The Professional Skaters Association International was the largest figure skating coaches association in the world. The PSA was founded on August 10, 1938, in Lake Placid, New York, as the American Skaters Guild, just two years (1936) after the Ice Teachers Guild was formed in England by Jacques Gerschwiler, Howard Nicholson, Gladys Hogg and Eric Van De Weyden.[1]
On January 21, 1950, at the Broadmoor World Arena in Colorado Springs, Colorado, the American Skaters Guild was reorganized and renamed the Professional Skaters Guild of America.
In May 1995, the PSGA once again changed its identity to the Professional Skaters Association, International (PSA). With this new name the association took on a renewed role in the sport of figure skating, but vowed to remain rooted in its 57-year history and ideals. The “birth” of the PSA reflected the changing scope of this organization's activities and of the worldwide skating industry. The Board of Directors felt it was time to adopt this new name, acknowledging that the PSA is the world's premier professional skating organization.[2]
In 2014, the Federal Trade Commission charged the PSA, through its code of ethics, broadly bans members from soliciting other members’ students, and thereby deprives consumers of the benefits of competition among the 6,400 ice skating teachers and coaches who at that time were members. Specifically, the FTC charged that the PSA requires members to abide by its code of ethics. According to the complaint, the PSA instructed its members that this code provision prohibited coaches from many types of direct and indirect communications with skaters and parents, and actively enforced the ban through a variety of penalties, including suspension, even over the objections of skating students and their parents who wanted to switch coaches.[3]
Following a public comment period, the Federal Trade Commission approved a final order in March 2015 to settle charges that the bylaws of the PSA restrained competition. Under the order for the PSA, the association is required to stop restraining its members from soliciting work and competing on the basis of price, change its Code of Ethics, publicize its settlement with the FTC, and implement an antitrust compliance program.
In 2024, PSA announced that the Board of Governors proposed that the membership approve that the PSA be dissolved. The rationale for the dissolution was that after June 2024, without a mandate from U.S. Figure Skating for coaches to be PSA members--as has been the case for many years--the PSA board said it would not have a viable means to generate revenue, to produce programming or even to maintain staff. The membership voted in favor of dissolution, which means that the PSA would dissolve. The PSA says it will continue to work to secure the PSA's legacy within U.S. Figure Skating and other outside entities. PSA ratings will continue to be offered through June 2026, as U.S. Figure Skating may not have its new accreditation system ready before that time. [4]
On July 1, 2024, the PSA website was taken down.