As the Chief Financial Officer of HISA, Jim Gates manages the finances, including financial planning and reporting, and human resources for the Authority. With a 30-year career in the Thoroughbred industry, he brings a broad range of experience across multiple areas of business. As a result, he has in-depth knowledge and experience in track operations and finance, horsemen and customer relations, safety and integrity pursuits, trainer and broodmare farm operations and finance, and regulatory and legislative matters.

Gates spent 14 years at Churchill Downs Incorporated (CDI), including seven years as General Manager of Churchill Downs Racetrack and three years as Vice President of Development, during which he oversaw mergers and acquisitions. Following his time at CDI, Gates spent several years serving as CFO/COO of Dale Romans Racing Stable. He has also served on the Boards of Directors of the Racing Medication & Testing Consortium, Racing Officials Accreditation Program, Racing Surfaces Testing Laboratory and Thoroughbred Racing Associations.

Additionally, prior to his time at HISA, Gates spent roughly 10 years conducting safety accreditations for the Safety & Integrity Alliance at racetracks nationwide, learning and espousing best practices in all areas of equine and human safety.
Gates is a Certified Public Accountant, with a Bachelor of Science from the University of Dayton and a Master of Business Administration from the University of Notre Dame.

Contact Jim at jim.gates@hisaus.org.

As HISA’s Chief Technology Officer, Steve Keech oversees HISA’s internal and industry-facing technology systems and products. Steve brings extensive experience in Information Technology solutions and operations across various industries, including, but not limited to, financial services, technology and gambling & entertainment.

Throughout his career, Steve has served in several notable leadership positions, including President of AmTote International and Executive Vice President of Business Development and Acquisitions for The Stronach Group. He holds a Master of Business Administration with a focus in Information Technology from McMaster University in Ontario, Canada.

Dr. Peter Hester serves as HISA’s National Medical Director, where he leads initiatives to support jockey health and welfare, including mitigating risk of injury, securing elite medical care, improving and optimizing health care services and developing and sourcing affordable medical insurance for these athletes and their families.

An Orthopedic Surgeon specializing in Sports Medicine and Shoulder Surgery, Dr. Hester currently practices at Lexington Clinic in Lexington, Kentucky. He also serves as the Director of Sports Medicine and Head Team Physician for numerous colleges, high schools and club teams across the state of Kentucky.

Dr. Hester previously served as an independent member of HISA’s Racetrack Safety Standing Committee.

Dr. Hester earned his undergraduate degree at the University of Pennsylvania before completing medical school and his Orthopedic Surgery residency at the University of Kentucky. He pursued a Sports Medicine and Shoulder Surgery Fellowship at The Hughston Clinic and has practiced at Lexington Clinic since 2002.

Originally from Garden City, New York, Dr. Hester developed a passion for the sport of Thoroughbred racing while working at Belmont Racetrack for Dr. William O. Reed, a renowned Equine Veterinary Surgeon. During medical school, he worked as a night watchman and farm hand at Ballindaggin Horse Farm.

Dr. Jennifer Durenberger serves as HISA’s Director of Policy and Industry Initiatives. In this role, she advises HISA’s leadership and Standing Committees on emerging industry issues. She also oversees projects designed to enhance the uniform implementation of HISA’s Racetrack Safety rules and collaborates with colleagues at international governing authorities.

Dr. Durenberger is an accredited senior steward with more than 30 years of experience in Thoroughbred racing, accepting the role of HISA’s first Director of Equine Safety and Welfare in late 2022. Prior to coming to HISA, she served as The Jockey Club Steward at Aqueduct, Belmont and Saratoga racetracks. She is a former member of the National Thoroughbred Racing Association’s Safety and Integrity Alliance, where she served as Senior Veterinary and Regulatory Consultant, and is currently a board member of the Racing Officials Accreditation Program, and has been the North American delegate to the International Harmonization of Raceday Rules Committee since 2017.

Her prior roles include Chief Examining Veterinarian for the New York Racing Association, Commission Veterinarian for the California Horse Racing Board, Association Steward at Delta Downs in Louisiana, Steward at Canterbury Park for the Minnesota Racing Commission and Director of Racing for the Massachusetts Gaming Commission.

Dr. Durenberger received a veterinary degree from Cornell University and a law degree from Western State University College of Law in Fullerton, California.

As the Director of Public Affairs for HISA, Bethany Erb oversees HISA’s interactions with policymakers and stakeholders across the country, including the Federal Trade Commission, members of Congress and advocacy groups within and outside the horse racing industry.

Erb brings 20 years of policy and political experience in Washington, D.C. to HISA. Prior to her role at HISA, Erb served as the Director of Government Affairs at Pheasants Forever and Quail Forever, where she led national advocacy, policy and communications initiatives. Her previous roles also include positions at the U.S. Department of Agriculture and the Land Trust Alliance.

Erb grew up raising horses on her family’s ranch in southwest Montana. She graduated from California Polytechnic University, San Luis Obispo with a degree in agribusiness and a minor in communications. She resides in northern Virginia with her family.

Sam Reinhardt serves as General Counsel at HISA, where he provides legal counsel on a wide range of matters and supports day-to-day operations. He joined HISA in March 2023 and is based out of the Lexington office.

Prior to joining HISA, Reinhardt was a member at Kentucky-based law firm Stoll Keenon Ogden PLLC. There, he maintained a general litigation practice, working on a variety of state and federal litigation matters, including a number of equine-related cases.

A native Kentuckian, Reinhardt holds two degrees from the University of Kentucky: a Bachelor of Business Administration from the Gatton College of Business and Economics, graduating magna cum laude, and a Juris Doctorate from the College of Law, graduating “Order of the Coif” and magna cum laude.

Dr. Karen A. Hassan supports HISA’s Veterinary Team and the Directors of Racetrack Safety and Operations, Research and Strategy in advancing equine safety and welfare policies nationwide. As Chair of HISA’s Exercise-Associated Sudden Death Working Group, she directs four specialized subgroups and oversees related research initiatives. Her responsibilities include leading veterinary outreach programs, coordinating advisory committees and addressing stakeholder inquiries related to equine health and welfare. Additionally, Dr. Hassan serves as the veterinarian for the Racetrack Accreditation Team, focusing on the implementation of racetrack veterinary protocols.

A Board-Certified Equine Surgeon with nearly 30 years of experience in referral lameness and equine surgery, Dr. Hassan also brings extensive regulatory expertise. She has served as a regulatory veterinarian for 1/ST Racing in California and the California State Fairs, with experience spanning Fédération Équestre Internationale competitions and the Tevis Cup endurance events. For more than 20 years, she has served as an American Endurance Ride Conference Control Judge and treatment veterinarian. She is deeply committed to research, education, outreach and mentoring within the veterinary and equine communities.

Dr. Hassan earned her veterinary degree from the University of California, Davis, completed a surgical internship at Tufts University and completed her surgical residency in surgery at the University of California, Davis.

Mackenzie Kirker-Head joined HISA in August 2023 and currently serves as Senior Communications Manager, leading the organization’s Communications department from HISA’s Lexington office. She oversees HISA’s strategic communications and stakeholder engagement efforts, with a focus on transparency, regulatory clarity and reinforcing public trust in Thoroughbred racing. Her work supports the preservation of racing’s social license to operate by aligning HISA’s mission, messaging and outreach with the long-term integrity and sustainability of the sport.

Prior to joining HISA, Kirker-Head worked in the marketing department of the fractional-ownership platform MyRacehorse and previously served as a Project Manager at the Thoroughbred Idea Foundation after completing the Godolphin Flying Start program. Through Flying Start, she lived and worked across Australia, England, Ireland, the United States and the United Arab Emirates. She began her career at Spendthrift Farm.

Kirker-Head holds a Bachelor of Arts in International Relations from Tufts University and interned with the New York Racing Association’s Communications Department while in college.

Michelle joined HISA in February 2023 and currently serves as Product and Revenue Strategy Manager responsible for identifying, evaluating, and cultivating new revenue opportunities for HISA. As HISA’s former Product Manager, Michelle has worked closely with HISA’s technology platforms, data strategy planning and integrator ecosystem. She led implementation of HISA’s third-party integration capability and managed the early adopter initiatives for newly launched technology. Michelle has worked on the design, creation and improvement of HISA’s veterinary products with a focus on Machine Learning capabilities using the Palantir platform. She is proud to be a part of the team creating groundbreaking technological tools for stakeholders, such as HISA Check and HISA Horse In-Sight.

Contact Michelle at michelle.lefkowitz@hisaus.org.

Greg Stiles is HISA’s Senior Accreditation Manager and the liaison to all tracks in completing their Racetrack Safety Accreditation Audits.

A native of Omaha, Nebraska, Stiles was first introduced to horse racing at his home track Ak-Sar-Ben. During high school summers, he worked as a hotwalker and groom, quickly developing a love for the backside community.

Most recently, Stiles served as the Racing Enforcement Manager for the Arizona Department of Gaming Racing Division from 2014 through 2021. In this role, he was responsible for enforcing horse and dog racing rules and regulations in the state of Arizona. He supervised the regulatory team at Arizona racetracks, which included stewards, investigation teams, licensing personnel and veterinarian staff. He was the primary contact and liaison to the Arizona Racing Commission and to national and local horse racing constituent groups, including the Association of Racing Commissioners International, the Arizona Horsemen’s Benevolent and Protective Association and the Arizona Thoroughbred Breeders Association.

Prior to his regulatory career, Stiles was publisher of several free-circulation magazines in the Phoenix area, one of which was Arizona Parenting Magazine, a 70,000-circulation magazine for raising families. He also consulted with small-to-medium-sized businesses, providing marketing and public relations strategic plans to support revenue growth.

In 2016, he attended the Racing Officials Accreditation Program and continues to maintain his credentials as an accredited steward. Stiles joined HISA in June of 2022, and when he’s not working trackside, he is based out of Phoenix, Arizona.