SRC STAFF and BOARD OF DIRECTORS
Students Run Chicago is completely volunteer-run. Our Board of Directors is made up of enthusiastic runners who not only serve as coaches and mentors to students, but also work hard to raise money, schedule training runs, organize programs, and engage with the larger running community.
The Board's commitment to youth comes from a diverse background of individuals who are parents, teachers, coaches, and professionals of all kinds. You'll find them working throughout the Chicagoland area and running regularly on the lakefront path.
Some of SRC's Board during an off-season run at the lakefront.
Regin Igloria
Chad Kasler
Marco Galvan (Executive Director)
Marco has been working in the electric power industry as a licensed Professional Engineer for the past 12 years. He moved to Chicago from San Luis Potosi, Mexico when he was 11 years old. Marco is Teo and Leo’s dad, and is thankful for Jamie’s patience and support and for staying home alone with Teo and Leo every Saturday morning during marathon training season.
Sany Nguyen
Kimberly Soriano
Barney Rupp
Sany Nguyễn, Esq., born and raised Californian, but living that Chi-town life for the past 10 years. She is an attorney, business consultant, content creator, community investor, and sport coach. Many know Sany as, "Sany Delight" in which she's partnered with some of the largest brands in the world, promoting food, wellness, fitness, lifestyle, and has been contracted as a host for various sporting events. Her experience in the health and fitness world began as early as 8 years old and has expanded to various team sports, backpacking, solo traveling, running marathons, playing for an international sport team, and triathlons [She has three knee surgeries to prove it.] While she wears many hats, she is mostly proud of the visibility and work she's done for the AANHPI communities and bipoc/women's sport. Additionally, Sany is the Co-Founder and Director of Celebrate Argyle - a community initiative that focuses on highlight AANHPI businesses, individuals, and organizations throughout Chicago, Founder and President of Family Style RC - the first and only AANHPI centric run community that promotes and supports athletes from all walks of life, provides various community resources and opportunities in the health and fitness world, all while showing the world that AANHPI athletes exist too!
Kim has been working in healthcare for the past 12 years on a Mother Baby unit as well as training staff on electronic health record software. When she applied to run the Bank of America Chicago Marathon for the first time, the most she had ever run was a 5K. She told herself if she got in, she'd figure it out. If she didn’t, there would always be next year. She got in and crossed that finish line. Here she is, a few years later, still running and a member of a supportive and encouraging group/family, SRC.
"Take chances and challenge yourself."
After earning an MBA from Chicago Booth School of Business, Barney spent the next 40 years as a retail merchandising executive with three different national retailers. Now retired, Barney's focus is on expanding the reach of Students Run Chicago and also teaching English as a Second Language at Oakton Community College. Having completed over 20 marathons and served for eight years as a Chicago Area Runners Association marathon training Group Leader, Barney is having fun supporting Chicago high school students in achieving difficult running goals and developing into contributing adults.
"I’ve never met a runner who is a bad person. Do only good, kind people start running…or does running make people good and kind?"
Chad is originally from Michigan, and moved to the city of Chicago in 2013. That same year, he signed up for his first marathon with little knowledge of what he was getting himself into. He completed the race, and has run every Chicago marathon since. Before coming to Chicago, Chad coached middle school track and cross country. This experience helped him understand the benefits that running brings to youth. Chad believes in the mission of Students Run Chicago and knew that he wanted to be a part of a program that provides opportunities to Chicago’s youth. Chad currently works in the banking industry, focusing on compliance and anti-money laundering. On his free time, Chad likes to work on cars and motorcycles, travel, and eat ice cream.
"Running...best decision so far."
Regin is a visual artist, educator, and arts administrator who also founded and directs a community bookbinding organization, North Branch Projects. He is the artistic director at Ragdale, an artist residency program in Lake Forest, IL, and teaches part-time at the School of the Art Institute of Chicago. He has worked with high school students mostly as a drawing instructor, but spent several summers training and running with them as well. He considers running to be directly related to his ongoing art research, and produces work about the human condition. Regin considers training to be just like any creative endeavor, and he writes about art and athleticism in an ongoing essay series called Best of Seven.
Grant is originally from New Hampshire and landed in Chicago during the pandemic, having fallen in love with the city during many trips visiting family. He has been working in the accounting field for the past 16 years helping not-for-profits in a variety of ways. In 2017, Grant ran his first Chicago marathon and has been hooked on distance running ever since. Before moving to Chicago, he would mostly train alone, but found the Chicago running community to be welcoming, supportive, and HUGE! He participates in as many local run groups as he can. Grant and his wife, Leslie, live in West Town with their two big dogs. Outside of running, Grant enjoys experimenting in the kitchen, exploring the many Chicago neighborhoods, and enjoying the amazing food the city has to offer.
Grant Ballantyne
Tahiry Cuevas
Tahiry was born and raised in the northwest side of Chicago. She is a marathon runner, amateur poet, dog mom, daughter of Mexican immigrants, first generation college graduate with a masters degree in Curriculum and Instruction, older sister, rollercoaster enthusiast, fan of Hot-Cheetos, treasurer of SRC, and high school math teacher. When people ask her why she commits to the intense goal of running a marathon, she loves to show them the SRC team picture. Being an educator is tough, but SRC is the community she returns to every year that reminds her of the greatness of teenagers in Chicago. Running beside her fellow mentors and students is truly an honor to Tahiry.
Lekisha was born in Bloomington, Illinois, but grew up in Montgomery, Alabama, before moving to Chicago in 2018. She currently works for Girls on the Run Chicago as the Impact Manager and manages schools in the South Side and West Side of Chicago, while training Girls on the Run coaches. She began running in 2012 as a graduate student in North Carolina and has done six half marathons and is training for her first marathon, the Chicago Marathon, this fall.
Lekisha runs with the West Side running group, Peace Runners 773, and became a RRCA Level 1 certified run coach in November 2023. In her free time, she likes to read, bike, find coffee shops, and volunteer. She is excited to join the Students Run Chicago board to help high school students achieve their running goals at the distance they choose!
Lekisha Gunn
SRC participating in the annual Half Marathon relay hosted by the November Project