USPA selected Ron Bell as its Director of Safety and Training to succeed Jim Crouch, who served in the position for 18 years. Bell’s first day was October 29.

Bell, a U.S. Army veteran, joined USPA in 2002. Since that time, he’s logged more than 11,500 jumps and earned multiple USPA instructional ratings. In recent years, as a USPA Coach Examiner, AFF Examiner and Tandem Examiner, he has worked as a full-time skydiver managing DZs and conducting training courses.

Early this year, USPA selected Bell to fill the vacancy on the USPA Board of Directors created by the resignation of the Pacific Regional Director. This summer, Bell submitted the required materials to run for reelection in this fall’s board election and thus appeared on the election ballot. Because USPA’s Governance Manual forbids employees from serving on the board of directors, Bell resigned from the board prior to his start date. The board decides how and when to fill the vacancy.