River Blandford, President
River discovered their love of dance and competition at April Follies in 2018. Since then, they have competed in American Rhythm, American Smooth, International Ballroom, and Show divisions as both a female and nonbinary lead. Dancing at NAEDA events—where queer dancers are not only accepted but celebrated—inspired River to join the board in 2024 to help expand the organization’s reach and accessibility. Beyond NAEDA, River’s passion for supporting the queer community guides their future goal of becoming a therapist for gender nonconforming individuals. They have also created and performed shows at competitions nationwide, highlighting both the challenges faced by the LGBTQIA+ community and the beauty of queer love. River currently lives in Oregon with their wife, where they continue to perform and dance together regularly.

Elizabeth Davidson, Secretary
Elizabeth is a high school ballroom teacher in Phoenix, running two school programs and has brought Ballroom to hundreds of kids in the Phoenix area. As both an educator and an openly bisexual woman in conservative school settings, she has worked tirelessly to create inclusive dance spaces, reframing roles as “leader” and “follower” and encouraging same-sex partnerships. She is also the founder of Dancing United, a nonprofit dedicated to promoting inclusivity in partner dance, and has served on multiple boards, including her school’s Dance Booster Club, PTO, and her neighborhood association, where she helped secure major grants to strengthen her community. Since first competing in a NAEDA-sanctioned event in 2018, Elizabeth has been a passionate advocate for same-sex and open-role partner dancing, bringing to the boardroom her experience as an educator, choreographer, and community leader.

Lee Fox, Treasurer
Lee Fox, originally from Georgia and now based in Ft. Lauderdale, Florida, has been teaching Ballroom, Latin, and Disco since 1978 and Country/Western since 1991. He holds licentiate degrees in International Standard, International Latin, American Rhythm, and Theater Arts with the American International Dancers Association (AIDA), and master degrees in American Smooth and American Rhythm with the National Dance Teachers Association (NDTA) and the North American Dance Teachers Association (NADTA). Lee currently serves as Competition Director for the International Association of Gay/Lesbian Country Western Dance Clubs (IAGLCWDC), treasurer of NAEDA, and vice-president and Examinations Chair of NDTA. As a registered adjudicator with USA Dance and NAEDA, he has judged numerous mainstream and same-sex competitions across the U.S., Canada, and abroad, including the U.S. Dancesport Championships. As a competitor, Lee and his ballroom partner Scott reached the Class A finals at the Gay Games in 1998 and 2002. With his country partner Chris, he became the first Championship winner in the IAGLCWDC Couples Competition in 1998. Lee has also choreographed and coached multiple dance teams, including the Southern Country South Florida Dream Team, the SunDancers, Heels On Fire, and Team Scandalous, and was an original member of Crossfire, winners of the 2005 international country-western team competition.

Erik Jaeger, Vice President
Erik Jaeger and his husband were active competitive same-sex International Standard ballroom dances from 2011 to 2019, when they retired from dancing. Through their career, they competed in two Gay Games, several US and North American Championships, European Championships, as well as many competitions in Germany, the UK, Switzerland and the USA. Erik is semi-retired and has his own marketing consulting firm. He and his husband reside in Palm Springs, California. Besides his work with NAEDA, Erik is also active in the USA Dance Gender-Neutral committee.

James Repetti
James is a professional ballroom dancer, teacher, and coach with over 20 years of experience in Latin, Rhythm, Standard, and Smooth. He is a certified instructor through AIDA and a registered professional with the NDCA. James coaches collegiate teams and individual couples nationwide, with many of his students achieving national and international level success. James is the current IFSSDA World Champion in Men’s International 10-Dance, American 9-Dance, American Rhythm, and Argentine Tango. He has also earned multiple Vice Champion titles and has won four gold and five silver medals in Gay Games Dancesport events. He is the reigning EuroGames Men’s Latin, 10-Dance, and Showdance Champion, is a Champion in multiple styles of the Open Worlds at Blackpool, as well as a multiple time NAEDA North American and U.S. National Champion across all four styles and combined divisions.  

Amy Rubinstein
Amy has been part of Queer Latin Dance LA (QLDLA) since 2019, first as a performer and now as coach and choreographer of the intermediate salsa team. She has expanded the team’s repertoire to include bolero, contemporary, and role-switching elements, reflecting her passion for challenging traditional gender roles in dance. In addition, Amy dances and competes with the Claremont Colleges Ballroom Dance Company (CCBDC), where she takes classes as both a lead and follow and has choreographed for the annual concert. She is also active with Theatre Americana in Pasadena, contributing as both a performer and production team member. Professionally, Amy works as an Art Studios Technician at Pitzer College, where she oversees staff and projects, building strong skills in leadership and delegation. Amy brings a unique blend of teaching, performance, and management experience to her work in the dance community and to NAEDA’s mission of inclusivity.

Denise Machin
Denise directs one of the nation’s most inclusive college ballroom programs, where every student learns both lead and follow roles before specializing. Her teaching model challenges traditional norms and encourages students to embrace non-normative partnerships, creating a more welcoming and equitable dance community. She has also contributed significant scholarship to the field through her dissertation on gender in ballroom dance, informed by her active engagement with NAEDA competitions and the queer partner dance community. Alongside her academic work, Denise competes in queer partnerships at the open collegiate level, embodying the values of visibility and inclusivity that define her leadership.

Eddie Alba
Eddie began his ballroom career over 25 years ago and competed professionally in American Smooth from 1995 to 2006, earning Rising Star Champion and U.S. Finalist titles. In 2018, he became the Same-Sex 10-Dance World Champion and continues to compete Pro-Am across all styles with his students, earning multiple Top Teacher Awards. A certified judge in five ballroom styles, Eddie adjudicates both national and international competitions and is also an accomplished choreographer, creating theatrical productions and competitive routines for Pro-Am dancers. His work has been featured on TLC’s Ballroom Bootcamp and behind the scenes of Dancing with the Stars for nine seasons. Since 2009, Eddie has been the proud owner of Century Dancesport, Orange County’s premier ballroom studio.

As a not-for-profit, operations are managed by a Board of Directors who follow the NAEDA Board Governance Policies.

If you would like information on the election process, or would like to be on the Board, please read more here. Election Process