COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo. - USA Hockey announced today the hiring of Stephanie Jackson (Arlington, Texas) as the organization's first-ever director of diversity and inclusion, Brandon Dennis (Williamsport, Md.) as business development manager and Brian Hartman (Colorado Springs, Colo.) as coordinator of adult hockey.

Jackson, who will be responsible for developing and implementing strategies and programs to increase multicultural, ethnic and inclusivity efforts, joins USA Hockey with 12 years experience in the discourse of community development, equity, diversity and inclusion.

Prior to joining USA Hockey, Jackson worked in diversity and inclusion communications with Nike, Inc. where she advised senior leaders and executives on diversity and inclusion initiatives; initiated content creation focused on inclusion in collaboration with multimedia networks including BBC, YouTube and HBO; and designed and executed diversity and inclusion strategy among employees which served as the foundation for driving Nike's North American diversity and inclusion platforms.

Prior to that, Jackson served as a social work graduate intern with Adidas Group and The NFL Players Association in Washington, D.C., where she focused on community development initiatives, organizing communications on sensitive subjects including race/class/gender, and mental health and wellness efforts for athletes. Before that she spent three years in strategy and process improvement consulting with a tax firm in Dallas, Texas.

Jackson holds master's degrees in business administration from the Mendoza College of Business at the University of Notre Dame and in social work from Howard University, where she also earned a bachelor's degree in English.

As business development manager, Dennis will be responsible for developing new corporate partnerships while collaborating with the sales team to generate sustaining revenue streams.

Dennis joins USA Hockey after spending the last two years as an account manager with Staples Business Advantage, where he sold, implemented and managed over 100 corporate accounts. He earned the distinction of Top Account Manager in membership sales during his tenure.

Prior to Staples, Dennis spent a time with the Erie Otters as an analytics consultant, where he developed and maintained internal databases to monitor organizational performance. Prior to that, he worked on a project with NBA's Oklahoma City Thunder marketing department and also served as intern with NHL's Pittsburgh Penguins youth hockey department.

A four-year collegiate ice hockey player, Dennis skated two seasons with Franklin Pierce University's NCAA Division II men's ice hockey program before playing two seasons with the University of Oklahoma men's ice hockey team that competed in the American Collegiate Hockey Association.

Hartman will assist in all facets of USA Hockey's adult hockey department, including playing a significant role in advancing the wide array of signature playing events offered to adult players within the organization.

A USA Hockey Level 1 certified coach, Hartman has been involved in hockey as both a player and a coach. Most recently, he served as an assistant coach at the 14U level within the Colorado Springs Amateur Hockey Association. In addition, Hartman spent one season as an assistant coach at Dickinson (N.D.) High School.

His playing days were highlighted by the serving as captain of the Colorado State University men's ice hockey team for two seasons (2011-13) and also as captain of the Palmer High School (Colo.) varsity hockey team in 2008-09. 

Hartman earned his bachelor of science degree in natural resources management from CSU in 2013.