Kristen has been a board member since 1990 serving as All-State Director (1990-2007), State Competition Director (1991- 1996), Vice President (1992-1993), President (1994-1995), SE District Rep (2008-2016), Vice President (2016-2017), President (2018-2019) and Executive Director (2020-2023). She currently serves as a Trustee. Kristen was honored with the ICCA Contributor of the Year Award (2000), the National Federation National Contributor of the Year Award(2000), and with the ICCA Lifetime Achievement Award (2011). She coached football, wrestling and basketball cheerleading and dance for 26 years at Clear Creek Amana High School. Her teams competed at both the state and national level, earning multiple first place finishes at the state competition. She has judged cheerleading competitions at the local, state and national levels. She also worked with the Iowa Special Olympics for over 20 years, judging for the cheer and dance state competitions. In 2018, she retired from teaching high school English for 38 years at Clear Creek Amana High School. Kristen currently lives in Marion with her significant other, Dave and her labrador, Jack.