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 Previous: Space Tourist Shuttleworth Surprises US Hams |  Next: EMCOMM 2002 Examines Emergency Communications |
ARRL executives are active hams who are well known to the amateur community for their operating achievements as well as for their work at League Headquarters.
The executive office of a formal organization may be referred to by one of many names. If you take a guided tour of ARRL HQ your guide will refer to ours as the EVP or office of the Executive Vice President.
The primary
responsibilities of the EVP are to manage and direct League operations related
to publications, advertising, circulation, membership communications services,
field & educational services, and volunteer examiners--under policies
established by the Board of Directors. The Executive Vice President is
accountable to the President and the Board of Directors.
 Sumner enjoys an occasional foray into the ARRL Lab. Here he's inspecting one of Zack Lau's (W1VT) latest antenna projects. |
Chief Executive Officer and Executive Vice President David Sumner, K1ZZ, is vitally concerned with the issue of spectrum allocation--protecting Amateur Radio frequencies. Internationally, ARRL works to defend Amateur Radio interests. ARRL serves as the International Secretariat of a worldwide federation of national Amateur Radio societies known as the International Amateur Radio Union. Sumner is IARU Secretary. The IARU is comprised of societies in more than 150 countries and is a "Sector Member" of the International Telecommunication Union (ITU) Radiocommunication and Telecommunication Development Sectors. Under Sumner's guidance the ARRL Technical Relations Office maintains constant contact with these agencies.
In his role as CEO, Sumner's executive management team includes Chief Development Officer Mary Hobart, K1MMH, who oversees ARRL's Development activities and Chief Financial Officer Barry Shelley, N1VXY, who is responsible for the Administrative Services, Comptrollers, and Information Services Departments.
Sumner came to
ARRL in 1972, first as part-time, then temporary, and finally a full-time
employee. Somehow, David has also found time to be active in the avocational
aspect of Amateur Radio. He has earned (to name a few) DXCC Challenge Award,
Mixed Honor Roll (350 countries) and VUCC on 50 MHz. He also holds the position
of Chairman of the zoning board in his hometown of Coventry, Connecticut.
 ARRL Chief Operating Officer Harold Kramer, WJ1B. |
Chief Operating Officer, Harold Kramer, WJ1B, manages the day-to-day operations of ARRL Headquarters and also holds the title of Publisher of QST magazine.
Kramer joined the ARRL as Chief Operating Officer in February, 2005. He was previously the Vice President for Strategic Planning, Business Development and Education at Connecticut Public Broadcasting, Inc. in Hartford. Kramer holds an A.A.S. degree in Electronic Technology from Ward Technical College (University of Hartford), and a B.A. in English and M.A. in Education from the University of Connecticut. On the Amateur Radio side he is a lifelong ham with his principal focus on emergency communications and he is the Amateur Radio Emergency Coordinator for Cheshire.
 Dave, NT1N, with some of the gang at HS0AC--the Radio Amateur Society of Thailand's Club station located at the Asian Institute of Technology. (Left to right) Son, HS6NDK; Dave, NT1N; John, HS1CHB; Ray, G3NOM; Champ, E21EIC, and Shirow, JF6DEA. |
Special Assistant to the Executive Vice President David Patton, NT1N, has learned to expect the unexpected. He must be ready to take on assignments that cover the entire span of activities that are in the purview of the CEO. The Board of Directors' request for a study, plan and implementation of electronic QSLing measures (Logbook of the World) is an example of such an assignment. Dave's job was to get the project off the ground--in this instance providing background information and outlining a plan of action, finding technical expertise for the project, and interfacing with the various ARRL departments involved.
In another special project, Patton worked with Station Manager Joe Carcia, NJ1Q, to see that W1AW was on the air and ready for anything for 24 hours surrounding the Y2K year 2000 event. Patton subsequently worked with Graphics to create a commemorative QSL card for all who participated in this communications event. Dave also occasionally travels on special assignment to various domestic and international events as needed. He participated in last year's highly successful Amateur Radio Day at the Federal Communications Commission in Washington. Regarding the event, ARRL President Haynie said: "In my mind, it was the best trip we ever had." Patton also attends Board meetings, helping CEO Sumner record the Minutes and preparing them for publication.
Dave is well known in contesting and DX circles. He's earned many of
the major ARRL operating awards including 5 Band DXCC, DXCC Challenge and DXCC
Honor Roll. Dave was--for a year--the editor of NCJ, and is now the editor
of the bimonthly "Amateur Radio World" column in QST. He reports on Amateur
Radio activities on the international scene.
 Lisa, KA1UFZ (front row, center), poses with the most recent USTTI class graduates |
Assistant to the Chief Executive Officer Lisa Kustosik, KA1UFZ, has 13 years of service with ARRL. Her previous positions were in the DXCC Branch and the Regulatory Information Branch, handling requests for reciprocal licensing information and regulatory and antenna/zoning materials. She also maintained the lists of ARRL Volunteer Counsel (VCs) and Volunteer Consulting Engineers (VCEs). These jobs provided an excellent background for her present assignment. Lisa's bilingual ability--Polish and some understanding of Arabic--is a valuable asset to ARRL, especially when foreign visitors find their way to ARRL HQ and W1AW.
Lisa coordinates the annual United States Telecommunications
Training Institute (USTTI)/International Amateur Radio Union course on
Amateur Radio Administration, which is held at ARRL Headquarters. She is also the planner for the ARRL Board of Directors'
meetings and committee meetings. She maintains and updates the IARU
member-society Web page and helps assemble the meeting books for the IARU
Administrative Council Meetings. She maintains the QST Cover Plaque Web page
and informs the Division Director of the results. You can say hello to Lisa at the
ARRL booth at the Dayton Hamvention.
 ARRL Media and Public Relations Manager Allen Pitts, W1AGP. |
Allen Pitts, W1AGP, is the ARRL Media and Public Relations Manager. Allen comes to the ARRL after a three-year stint as executive director of The Box Project Inc--a national, member-based charity that matches volunteers with families needing help. For eight years prior to that, he directed a multi-program human services agency that, among other things, was responsible for emergency shelters, transitional living, a court alternative sanctions program, emergency food services and an AIDS respite program.
A radio amateur for five years, he's no stranger to the ARRL Field Organization, having served as an ARES District Emergency Coordinator and later as Connecticut's Section Emergency Coordinator. He's also an ARRL Assistant Section Manager.
Pitts holds a bachelor's degree from the University of South Carolina and a master's degree from the Lutheran Theological Southern Seminary (he served congregations in Kansas and Connecticut in the 1970s and 1980s).
Pitts is active on HF, VHF and UHF. Although primarily a phone operator, he says he tries to keep up at a "basic level" on CW whenever he can. He holds DXCC.
In addition to his interest in Amateur Radio, Pitts is an active member of the Society for Creative Anachronism and has gained "notoriety"--as he put it--as an expert with medieval crossbows, holding top state and national rankings.
