USA Down Syndrome Swimming Board Directors
"Picture this: a young swimmer standing at the edge of the pool. The crowd is silent, the clock is ready, and for a moment the world sees not a diagnosis, but an athlete. When the buzzer sounds, that swimmer dives in—and proves to everyone watching that dreams have no limits.
That’s what USA Down Syndrome Swimming is about. We create opportunities for athletes with Down syndrome to discover their strength, to rise to challenges, and to inspire all of us with their courage.
But behind every lane, every medal, and every smile is a team of people who make it possible. That’s where you come in. Serving on this board isn’t just about governance—it’s about believing in these athletes, opening doors, and helping their dreams take flight.
When you say yes to this mission, you’re not just shaping an organization—you’re shaping futures. Together, we can ensure that every swimmer who dares to dream gets the chance to shine."
👉 Be Part of the Team – Serve on a Committee
Big dreams are built by strong teams. At USA Down Syndrome Swimming, our committees are the driving force behind our success — and we need your help!
We are looking for enthusiastic volunteers to join committees in areas such as:
Finance & Fundraising
Events
Athlete engagement & development
Marketing & communications
Whether you have professional expertise, creative ideas, or simply a heart for service, your contributions will help athletes with Down syndrome access opportunities, training, and competition experiences that transform lives.
Even a few hours of your time each month can make a world of difference. Together, we can keep building a future where every athlete can believe in the dream and support the team.
Current Board Directors
Governance & Compliance Director
Originally from Atlanta, Georgia, Paris grew up recreationally swimming for Dynamo Swim Club. She began her coaching career in Atlanta at her summer league pool as an assistant coach. She moved to the Northern Virginia area in 1993 attending boarding school. She attended George Mason University studying Business.
After serving as a developmental age group coach for a few years, in 2001 Paris co-founded Machine Aquatics, where she served as team manager and age group coach until 2009 when she stepped off the deck as a full time Machine coach to run the dry side team operations and be mom.
Since its inception in 2001, Machine Aquatics has grown into Machine Brands which encompasses four divisions. Machine Aquatics, a nationally ranked USA Swimming competitive team with seven training sites and 1100+ members, Machine Swim School, a large swim school providing 800+ lessons weekly, Machine Performance Center, a 24,000 sq. ft. performance center for swim, fitness, KICKR bike studio, physical therapy.
Paris serves as CEO of Machine Brands overseeing the business operation and development of all divisions. After a long volunteer career within USA Swimming and USA Swimming Foundation, Paris served as a business development consultant for The American Swim Coaches Association (ASCA) from 2015-2017 and the Chief Operations Officer (COO) of the American Swim Coaches Association from 2018-2020. Paris also served as Senior Management Advisor for the Inaugural Season of the International Swimming League in 2019 & 2020 where one of many her duties included overseeing the event operations all of the competitions in the United States.
Paris has two children Lillyan (19) who is a Sophomore at the University of South Carolina studying exercise science and neuroscience, and Daniel, III (18) who a Senior in High School.
Athlete engagement director
Dian Christensen-Hillis has been teaching children with developmental disabilities how to swim for 50+ years. With inspiration from her daughter, she was intentional as she created opportunities to elevate swimmers with disabilities in the USA. In 1991, she started a Special Olympics swim program at a YMCA to provide an extended sport experience.
In 2006, 2010, & 2014, she was named the Head Coach for swimming for Nebraska at the Special Olympics National Games, and in 2010 she served on the Games Board of Directors.
She went on to coach several times at the Special Olympics Global Games; In 2007, as a USA Assistant Coach in Shanghai, Republic of China; in 2011 in Athens Greece as USA’s Head Coach for swimming; as the Head Coach at a global meet in 2012 in Puerto Rico; and as Head Coach at the World Games in California in 2015.
In 2011, Dian joined the Michael Phelps Foundation as an IM Ambassador where she assisted with the implementation of the IM Program for Special Olympics coaches and athletes.
In 2019, she was named Assistant Coach for Open Water in Abu Dhab, was the trainer for the North America Special Olympics IM Program in Arizona, and she assisted Special Olympics Sports Resource Team with the production and revision of the 2020 Swimming Coaching guide. In 2020 and 2021, Dian trained Special Olympics coaches and athletes using an innovative virtual Michael Phelps Foundation/Special Olympics IM Program.
board president
Carrie Spencer has been involved with aquatics her whole life. She began teaching adapted aquatics lessons and coaching Special Olympics athletes while at the University of Alabama. After her time at Alabama, she started her professional career at the University of Maryland managing the aquatics programs and later the aquatic facilities. It was there that she joined the Aquatic Games Management Team (GMT) with Special Olympics Maryland in 2000 and still proudly works with them today. Also, during her time at Maryland, she was afforded the opportunity to manage many different level aquatic events including ACC Swimming & Diving, USA Senior Nationals, USMS Summer Nationals and US Paralympic Championships. She left Maryland in 2016 to start a family and now resides in New Castle, PA with her husband, Dan, and two children, Danny (14) and Bennett (7). Carrie currently works for Colorado Time Systems as the Eastern Regional Sales Manager.
aquatics director
Tim’s swimming career spanned 22 years – age grouper to a post-graduate professional. He represented local YMCAs’, PHS, The Ohio State University, SwimMAC Carolina Team Elite and USA Swimming’s National Teams.
He participated for the USA in three World Championships, and won 2 gold medals. Additionally was on two American record relays and still holds numerous Y, PHS, WV State HS, National YMCA and OSU records. Tim competed in over a dozen countries around the world.
He now dedicates his free time as captain of the NYAC’s Master Team and BOD member of USA Down Syndrome Swimming.
board director - artistic technical advisor
Grasy Noriega brings tremendous experience in Artistic swimming, marketing and fundraising. She is a Team Administrator/Manager/Coach of an Artistic Swimming Team (@miramarmermaids), a National Level Judge, a Trustee of USA Artistic Swimming Foundation, and a Board Member of Synchronized Swimming Southeast Florida Association.
Grasy is passionate about artistic swimming and inclusion. Grasy knows how to get things done, and she is already creatively including T21 Swim Warriors in artistic swimming practices and competitions. She is working USADSS Partner, USA Artistic Swimming to improve opportunities for the AWD (Athletes With Disabilities) category in the United States. She is also working with the Down Syndrome International Swimming Organisation to further the sport of Artistic Swimming on an international scale.
Grasy provides support to the Artistic National Coaching staff, and provides technical assistance to the Board.
board secretary
Patti Chen is a parent of T21 Swim Warrior, Tom out of Portage, MI. Patti was a competitive swimmer herself, and is a certified Special Olympics Coach and volunteer. She works part time at Best Upon Request at Bronson hospital, and volunteers with a number of local nonprofits including Meals on Wheels. Patti’s passion is to advocate for high expectations for people with developmental and intellectual disabilities. She is excited work with USA Down Syndrome Swimming to affect change in the USA.
finance director
