The International Soap Box Derby in Akron has named Dennis VanFossen Jr. as its new CEO.
VanFossen, a former derby champion, has been serving as interim executive director since June, when the Soap Box Derby parted ways with CEO Scott Taylor.
“I'm looking forward to being here for a long time and really getting to be able to make my mark here at the Derby and really give back to a program that's given me so much,” VanFossen said.
As CEO, VanFossen said he’ll work to straighten out the organization’s finances, which he said for a while, weren’t in a “positive scenario.” He said he’s already made significant progress.
"We’ve been doing a good job especially in the last 140 days of changing that narrative and really tackling some of our issues and refocusing on things that actually make sense for us,” VanFossen said.
In addition to having been a racer at the Soap Box Derby and a Champion in 2007, VanFossen spent several years as a member of the organization’s board of directors.
VanFossen said he wants to be there for racing families who, he said, have felt overlooked in the past. One of his planned initiatives is to work with racing clubs on fundraising strategies.
"It's helping these families learn how to fundraise and give them some leadership development qualities so that they can have the tools to present in front of donors and sponsors and allow them to get the funds that they may not have at home,” VanFossen said.
The Soap Box Derby, he said, has several strong racing communities on the West Coast which provides another path toward growth.
“We have some great programs that are out there, but they're not necessarily as accessible for us here at Akron,” VanFossen said. “I'm thinking about creative ways to help those communities out in California to Washington and Nevada that need some additional assistance.”
He also wants to attract more racers from around the world, including from countries that pulled back due to the COVID-19 pandemic and haven’t returned.
The Soap Box Derby is about more than racing, VanFossen said; it prides itself on exposing children to STEM education.
“We bring STEM education out of the classroom,” VanFossen said. “As opposed to just writing down when you read a blurb that tells you what gravity is, you’re actually figuring out what gravity actually means and what weight distribution does to a car.”
The Soap Box Derby has been around since 1933, when a Dayton journalist saw kids racing their own homemade cars. The next year, the organization held its first official championship. The Soap Box Derby moved to Akron in 1935.
VanFossen said his aim is to see the organization to its 100th anniversary.
“I totally understand what it means to start out at eight years old and do it until you age out,” VanFossen said. “It's very important for us. And for us, we have to do everything in our way, no, everything in power to make sure that we make it to the 100th birthday. And we definitely will.”