Staff

Ben Schornack

Director of Sport for Good Chicago

Ben Schornack is an experienced coalition-builder, fundraiser, and facilitator in the field of sports-based youth development. He previously worked as the NYC Director for Up2Us Sports, where he managed local fundraising, programming, and coach development. Prior to Up2Us, Ben has worked as a program manager and basketball coach, and he is a proud alumni of AmeriCorps VISTA. He has also been a guest-lecturer for the St. John’s University sports management program and the Adelphi University sports-based youth development program.

Ben believes that well-designed sports programs can provide youth with a caring coach-mentor, an opportunity to build transferrable skills, and a safe space that allows healing from traumatic or stressful life circumstances. Throughout his career, he has worked with community organizations and stakeholders to merge assets and build capacity in order to achieve these high-impact outcomes. Ben lives in Chicago with his wife, Jenna. He graduated from Central College in Iowa with a BA in psychology.

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Maurya Couvares

Maurya is the Co-Founder and former Chief Executive of Code Nation which she grew from an idea to a national…

Fatima Alabdullah

Fatima Alabdullah has five years of experience in supporting underserved populations through accounting and financial management.

Rachelle Patel (Boyer)

Rachelle Boyer has extensive experience building successful partnerships between corporates, government organizations, and community organizations.

Peter Feldman

Peter Feldman has more than a decade of experience as an educator and sports-based youth development professional. As a former…

Julia M. Lankford

Julia M. Lankford has over 19 years of nonprofit management experience, and has been the recipient of numerous community service awards. Her work is centered on the core belief that the best way to improve quality of life for those who need it most is to empower them, passing on a sense of shared responsibility and individual self-efficacy.

Rob Saltares

Rob believes that sport programming has the ability to reach those furthest from opportunity in ways nothing else can when designed intentionally.

Tiffany Aidoo

Tiffany has dedicated her years of experience to sport as a catalyst for youth development.

Sara McLaughlin

As a lifelong sports fan and soccer player, Sara recognizes the unique power and ability that sports have, to educate young people and impact communities.

Kip O’Rourke-Brown

Kip is a leading professional in the emerging field of sports-based youth development, possessing extensive experience in program design, delivery and evaluation, with a special emphasis on school communities.

Maggie Munoff

Maggie’s ultimate goal is to tell the collective stories of Laureus USA’s partners and unite us under a common mission – to increase equal access to competitive, recreational, and therapeutic sports programs for all.

Grace Curtin

At the root of it, Grace believes that coalitions are the best way to create innovative, inclusive and sustainable programs for all young people.

Nneka Arinze

Nneka Arinze is from the Metro-Atlanta community and has always had a desire to learn more around the impact of sports programming, having grown up as an avid soccer player.

Mariana Niekamp

Chicago Grant Manager, Mariana Niekamp, comes to Laureus USA as an alumni of the Laureus USA Emerging Leaders Program, having experience…

Amy Mummery

Amy believes in the transformative power of teamwork, sport, and the spoken word.

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