2016 Barista Guild Executive Council Elections Now Open

The Barista Guild of America is proud to announce the slate of candidates, as recommended by the Nominating Committee, for the 2016 Executive Council Elections!

For the three open positions, the Committee has nominated Gabe Smentek of Onyx Coffee Roasters, David Fasman of Kaldi’s Roasting Company, and Mark Hundley of Seven Stars Bakery to fill these seats.

Elections for the BGA Executive Council are now open. If you are a BGA Member, please vote by submitting your ballot here.

Elections will run from February 22 to March 22, 2016.

The nomination period is over, however if you would still like to be considered in this election cycle, you may become a write-in candidate. Email membership@scaa.org with your intent and the SCAA will further instruct you on this process.

Slate of Candidates

Mark Hundley | Seven Stars - Providence, RI

Mark Hundley is the Coffee Director for Seven Stars Bakery in Providence, Rhode Island. He trains baristas, fixes equipment, does QC, and shares his enthusiasm about coffee with the Seven Stars team across their 3 retail locations. In addition, he is an active part of the BGA Membership Committee and continues to share his enthusiasm for coffee with the local community as a member of The Providence Coffee Society. When it’s not coffee, he's probably nerding out over video games, comic books, and obsessing over his Boston Terrier, Ulysses.

Gabe Smentek | Onyx Coffee Lab - Springdale, AR

Gabe Smentek has been working in coffee since 2002, now at Onyx Coffee Lab. He attended his first Expo in 2010 and hasn't looked back since. A Barista Level 1 and Level 2 Certificate Holder, he also teaches the Barista Pathways classes at various Barista Camps and Expo. Gabe is currently on the Barista Pathways Committee and has been since 2014. He also enjoys judging the USBC and has been an active judge since 2011.

David Fasman | Kaldi’s Roasting Company - St. Louis, MO

David Fasman is the Regional Training Manager for Kaldi's Coffee and has been in the coffee industry for 13 years. David is very active in the Barista Guild of America and currently serves on the Membership Committee. He has written several blog posts for the BGA as well as articles/posts for the Daily Coffee News and his own blog, seedtocupcoffee.wordpress.com. He is SCAA Lead Instructor Certified and a Barista Level 1 and Level 2 Certificate holder and has been involved at Barista Camp as a student and instructor for the past few years. David has also competed three years at the regional and national levels.