SAFE Board Elections to Run May 10-24, 2013

The terms for three of the nine SAFE Directors is expiring. The voting process to fill these Board seats will begin at 12:00 pm EDT on May 10, 2013 and will be open until 12:00 pm EDT on May 24, 2013. If you attempt to log in before the poll actually opens, you will receive a message asking you to please check back when voting is scheduled to begin.

“Member-driven” was one of SAFE’s founding tenets. This is your organization, and we hope you will exercise your right to vote for those who you believe will represent you as our organization continues to grow and evolve. We are pleased to announce that we have five qualified nominees running for three seats. Please take time to read their responses to the questions asked of them. Read the nominee profiles below.

All members in good standing will be receiving one or more email notifications from “votingplace.net” along with a link to the voting site. The verification process will ask for your email address and member ID. If you have difficulty locating this information, please take the following steps:

Login to the safepilots.org website, click on manage your account, scroll down to “membership info” and your ID is your member ID (S0000XXX). The email address you are registered under will also appear in the manage your account section under “contact info”.  If you have troubles logging in, please visit our frequently asked questions page, under “login questions”.  If you still need assistance, please contact us.

Please be sure your spam filter is configured to allow emails from “votingplace.net” to be directed into your Inbox. If you encounter any difficulty in casting your vote, please do not hesitate to email John Dorcey, Governance Committee Chair, for assistance. It is our sincere hope that there will be strong participation in this democratic process.

If you were due to renew your membership prior to the end of May and have not yet done so, please renew your membership now to ensure your right to vote in these important elections!


2013 SAFE Board Elections – Candidate statements

Parvez Dara

1. Why do you want to serve on the SAFE Board of Directors?

Volunteering on the SAFE Board is a means to give back to aviation for all the joys it has afforded me. Encouraging, educating and learning is a life-long discipline and the SAFE organization is the perfect venue to complement such a desire. It would serve as a platform for innovative ideas in recognizing and serving the changing needs of the educators and the pilots. Strengthening SAFE through retained and new membership to affect change at the governmental level, modifying rules that impose unnecessary limitations on pilots and encouraging ones that enhance safety.

2. How will your aviation and professional background, special talents, and leadership skills help to further SAFE’s mission and goals? Please be specific.

My experience in leadership positions in the medical field, as a MCFI, MAPA Safety director, a former senior AME and a FAASTeam member will help me utilize the tools to bring understanding to the aviation field, as both fields share risky human behaviors. My continuing education in the business realm will help the SAFE finance committee realize some benefits in managing resources and also help market the SAFE organization to a larger group of aviators. My writing skills will enhance the SAFE-Library member learning experience. Outside the box thinking is needed when resources and fiscal constraints impose limits. I believe, I offer that.

3. What do you see as the most pressing concerns and/or tasks for SAFE’s Board of Directors in the next 3 years based on SAFE’s current mission and vision statements?

SAFE is feeling the impact of the national/global economic constraints. I believe in bringing together like-minded aviator-educators to participate in the organization, in providing safety education for the pilots, in strengthening the financial portfolio, innovating and incorporating bold new ideas will help SAFE endure and thrive, in the future.


John Mahany

1. Why do you want to serve on the SAFE Board of Directors?

I am one of the original members, and served on the Interim Working Board, in April and May, 2009, when we were getting SAFE started. Last summer at AirVenture I was approached by two board members asking for my help with the Mentoring Committee, which I agreed to. I am now involved with helping to get the Mentoring Program going. I want to do my part to contribute to the future of SAFE.

2. How will your aviation and professional background, special talents, and leadership skills help to further SAFE’s mission and goals? Please be specific.

Since earning my CFI in 1980, I have gained experience and expertise in many facets of aviation. I have also served in leadership positions with local organizations, aviation and non-aviation related. It is important to recognize and meet the many needs of SAFE’s membership. This includes both business needs as well as other resources to enable instructors to do their jobs better, which will also help to attract new members.

3. What do you see as the most pressing concerns and/or tasks for SAFE’s Board of Directors in the next 3 years based on SAFE’s current mission and vision statements?

There are many issues. SAFE is proactive, which it needs to be, and it needs to continue to question and challenge the ‘status quo’. The Flight Training Symposium, spearheaded by SAFE, held in Atlanta in May 2011 is a prime example. Provide the vision and leadership to raise the bar in aviation safety. Provide the necessary tools for instructors. Continue working to make the professional aviation instructor a viable career choice, via professional accreditation. This is especially important. The ultimate goal is seeking a reduction in aviation accidents, through better training of pilots and instructors, and providing instructors the tools with which to do their jobs, better.


Kevin Murphy

1. Why do you want to serve on the SAFE Board of Directors?

NAFI is dying, in part because of its narrow focus on CFIs only and reluctance to acknowledge the vast changes in GA since you and I were eager young CFIs. I joined SAFE last year because it is better attuned to our ‘new normal’ GA world and is more embracive of the wider GA education community.

2. How will your aviation and professional background, special talents, and leadership skills help to further SAFE’s mission and goals? Please be specific.

I’ve been in aviation education since the early 1970s, the last 15 years with AOPA and the Air Safety Foundation (ASF). Along the way I’ve taught weekend ground schools (AGS) and authored well over 100 GA and GA safety articles for dozens of magazines including Flying, AOPA Pilot, FAAviation News and Private Pilot. At AOPA I was Director of Media Relations and Director of Public Relations, boosting and defending GA in multiple ways, including creating setups for several of the annual AOPA sweepstakes aircraft giveaways. I was also Vice President for AOPA Aviation Services (the pilot technical help lines) and Vice President of ASF. Since 2008 I’ve had my own successful aviation promotion and consulting business, Kevin D Murphy and Associates.

3. What do you see as the most pressing concerns and/or tasks for SAFE’s Board of Directors in the next 3 years based on SAFE’s current mission and vision statements?

1) Build membership and visibility.

2) Expand, strengthen financial base.

3) Establish SAFE as THE go-to aviation education organization.

4) Broaden industry alliances, both for strength and enhancing member benefits.


Kurt Reesman

1. Why do you want to serve on the SAFE Board of Directors?

I was made aware of the need, considered a good fit by Doug Stewart, agree with SAFE mission, think I can contribute.

2. How will your aviation and professional background, special talents, and leadership skills help to further SAFE’s mission and goals? Please be specific.

I’ve been an aviation educator since 1989 – AF and civilian. I’ve taught student pilots and instructor candidates – AF and civilian. Usually assigned students with difficulties – successful track record. I’ve been an AF evaluator pilot – able to see the bigger cause and effect picture. I’ve developed 10 university aviation courses. I’m a SAFE mentor. I’m an ARAC member – improving the testing process. I teach FIRCs and Safety Seminars for AOPA. I am all about education and I aggressively take initiative to make change through teamwork. My B.A. in Psychology and M.A.S. from ERAU all focused on the individual and creating a dynamic learning environment. The Air Force provided much of my leadership training – worked for numerous General Officers.

3. What do you see as the most pressing concerns and/or tasks for SAFE’s Board of Directors in the next 3 years based on SAFE’s current mission and vision statements?

There are three areas that I see as being critical to making aviation safer:

One, create educational courses that are comprehensive and engaging.

Two, develop a training program that targets the correlational level of learning using scenario-based learning.

Three, teach instructors how to develop critical analysis decision-making skills in students.


Ray Spengler

1. Why do you want to serve on the SAFE Board of Directors?

On 1/22/09 Doug Stewart forwarded an email from the Branding/Marketing group with a list of potential names for our new organization. After looking them over, I wanted to propose a name that denoted the top goal of all of us in the aviation community. A name that when viewed by a non-member or member of the general public outside of our aviation sphere, would unequivocally send a strong message. I suggested SAFE – Society of Aviation & Flight Educators. Two weeks later, you members also chose

“SAFE” to send forward that “message” and to tell others “who we are”. I would be honored to serve to continue to champion our message of SAFE-ty in aviation.

2. How will your aviation and professional background, special talents, and leadership skills help to further SAFE’s mission and goals? Please be specific.

Managed and owned Cessna Pilot Training centers for 9 years. CAP Check Pilot Examiner, Incident Commander for search & rescue/disaster relief missions for 12 years. CAP Group Commander with operational oversight of 670 members and 22 years spent as a classroom trainer/conference presenter with goal of imparting safety-awareness to those who have the love of aviation that we all share.

Experience includes 7,200+ hours, 4,500+ hours of instruction given, 2,700+ “Glass Cockpit”, FAA Master Wings, FAA Gold Seal, FAASTeam Lead Representative, FAA Advanced Ground/Instrument Ground Instructor.

3. What do you see as the most pressing concerns and/or tasks for SAFE’s Board of Directors in the next 3 years based on SAFE’s current mission and vision statements?

We should facilitate/develop standards of excellence in all educational materials, reinforce & stress the training of valuable intangibles such as Aeronautical Decision Making (ADM), Risk Management, Situational Awareness, Collision Avoidance, Runway Incursion Avoidance, and Controlled Flight Into Terrain (CFIT). Let’s strive to keep everyone SAFE!