SSPI Board of Directors Appoints President of Ursa Space and CEO of Mansat to Leadership, Welcomes 8 New Directors from Across the Satellite Industry

At its May meeting, the Board of Directors of Space & Satellite Professionals International (SSPI) appointed Nicole Robinson, President of Ursa Space Systems, as Chair and Katherine Gizinski, CEO of Mansat, as President. They are joined by eight new Directors elected by the membership for three-year terms beginning July 1, including:

• Julie Bettinger, Vice President, Corporate Marketing & Communications, ST Engineering iDirect
• Josef Bogosian, Vice President, Global Sales & Marketing, Commercial Satellites, Boeing
• Negar Feher, Vice President, Product and Business Development, Momentus
• James Hinds, CEO, Airbus OneWeb Satellites
• Marie-Pierre Pluvinage, Director, Business Development, Connected Intelligence, Airbus US Space & Defense
• James Trevelyan, Senior Vice President, Enterprise and Emerging Markets, Speedcast
• Mark Witsaman, Vice President, Product Engineering, Globalstar
• Elias Zaccack, Executive Vice President, Global Sales, SES

“SSPI is grateful to outgoing Chair Thomas Van den Driessche, President and CCO of ST Engineering iDirect, for his service on the Board and in its leadership,” said executive director Robert Bell. “One of his priorities was to expand representation on our Board into the many exciting new sectors of the industry, from LEO constellations and space data analytics to flat-panel antennas and on-orbit servicing. We have accomplished that goal, as well as making a major improvement in the gender balance of the Board. This outstanding group of executives will ensure that our content and programs keep pace with this fast-changing industry.”

Continuing in service on SSPI’s Board of Directors are:

• Michael Antonovich, Vice President, International Sales and Business Development, DataPath
• Jonathan Crawford, President & CEO, The SPACECONNECTION
• Tony Gingiss, COO, Virgin Orbit
• Katherine Gizinski, CEO, Mansat (President)
• Jonathan Hofeller, Vice-President of Starlink and Commercial Sales, SpaceX
• Aaron Lewis, Vice President, Corporate Communications & Government Relations, Arianespace, Inc.
• Sharyn Nerenberg, Senior Director, Corporate Communications, Hughes Network Systems (Treasurer)
• Reza Rasoulian, Executive Advisor, Carnival Cruise Lines
• Nicole Robinson, President, Ursa Space Systems (Chair)
• Mike Safyan, Vice President of Launch, Planet
• Dr. Walter Scott, Executive Vice President and Chief Technology Officer, Maxar
• Billie Sims, Vice President, Sales & Business Development, Government Programs, Hunter Communications (Secretary)
• Jeremy Turpin, CTO and Co-Founder, Isotropic Systems

Elizabeth Evans of K&L Gates serves as General Counsel. You can learn more about SSPI’s newest Board members here: www.sspi.org/cpages/sspi-board-of-directors-new-members.