Tava Foret Announced As President Of Towing Vessel Inspection Bureau
The Towing Vessel Inspection Bureau, a pioneering organization providing Subchapter M audit services to the inland marine industry, announced the promotion of two of its key employees July 13. Tava Foret was formally promoted to the position of president effective July 1 by the TVIB board of directors during their spring meeting. Lauren Jeppson was promoted to executive vice president, also effective July 1.
Foret replaces Chris Parsonage, who is retiring from active daily participation in TVIB, but will continue providing consulting and advisory assistance as needed.
“Tava has demonstrated her passion and deep knowledge of the towing industry for many years,” Parsonage said. “Her foresight in working to develop both Quality Auditing and TVIB led to the creation of the large pool of geographically dispersed, well trained auditors and surveyors the industry enjoys today. Without her efforts to provide training and guidance to the auditors, vessel operators and others within the towing industry, the TSMS option would not have developed into the viable option it has become for many as their path to compliance with Subchapter M. I am confident that with Tava leading TVIB, along with the support she receives from the TVIB staff, TVIB will continue to adapt to constantly changing requirements and prosper as a leading Third-Party Organization.”
Foret is one of the founding members of TVIB and has led TVIB’s audit and surveying operations since the Coast Guard’s approval of TVIB as a Third-Party Organization (TPO) in January 2017. She previously served as the chair of the Houston Galveston Navigation Safety Advisory Committee (HOGANSAC) and has served on the board of directors for the American Waterways Operators. Foret also served on the Towing Safety Advisory Committee’s (TSAC) Subchapter M Workgroup and chaired the TSAC Subchapter M Audit Subcommittee throughout the development of the regulation. She has more than 27 years’ experience working in the operations side of the inland towing industry and maintains active credentials for auditing and surveying. Foret is a graduate of the University of Phoenix with a bachelor of science degree in business marketing and is a frequent speaker at various industry meetings.
Lauren Jeppson joined TVIB in 2013 and has been involved in all aspects of TVIB’s day-to-day operations. Jeppson is responsible for the administration of TVIB’s services, coordination of the development and curriculum of TVIB’s training courses and maintenance of its Quality Management System and ISO 9001:2015 certification. She is also responsible for the development of TVIB’s automated audit and survey tools and new database solution that TVIB has implemented to manage the vast amounts of data TVIB maintains more effectively for proper oversight of its TPO customers’ vessels.Jeppson is a recipient of the 2019 IMX 40 Under 40 award, is a graduate of the University of Missouri-Columbia School of Law and is a member of the Missouri Bar Association.
The Towing Vessel Inspection Bureau was founded in 2010 as a 501(c)(6) nonprofit professional trade organization of marine auditors and surveyors. TVIB educates, develops audit and survey tools and certifies marine auditors and surveyors to perform consistent, objective and independent audits and surveys of marine operators. TVIB is a Coast Guard approved ThirTPO and has issued TSMS Certificates to more than 90 towing vessel operators throughout the United States.
TVIB is headquartered in Houston, Texas, with satellite offices in Kansas City and St. Louis, Mo.; Paducah, Ky.; and Baton Rouge, La.
