Meet the Team

At arc, every member of our team is passionate about making a difference in the community.

Meet Our Organization's Leaders

EXECUTIVE TEAM

Brad Lupien, M.Ed.

President & CEO

Brad Lupien

Brad Lupien is President and CEO of arc. He earned his BA in Social Work from the University of Vermont and a Masters in the Art of Teaching from Simmons College. Brad began his career as a teacher and social worker in the juvenile justice system and as a special education teacher in Boston, MA. He taught middle and high school young people identified as having “behavioral and emotional disabilities.” To address his student’s multiple risks, Brad began an after school Outdoor Education Club for his gang-involved students; he modeled the method after his experience serving as a summer guide for teens, leading month-long adventures in the Rocky Mountains. At arc, Brad is responsible for business development and new programs. He is also co-Founder and Chairman of the Board for CORE Educational Services. He serves as a board member of Interfaith Family, a member of the Learning In After School & Summer (LIAS) Executive Advisory, a member of the Region 11 Workforce Advisory Group, founding member of the youth Take Action Campaign, a Vistage (CE 3494) member, alumni representative of Leadership North County class of 2012, Action Team member for the new San Diego Education Synergy Project and also a playmate to his son, Jonah and daughter, Sydney, and a dedicated partner to his wife, Jessica.

About Brad

Tina Curran

Chief Operating Officer

Tina Curran

The most important element in successful business is its people. As a Human Resources professional, Tina is committed to improving businesses by enhancing and supporting the personnel who make the business operate. As well, the success of people at work requires that a business must too be focused on excellence, and she has over 20 years solid leadership experience supporting some of the best businesses in the USA.

From line level staff to top executives, from large corporations like The Rand Corporation to small critical agencies like Constitutional Rights Foundation, her aim and intent and purpose has been to make business thrive through the improvement and support of its people.

About Tina

Telieka Hechanova

VP of Human Resources

Telieka Hechanova

Human Resources plays a key role in developing, reinforcing and changing the culture of an organization. It is a critical business function that helps companies succeed in hiring employees, keeping them engaged, and supporting their growth and development. Telieka has operated diligently in this line of work for almost thirty years.

Telieka is dedicated to achieving the success of arc's goals with her knowledge and understanding of Human Resources. Her well-rounded expertise provides a number of services to employees. Telieka knows that it is important for an employees’ experience to be positive throughout the workforce to ensure the achievement and strengthening of business operations.

About Telieka

Cyndy Drummey

VP of Communications

Cyndy Drummey

A UCLA grad with a degree in religion, Cyndy has been in media and communications her whole career. She’s been an adult literacy volunteer and loves teaching communication skills. A Navy brat, she’s lived all over the country and now calls Long Beach home, where she lives with her husband Michael and their dog Maus. She has three grown children.

About Cyndy

Diana Carrillo

Director of Programs, Los Angeles Region

Diana Carrillo

Diana Carrillo was born and raised in South Los Angeles, attending public schools her whole life. When she found arc, she was going through a difficult time in her life, recovering from injuries sustained in a car accident. Starting as a part-time employee, arc was a great fit for allowing her to ease back into her normal self. But, never in a million years did she think that arc would have the impact that it has had on her life; she was able to work with a variety of students that continuously encouraged her to be better than she was the day before. arc motivated her to be better not only for herself but for our youth. She worked her way up, from being a Site Coordinator, to a Regional Manager, and now our Director of Programs, working primarily with After School and Special Projects. She ensures we meet compliance while still delivering amazing programming. In a nutshell, her job is to develop leaders for our programs. By creating leaders, we create a program that is full of new opportunities to develop our youth.

About Diana

Alexandra Garcia

Director of Programs, San Diego Region

Alexandra Garcia

Alexandra Garcia came to arc after graduating from the University of San Francisco and coming back home to San Diego. Alexandra always wanted to work with in the field of education but didn’t know exactly how she could work with first generation students and provide them enriching experiences that they may not have had the opportunity to experience otherwise.

When she first joined arc she came on board as a part-time program leader at an elementary school in Oceanside, CA. Little did Alexandra know that she would grow to love after school programs and be doing exactly what she wanted in the field of education. Since joining arc in 2011, Alexandra has held every after school position at a school site, managed after school programs throughout San Diego County as a Regional Manager, assisted and trained Regional Managers as an Assistant Director of Programs and now oversees all programs in the San Diego area as the Director of Programs. Alexandra continues to encourage programs to provide enriching experiences and opportunities for all students that they may not otherwise experience. Her favorite part of the job is still visiting sites and seeing the amazing opportunities that arc provides its students.

About Alexandra

Diana Rubio

Director of Professional Development

Carol Argel

Senior Accounting Manager

Carol Argel

Carol is the Senior Accounting Manager for arc. She was born and raised in the Philippines where she received her Bachelor of Science in Accountancy from Colegio dela Purisima Concepcion before she moved to the United States in 2003. For 15 years, she supported nonprofits that provided housing and support for those less fortunate. She joined arc in 2017 as an Accountant and gradually moved up to a manager position. As Senior Accounting Manager, Carol manages and oversees the company's daily finance operations and implements accounting methods, policies, and procedures. In her spare time, she enjoys cooking and spending time with her husband and her wonderful four grown boys.

About Carol

Bob Lund

Director of Outdoor Education Operations

Bob Lund

Growing up in Long Beach, Bob was fortunate to have had many opportunities to appreciate the outdoors from an early age. Because of his family’s frequent camping and off-roading trips as a child, he was well suited for taking on a variety of staff roles at summer camp including high adventure, aquatics, and in camp administration. His natural leadership abilities and affinity for outdoor adventures drew him to join the Boy Scouts at a young age and he achieved the rank of Eagle Scout in 2001. Bob spent his career working with high schoolers with special needs and delivering exceptional enrichment programs to students of all abilities throughout the Pacific Southwest. Together with his family, Bob is eager to continue their adventures by exploring and appreciating the beauty of our country’s wonderful state and national parks up close.

About Bob

MANAGEMENT TEAM

Stephanie Sajor

Communication Design Manager

Stephanie Sajor

Stephanie Sajor (she/they) joined arc in 2012. She started as a Web Design Intern and worked her way up to a manager role as the organization's Communication Design Manager. Born and raised in the Los Angeles area, she graduated from UC Irvine with two BA degrees in Film & Media Studies and Political Science and obtained a professional Certificate in Design Communication Art from UCLA Extension. Outside of arc, she is a spoken word poet, community organizer, and cultural worker. Across these many hats, she runs a monthly open mic, performs for schools and venues across the nation, facilitates ethnic studies and activism workshops, and gives tours of LA's Historic Filipinotown. She and her partner Eddy are also proud dog parents to their adopted terrier-poodle, Lychee.

About Steph

Richard Sajor, M.A.

Data Analysis Manager

Richard Sajor

Richard Sajor (he/him) has been part of the arc team since 2013, starting as Data Entry Intern and wearing multiple hats until he became the Data Analysis Manager. He is an alum of Stanford University (BA, 2011) and Johns Hopkins University (MA, 2021), and his studies have informed his approach, combining rigorous methodology with community-driven goals. Richard sees data science as a tool for holding the organization accountable to high-quality standards, uplifting stakeholders’ voices that may not otherwise be heard, and bringing all community members to the decision-making table.

About Richard

Marlyn Alas

Regional Manager

Marlyn Alas

Marlyn has been working at arc since 2014. She is the Regional Manager overseeing the Accelerated Schools and ICEF Public Schools. Her favorite color is blue, her favorite food is wings, and she likes anything cat related.

About Marlyn

Monica Garcia

Regional Manager

Carlota Merino

Regional Manager

Carlota Merino

Carlota Merino was born and raised in San Jose, California and navigated through the public school system, attended community college, and graduated from California State University, Northridge. She was the first woman in her family to graduate from high school and college. When Carlota began her college career, she insisted on becoming a medical professional. However, through her journey, she found her true passion in education. She learned from supporting students in after school programs how to be patient, how to care, and how to support. Carlota faced many challenges growing up in a low-income community and attended schools that had limited educational programs/opportunities for students. That is what motivated her to be part of the change and vowed to help close the educational gap for all students.

When Carlota joined the arc family, she found herself more empowered to continue her professional development through the leadership opportunities given by her supervisor and arc leaders. Carlota believes in the statement that the students are our future. We play a significant role in developing the future leaders and it is our support that can motivate the students to reach their goals. Carlota is a believer in staff development- she believes in providing equal leadership opportunities for staff professional growth. As a Regional Manager, Carlota focuses on program compliance, staff development, and empowering youth voice while provided a meaningful program at every site.

About Carlota

Christina Morse

Regional Manager

Christina Morse

Christina Morse was born and raised in San Diego and attended afterschool programs and summer camps all her childhood. She graduated from San Diego State University with a Bachelor’s in International Security and Conflict Resolution, and as you may guess, never thought she would find her passion working with youth and education. When she was in her senior year of SDSU, she interned at Familia Indigena Unida where she worked with families and youth who were in transition to the US – and it changed her world. She then started working at San Diego Unified School District part time and that’s where she found the arc after school program at Hoover HS, the school where she was working at the time. She started working as a Program Leader with arc at Hoover in 2015, worked her way up to Assistant SC, then Site Coordinator, and became the Regional Manager of High School programs in 2019.

About Christina

Nicole Cruz

Regional Manager

Nicole Cruz

Nicole's experiences have taken her around the US and even across the ocean. Spending much of her life between San Diego and Guam, Nicole's passion for aiding families of all shapes, sizes, and backgrounds continues to grow. She has attended before and after school programs since she was a preschooler on Guam and throughout her public school years in San Diego. She received her education at San Diego State University and University of Phoenix in Child and Family Services. Whether at a school or in an office, Nicole finds great joy in providing a safe, enriching environment for students and peers alike. Outside of arc, she is a devoted wife, loving mother, and hard-core sushi enthusiast. No matter where Nicole may be, she'll forever be at home near the shore - as her husband will tell you: "you can take the girl out the island but can never take the island out the girl."

About Nicole

Victor Curiel

Regional Manager

Jenny Chow

Regional Manager

Mario Lopez

Regional Manager

Jamelia Silver

Regional Manager

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