Coaching Staff
Jim Van Atta Director of Competitive Swimming & Head Coach
Email: [email protected]
Jim’s coaching career spans parts of four decades at the club, high school, and collegiate levels. He served as a graduate assistant coach at West Point, an assistant coach at Indiana University Swim Camp, and a volunteer assistant coach at West Point. From 2016 to 2020, he coached for Southwest Aquatic Team (SWAT) in El Paso, significantly growing the team and producing TAGS finalists, junior national qualifiers, and college-bound athletes. From 2021 to 2024, he served as the strength and performance coach at Charger Aquatics, also coaching the CAQ Gold group for 10-12-year-olds.
As a swimmer at the United States Military Academy at West Point, Jim was a 12-time Patriot League finalist, 400 IM conference champ, and four-time Eastern Seaboard finalist. He maintained his connection to swimming during his 27-year career as an Army infantry officer, which included three deployments to Iraq and Afghanistan, where he coached and led soldiers in combat every day.
Moranda Madero Head Age Group Coach
Email: [email protected]
Elizabeth Brown Assistant Coach
Email: [email protected]
Coach Liz brings over 30 years of coaching experience to Charger Aquatics, having joined the club in 2015. Prior to moving to Albuquerque, she served as Head Age Group coach at Las Cruces Aquatic Club (LCAT) for nine years. Additionally, she coached in Wisconsin and Illinois, as well as her first coaching job in Shawnee, KS at the age of 16. During this time, Liz has coached numerous state and zones qualifiers, as well as Illinois state record holders and qualifiers to the now-defunct National Age Group Championships.
Liz began her swimming career at the age of six at Osborn Swim Club in Detroit and continued club swimming with the Johnson County YMCA, KC Blazers, Decatur Swim Club and Badger Dolphins. Her collegiate career began at Millikin University (where she was one of three women competing on the men’s team) and she finished her last three years at the University of Wisconsin where she was a National Qualifier and two-year co-captain while majoring in journalism and minoring in history.
In addition to sharing her passion for swimming with the athletes at Charger Aquatics and Albuquerque Academy, Liz is the Executive Director of the Information Display & Entertainment Association (IDEA), a professional association for members of the event presentation industry.
Julie Maynes Assistant Coach
Email: [email protected]
Julie began swimming at the age of 8 in 2009. By 2013, she was state champion in the 1500m and 1000m free, as well as a senior zones qualifier. She swam with Charger Aquatics from 2014-2017. She was also a varsity swimmer for Rio Rancho High School and qualified for state in the 500m free and 200m free. After suffering a shoulder injury, she left the sport in high school and is ready to reenter the world of swimming as a coach with just as much passion as before!
Julie recently moved back to Albuquerque in June 2023 after graduating from UMass Boston in 2022 with a B.S. in psychology. She is the Senior State lead coach and the assistant coach for Bronze 1&2.
Lee Romero Taylor Santa Fe Site Head Coach
Email: [email protected]
Head Site Coach, Lee Romero Taylor, is a lifelong NM resident from Santa Fe. Lee graduated from Santa Fe Preparatory School and went on to become an NCAA-swimmer and graduate of Lewis and Clark College in Oregon, where he was Captain of the swim team. Lee graduated with a Bachelor of Arts, Sociology/Anthropology with a minor in Art in May 2011. Lee was Head Coach of the Kids Club Fun and Fitness in Vancouver, Washington where he coached, motivated and developed age group swimmers. Lee became the head coach of Santa Fe Aquatics in 2015 and, became the Head Site Coach of Charger Aquatics when we became a satellite branch of Charger Aquatics in 2021. He coached the New Mexico Zones team in 2019, and received Age Group Coach of the Year award for 2019 and 2020, and is the Age Group Chair for New Mexico Swimming.
Elise Dionisopoulos
Email: [email protected]
Elise spent three years coaching at her alma mater, New York University, from 2019 - 2022. She oversaw the sprint group, as well as working with the 100/200 stroke swimmers, and the breaststrokers on the team. In her last season coaching NYU, the team took its largest-ever squad to the NCAA Championship meet, 11 of which were sprinters!
She herself swam for NYU from 2013-2017, attended Nationals all four years of school, earned 10 All-American Honors, set 7 school records, and was a two-year team captain. During undergrad, she earned a Bachelors in Chemistry with a minor in Mathematics and has also achieved a Masters in Sports Business from NYU.
She grew up in Manteo, North Carolina, swimming for the Outer Banks Swim Club from the age of 5, and throughout her entire youth. She has been passionate about swimming since she can remember, and does not plan to stop that anytime soon! Elise's favorite event to swim is 50 Free, but her favorite event to watch is the 400 IM!
Elise moved to Albuquerque in September 2022 with her husband, Nick, and her 21 year old cat, Simon!
Sarah Feather Lead Developmental Coah
Email: [email protected]
Sarah grew up in Albuquerque, where she swam for Duke City Aquatics and Valley High School. She continued to swim competitively through college, when she also began teaching swim lessons and coaching with the local club team. After getting her Masters degree in Library Sciences from Texas Woman’s University, she moved to Massachusett where she worked as both a youth services librarian and the head swim coach for a summer league swim team. She also volunteered with the JV swim team at the high school level.
Sarah is excited to be back living in Albuquerque. She hopes her experience and passion for the sport of swimming will help grow a new generation of Charger athletes. She coaches the Bronze and Senior State teams.
Stephen Mackanic Assistant Coach
Stephen grew up in California playing baseball in his youth until he found swimming and water polo in High School. He went on to compete at Santa Rosa Junior College in both sports before moving to Arizona to complete a Bachelor's and Masters degree in Sport Psychology.
Stephen finished his grad program and began working with elite athletes from a wide variety of sports in the Phoenix valley for several years. He then began working with the United States Air Force as a cognitive performance specialist. Now living in Albuquerque, he continues to work with the USAF and is returning to the world of swimming to work with Charger Aquatics and assist as the mental performance coach and assistant coach on deck.
Sean Jackson Administrative Assistant
Email: [email protected]
Sean grew up in Albuquerque, finding swimming and water polo in High School. He started off at Albuquerque High School, eventually also joining up with Duke City Aquatics, winning three state championships in water polo, before an injury took him out of both sports. He spent some time as an assistant coach for his high school team after this, and taught summer swim lessons all throughout high school.
Sean graduated from UNM in 2020 with a bachelor’s degree in Anthropology, and has more recently come on board with Charger Aquatics as an Administrative Assistant for the team.
