Men's Cross Country

Kharyn Ethridge Named John Jay Head Men's & Women's Cross Country Coach

Release courtesy John Jay Athletic Communications

NEW YORK – Kharyn Ethridge has been named the head coach of the John Jay men's and women's cross country program, announced Interim Director of Athletics Brandon Fieland.

"We are thrilled to welcome Kharyn Ethridge to John Jay Athletics as our new Head Men's and Women's Cross Country Coach," said Fieland. "Kharyn brings tremendous energy, knowledge, and a genuine commitment to developing student-athletes both on and off the course. We believe Kharyn is the right person to lead our cross country program into its next chapter, and we are excited to see the impact she will have on our student-athletes and the John Jay community."

Ethridge brings an accomplished collegiate running career and extensive experience in coaching, student-athlete development, program management, and event operations to John Jay College.

"I appreciate this opportunity and honored to be part of the Bloodhound family," commented Ethridge. I look forward to using our sports as a way to help each athlete on the team grow and find success in all aspects of their lives."

Before joining the Bloodhounds, Ethridge built a diverse coaching background working with athletes at multiple stages of development. From 2022 through 2025, she served as an Assistant Track & Field Coach with Harlem Children's Zone Armory, where she supervised groups of 40 to 60 athletes during practices and competitions and worked with athletes at the beginner, intermediate and advanced levels.

Her role extended beyond athletic performance and included student development and preparation for opportunities after high school. Ethridge provided sports advocacy and conducted NCAA and college-readiness workshops while delivering programming centered on recreational education, character development and mental and emotional health.

Ethridge also served as the Head Track & Field Coach at Dominican Academy from 2022-23. In that role, she developed daily, weekly and monthly training and competition plans, maintained communication with parents and supervised groups of up to 30 student-athletes.

Her experience in program development continued as Group Leader/Sports Director at HANAC Astoria Cornerstone during the 2024-25 academic year. Ethridge developed a comprehensive track & field program and established a new basketball program while designing workout plans, practice schedules and facility logistics. She also facilitated team and parent meetings and implemented programming focused on recreation, character development and mental and emotional health.

Before beginning her coaching career, Ethridge compiled an accomplished collegiate career in cross country and track & field that included competition at both the NCAA Division I and Division III levels with LIU, Brockport State and the College of Staten Island.

As a member of the LIU Brooklyn Blackbirds (now LIU Sharks), she placed third at the 2016 Northeast Conference Indoor Track & Field Championships in the 800-meter final with a time of 2:19.08 and contributed to a fifth-place performance in the distance medley relay.

Her versatility was evident throughout her time at LIU. Ethridge competed in events ranging from the 400 meters through the 3,000 meters on the track and up to the 6K in cross country. Her performances included a 1:00.98 in the 400 meters, 3:12.66 in the 1,000 meters, 5:38.19 in the mile and 11:04.14 in the 3,000 meters. She also recorded times of 16:07.6 in the cross country 4K, 20:28.5 in the 5K and 25:48.2 in the 6K.

After two years in Flatbush, Ethridge continued her collegiate career at Brockport State, beginning with the cross country season. She competed throughout the 6K campaign and recorded a season-best 25:09.8 at the Rowan University Border Battle. She also represented Brockport at the 2016 SUNYAC Cross Country Championships. During Brockport's 2017 outdoor track & field season, Ethridge demonstrated her range by competing in the 200, 400, 800, and 1,500 meters in addition to the 4x400-meter relay. She established Brockport bests of 27.29 in the 200 meters, 1:01.52 in the 400 meters, 2:29.52 in the 800 meters and 5:41.41 in the 1,500 meters.  Ethridge concluded her outdoor season at the SUNYAC Championships, finishing ninth in the 400-meter preliminaries and helping Brockport's 4x400-meter relay team place fourth in the conference. 

She concluded her collegiate career at the College of Staten Island, where she developed into one of the CUNY Athletic Conference's top performers. Ethridge delivered one of the signature performances of her career at the 2019 CUNYAC Indoor Track & Field Championships, capturing four individual conference championships in a single meet. She won the 400 meters in 59.98, the 800 meters in 2:27.58, the mile in 5:41.66, and the 3,000 meters in 11:37.20. 

Her success continued at the 2019 ECAC Division III Indoor Track & Field Championships, where she finished as the runner-up in the 800 meters with a time of 2:21.18 and placed fourth in the 400 meters with a time of 1:00.07. During that indoor season, Ethridge also posted a 5:25.85 mile at the Princeton Indoor Invitational and an 11:19.42 in the 3,000 meters at the Giegengack Invitational, where she also contributed to a runner-up finish in the distance medley relay. Ethridge's championship success continued during the 2019 outdoor season. She captured the CUNYAC championship in the 1,500 meters with a time of 5:14.25 and finished second in the 800 meters at the conference championships. Earlier that spring, she won the 800 meters at the Coach O Invite and helped Staten Island finish second in the 4x400-meter relay. She also competed on one of collegiate track & field's biggest stages, representing Staten Island as a member of the 4x400-meter relay at the 125th Penn Relays. 

Ethridge earned her bachelor's degree from the College of Staten Island in 2024.

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