Meet The Team
-
Head Coach David Ramirez
David Ramirez specializes in foil. David has represented the USA on the world stage in the Junior and Senior Divisions ranking in the top 32 in the world. He also holds a USA national silver medal and was captain of his team. David lived 4 years in Ukraine and spent time at the prestigious SK KVO in Kyiv, Ukraine. He also worked and coached with members of the national team. He was hand selected for coaching by the distinguished late Coach Volodymyr Yefimov.
-
Director and Coach Renata Shakirova
Renata Shakirova specializes in foil and leads the fundamentals class. Renata graduated with a scholarship from Lviv Polytechnic University in Ukraine where she earned her Masters in Chemical Engineering.
-
Coach Amgad Badawi
Amgad Badawi has coached all 3 weapons but specializes in foil and epee. He was a member of the Egyptian national team. He was the head coach of the Lebanese national team at the 2012 London Olympics. He was a referee delegate at the 2024 Paris Olympics, is one of the highest rated referees in the world and is currently a FIE referee committee member.
-
Parental Advisor Committee Cathy Chen-Arriaga
Cathy has implemented grant programs with organizations such as NASA, Microsoft, Autodesk, Infosys Foundation, Mark Cuban Foundation for over a decade. Cathy graduated from Duke University and is a Master of Education student at Johns Hopkins University. She also volunteers as an alumni interviewer for Duke University, an academic scholarship essay reviewer for USA Fencing, and has been accepted to the Leadership Academy for USA Fencing to help diversify interest and access to the sport in Region 5.
-
Local University Outreach
Diana Rojas is an assistant professor of sound art at the University of Texas at Dallas. She is the recipient of several OER Grants from the Oklahoma State Regents for Higher Education, the 2023 Arch and Anne Giles Kimbrough Fund Award, 2022 Judson-Morrisey Excellence in New Media Award and the Arrowmont Windgate University Fellowship. She is also an interdisciplinary artist and has been exhibited, screened, and published nationally and internationally in spaces such as: Czong Institute of Contemporary Art, Fiesp Cultural Center, Dallas Contemporary, Chapel of Santa Maria dei Carcarati, Canyon Flats Video Wall, Rockport Center for the Arts, Texas Theater, the Yale Theater, and more. Diana received her MFA from the University of North Texas and was previously an assistant professor at East Central University.
-
Coming Soon