Meet our Board of Directors
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Board Chair and Governance Chair
Mike La Charite serves as TLRN’s Board Chair and leads the Governance Committee. A longtime admirer and supporter of Chris McGilvery’s literacy work, first through GMH and now TLRN, Mike believes that easy access to quality books and learning materials should be a right for every child, not a privilege. That conviction is shaped in part by his wife, a physician researcher who has worked with underprivileged youth through Jumpstart and many other programs over the years. Drawing on his involvement with the International Sous Vide Association and Together Again Travel & Events, Mike hopes to build new partnerships for TLRN in Los Angeles, where he lives, and to create events that expand the organization’s outreach and fundraising.
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Past Chair and Emeritus Board Member
Khushbu Patel is a founding board member of The Leaders Readers Network (TLRN) and has volunteered with the organization since its inception nearly 15 years ago. She now serves as Past Chair and Advisor. She is a Physician Assistant in breast oncology at UT Southwestern and holds a Master’s in International Relations. Her diverse background spans fundraising and development, community building, and education. Khushbu believes that access to education and literacy are the building blocks of success, and she hopes to help TLRN support programs that inspire imagination and a love of learning.
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Vice Chair
Melodie Graves has served on the board of The Leaders Readers Network since 2019 and is now Vice Chair and a member of the Governance Committee. In that time, she has witnessed TLRN’s impact on students and teachers across Texas, in Las Vegas, and in Dominica. Melodie knows that teachers need support, and she is proud that TLRN is there for them through its literacy experiences and educator celebrations. A lifelong Amarillo resident, she is Associate Director of Academic Advising at Amarillo College and an active advocate for her North Heights community.
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Programs Chair
Dr. Lisa Hill is Director of Instruction for Canyon ISD and has served on the board of The Leaders Readers Network since 2024, where she is Programs Chair. A career educator, she began as a classroom teacher at Amarillo ISD’s Sam Houston Middle School and went on to serve as a curriculum assessment specialist, a coordinator of teacher growth, and Canyon ISD’s Director of Literacy and Instruction. Today she leads curriculum development, professional learning, and instructional coaching for the district’s K-12 schools and oversees its libraries. Dr. Hill has also trained educators across Texas as a consultant with Lead4Ward and NMSI. She earned her Doctorate in Educational Leadership from West Texas A&M University, holds Texas certifications in elementary reading, principal, and superintendent leadership, and brings deep expertise in literacy and teacher support to TLRN’s programs.
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Board Secretary
Tanvi Sure is a Bioengineering student at UC Berkeley, where she is an undergraduate researcher in the Conboy Lab, and she has also served as a research and development intern with Mindly Care. Her connection to The Leaders Readers Network began in high school, when she spent several years as a TLRN student ambassador, working with schools and raising funds to provide books to students with limited access to them. One project especially close to her heart was a book drive for a girls’ shelter, sharing books with young women whose motivation and resilience inspired her. Reading brings Tanvi great joy, and sharing that joy with others is one of the ways she gives back to her community. As Board Secretary, she draws on her firsthand experience with TLRN’s literacy programs to help the organization grow its impact.
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Founder and Executive Director
Dr. Chris McGilvery is an educator, founder of The Leaders Readers Network, and advocate for equitable education. Born in San Antonio and a proud graduate of Northside ISD, he is committed to strengthening literacy for our most important community members: children. He holds a Ph.D. in Educational Leadership Policy from Texas Tech University and has more than 20 years of experience as a classroom teacher, teacher educator, researcher, and nonprofit leader. Inspired by his mother’s story, he works to grow leaders and readers in underserved communities across Texas, the United States, and Dominica.
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Finance Chair
Jesse Munoz works at Amarillo National Bank as the Vice President of Treasury Management in San Antonio, Texas. Since 2024, Jesse has served with the Leaders Readers Network as a volunteer reader. He now serves as the Finance Chair on the Board of Directors. He also serves on the boards of the Greater San Antonio Chamber of Commerce and the San Antonio Hispanic Chamber of Commerce. Throughout his career, Jesse has volunteered with organizations such as Big Brothers Big Sisters and TLRN, where he has found great fulfillment in mentoring children. Having grown up in an underserved community, he knows firsthand how mentors and school programs can shape a young person’s path, and he is committed to growing TLRN’s network and making a meaningful difference in the community.
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Board Member At Large
Little did I know that a trip to a homeless shelter organized by a Sociology Professor would change the course of my life and career and lead me to become a Physician. I am an Internist in outpatient practice in Las Vegas for the past 10 years. I received my Undergrad and Masters degrees from UNLV and a Medical Degree from the University of Nevada School of Medicine. I have been involved with various non- profit organizations including the Akshaya Patra Foundation, Three Square, and Shade Tree Shelter. Searching for service projects during the pandemic for my daughter, Aarti Patel we came across LRN. She raised funds to provide new books to 5 titles one schools, which we realized was a minuscule amount given there were more than 300 Title one schools just in Clark County. Delivering the books to the schools and seeing the happy faces of the kids with their brand new books melted my heart. This renewed my passion for service and drive to make a change. I am excited to join LRN as a Board member and learn from other members, teachers, administrators and community leaders to help make a difference.
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Media and Marketing Chair
Celeste Steele – Marketing Chair
Celeste Steele is Head of Channel Marketing at 1Password and serves as Marketing Chair for The Leaders Readers Network. A TLRN volunteer since 2016, she now brings her professional expertise to the board. With a background in partner marketing, she has extensive experience in developing and executing strategic marketing initiatives, building collaborative relationships, and driving brand awareness. Passionate about education and literacy, Celeste puts her strategic vision and collaborative leadership to work helping TLRN grow its reach and make a lasting impact on young readers.
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Board Member At Large
Andrea DeLeon brings experience in program coordination and a background in nonprofit work, fundraising and development, human resources, and marketing. She first saw TLRN’s impact as a volunteer at a Juneteenth book giveaway, where a Haitian mother picked up Freedom Soup and shared that she had never before seen a book about her own culture and life. Since then, Andrea has helped lead TLRN’s educator celebrations and its volunteer outreach for community events, school read-alouds, and book giveaways. As an educator, reader, and advocate, she believes literacy is freedom and power: freedom to think, to dream, and to learn. She hopes to see more corporate leaders and sponsors join TLRN in putting books in children’s homes, because every child deserves unlimited possibilities. Andrea counts Mrs. Frisby and the Rats of NIMH among her favorite books.
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Board Member At Large
Dr. Nick Garcia is Associate Principal at Northside ISD’s Pat Neff Middle School in San Antonio. His career in education spans high school teaching, athletic coaching, counseling, and administration, with experience across government, public, charter, and private K-12 schools as well as higher education. His work with Pre-K 4 SA showed him how much early literacy shapes a child’s development all the way through high school, and he found that TLRN’s mission and vision align closely with his own beliefs. Dr. Garcia holds a PhD and brings expertise in human resources and K-12 education policy. He is a member of the Texas Association of School Administrators (TASA) and the Texas Counseling Association (TCA).
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Board Member At Large
Becky Koehler is a librarian with Lubbock ISD, where she connects students with books and the joy of reading every day. She holds a graduate degree, brings skills in marketing, public relations, and information technology, and is a member of Delta Kappa Gamma. Becky believes that the ability to read and access to books open doors for students who may not have a support system encouraging literacy outside of school. Reading and writing, she says, give every student equal access to education, careers, and opportunity, and every student deserves someone who believes in their ability to succeed and make the world a better place.