’s new online system allows instructors to file qualifying paperwork online.
“Our new system also quickens the time it takes for students to receive their ASA certifications to only a few days after an instructor has submitted the request to ASA online,” said Nobles, who spearheaded the project in collaboration with the ASA board of directors.
Lewis Melton, owner of Let’s Go Sailing, an ASA-affiliated school in Seabrook on Clear Lake in Galveston Bay, Texas, says the new online system has saved him postage and time. Previously, Melton said he was required to mail in tests from students to ASA headquarters; now he files everything for his students online. “It’s a lot quicker and easier than the previous system,” he said.
Bob Diamond, director of Spinnaker Sailing, an ASA-affiliated school in Redwood, City, CA, in San Francisco Bay, says ASA’s new online system is really easy to use. “I use it and I like it,” he says. “Everything is instant.” He says that he can quickly check on a student’s status and confirm that they’ve earned their ASA certification. Sometimes, he invites students to watch him on the computer as he enters the ASA online database and instantly confirms their certification.
The new system forms the cornerstone of the new quality control system by allowing ASA to e-mail every graduating sailing student a comprehensive customer survey questionnaire. Once completed, the forms are e-mailed back to ASA, allowing staff to identify in real time any practices that do not conform to the organization’s rigorous standards.
According to Nobles, “The online student feedback system is a substantial improvement over the paper questionnaires students must mail back to the ASA. It will improve both the participation rate among students and the depth of the information gathered. Should we detect a potential problem area, we follow-up with a phone call to any school that merits concern to discuss the situation.”
Nobles urges sailors interested in establishing an ASA-affiliated school to submit their applications before the September 15 moratorium deadline. He said exceptions to the moratorium may be made for applicants starting a school in an area that is underserved and has no other sailing schools nearby or for schools located outside the United States.
About The American Sailing Association
The American Sailing Association has been the leading authority on sailing instruction and sailing schools in the United States for two decades. With more than 270 professionally accredited schools affiliated with ASA worldwide, the organization has certified more than 232,500 sailing students and nearly 7,000 professional sailing instructors. ASA membership represents 85% of the viable professional sailing schools in the U.S.
ASA is a leader in setting uniform educational teaching standards for sailing schools in America and, increasingly, around the world. The American Sailing Association is the leading body for keelboat certification in the United States.
ASA has established a strategic partnership with the United States Coast Guard Auxiliary, and has also consulted with the U.S. Department of Transportation and the National Parks Service.
For further information, contact the American Sailing Association at www.american-sailing.com.
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