Our Board of Directors
Sami Rood
President
Sami has a Master’s degree in Electrical Engineering and a Bachelor’s degree in Biomedical Engineering and Health Sciences. She was a gymnast for fifteen years, has coached gymnastics for fifteen and still continues to. She is passionate about the sport of gymnastics and wants to use her biomechanical/artificial intelligence knowledge to better the sport.
Becca Kurkowski
Vice President
Becca is currently a Special Events Director at a gymnastics academy in St. Louis. She graduated from the University of Central Florida with a degree in Event Management. Becca grew up participating in multiple sports, but eventually stuck with coaching gymnastics throughout high school. Becca is excited to see how GRI can help keep the young gymnasts that she coaches stay in the sport longer!
Kate Waidmann
Secretary
Kate is an elementary school teacher that is working on a Doctorate in Educational Leadership. She is currently on her 8th year of teaching! She has a Masters degree in Learning, Teaching, and Curriculum as well as Educational Administration. She was a gymnast for 8 years and coached various age levels for 10 years. Kate loves working with kids and can’t wait to see the research GRI does to help improving gymnastics.
Beth Kurkowski
Treasurer
Beth has a Bachelor’s degree in Applied Mathematics and a Master’s and PhD in Computer Science. She currently works as a cybersecurity engineer. Beth was a gymnast for fifteen years and coached kids of all ages from preschool to high school for six years. She is excited to see how GRI can help improve the safety of the sport and prevent injuries by providing sound research!
Nick Snyder
Director
Nick is a Satellite Systems Engineer at the Boeing Company, where he has worked since 2018. He has a Masters of Science in Mechanical Engineering, a certificate in System Architecture and Engineering, and several years of engineering research experience. Nick is an avid adventurer and athlete, who has experienced, on several occasions, the injury recovery process. Learning from these experiences is part of the inspiration for joining GRI.