Pronouns : she / her / hers
Amy comes to Elevate with diverse experience in education and the private sector. In these roles, Amy has worked on collaborative teams to achieve various types of goals including, reaching financial milestones and exceeding learning objectives. Amy is passionate about advocating for those with unheard voices, including individuals with disabilities and those negatively affected by the criminal justice system.
Amy holds a master’s degree in Grant Writing, Management, and Evaluation from Concordia University Chicago. Additionally, she has a master’s degree in Education from the University of South Alabama and a bachelor’s degree in Psychology from Troy University. Amy volunteers with animal rescue shelters to secure funding to reduce pet overpopulation and euthanasia rates.
During Amy’s off hours, you can find her tending to her cat sanctuary, currently numbered at 21 furry felines. She also enjoys exploring bookstores with her daughter and diving into comic
book movies with her partner.
Pronouns: She/Her
Kate brings a natural inquisitiveness to Elevate and is passionate about learning new things about grant-makers and grant-seekers to develop successful narrative proposals. Before joining Elevate, Kate worked as Lead Grant Writer with Brockport Research Institute, where she managed grant portfolios for nonprofit clients and developed narratives to state and federal agencies for higher education institutions. Her nonprofit grant work focuses on human services and special population support. Before that, she worked as a professional writer in B2B and B2C markets, developing product descriptions and catalogs, print and web marketing collateral, and external communications. Kate also spent over ten years serving as a college professor instructing introductory and advanced composition, integrated humanities, world literature, African/ African American Studies, and Women’s Studies.
Kate earned a Ph.D. in English from Michigan State University in 2013, where her work focused on contemporary literature, postcolonial theory, and women’s studies. She holds an MA and BA in English from the University at Buffalo. Kate also volunteers with a nonprofit organization in Buffalo, NY, supporting grant writing and management activities.
Kate is a lifelong Trekkie and enjoys cooking (and eating), reading, and hanging out with her cat, Pepe.
Carrie comes to Elevate after five years of living abroad in the Republic of Ireland. Before her time in Ireland, she trained as an actor in the Meisner and Method disciplines in New York City, working primarily in theater, commercials, and print. During this time, Carrie also worked at some of New York City’s finest dining and event establishments, giving her an excellent foundation in customer service. She is passionate about equality, social justice, and the soft power of arts and culture and is excited to be a part of an organization whose clientele reflects these passions.
Upon moving to Ireland in 2016, Carrie earned a Master of Fine Arts in Creative Writing from American College Dublin. She then worked as a Community Lead for a start-up organization and was a Client Services Professional in the corporate sector.
She eventually aligned her work experiences with her personal values and enrolled in the Master of Arts program at the University College Dublin to earn a degree in Cultural Policy and Arts Management, where she graduated with honors. Her research focused on arts funding in the EU and arts engagement with migrants, asylums seekers, and underserved populations during this time.
She has volunteered with the Cleveland Rape Crisis Center, and while in Dublin, she participated in multiple fundraising campaigns for Woman’s Aid and the Mater Hospital.
When she is not working, you can find her traveling, attending gigs, trying to master new recipes, and spending time with friends and family.
Sarah came to Elevate with a drive to continue her career in public service and a passion for supporting programs and organizations that improve the quality of life for people around the country. Sarah has worked in local government in North Carolina with the Town of Boone and the Isothermal Planning and Development Commission, a regional Council of Governments. During her time in local government, Sarah worked closely with municipalities to encourage economic development, cultural resource management, and regional advocacy. Sarah has written grant applications for a variety of state and federal agencies including the Appalachian Regional Commission, FEMA, and HUD to name a few.
Sarah has her Master of Public Administration and BSBA in Marketing from Appalachian State University. A true “Boonie” at heart, Sarah can usually be found enjoying the outdoors via a kayak or hiking trail. Go, Mountaineers!
Sarah also enjoys spoiling her dachshund, Stella, and baking in her spare time. Her favorite baked good to share with friends and family is her nana’s famous pound cake.
Pronouns: he/him/his
Joshua first joined Elevate in 2021 with a drive to continue his career in the nonprofit sector of DC through a client services and development role. After completing his graduate education, he set his sights on continuing to pursue his professional interests in client stewardship, operations, and database management. At Elevate, he has worked closely with the Client Services and Operations teams, and through his current role, the New Client Partnerships team.
Joshua earned an MA in Philosophy from Boston College and, prior to that, a BA in Philosophy from Florida International University. Throughout college, Joshua was highly involved with a variety of academic organizations and honor societies. He also worked as a DJ for Florida International University’s radio station WRGP — The Roar Miami.
In his free time, Joshua enjoys reading, tending to his plants, and exploring new music.
Pronouns: they/them
Mel believes in facing the multi-faceted challenges of our time by connecting resources with the people who need them. They previously interned at two policy think tanks in DC and learned a lot from fast-paced, hard-working Development Directors. At the Center on Budget and Policy Priorities, they helped write resources for partner fundraising staff and make donor reports easily understood.
Mel earned their BA in Psychology at George Mason University with a minor in Philosophy and Law. At university, where they presented an undergraduate thesis to a committee of experts as part of an Honors Psychology program and were awarded as an Outstanding Senior. They previously volunteered writing newsletters for EcoRing, a green travel nonprofit based in California. At Elevate, they have worked with a number of clients across the nonprofit sector, from homelessness to refugee services to education.
Outside of work, Mel enjoys playing board games (anything besides Monopoly) with their partner, and cuddling with their two cats, Raini and Zuzu. They also spend time making lots of art!
Bentley joined the Elevate team excited to help others realize their visions. Prior to joining Elevate, Bentley interned with the Perot Museum of Nature & Science in Dallas, as well as worked helping with administration for arts and culture funding in Philadelphia. They are particularly passionate about science, technology, the rapidly developing nature of online interaction, and the issues of intersectionality and access facing these areas.
Bentley holds a Master of Science in Applied Sociology, alongside a graduate certificate in Nonprofit Management from the University of Texas at Dallas, where they also earned a bachelor’s degree in Arts and Technology. Having landed back in Maryland, they also hope to engage in progressivism in the DC area.
In Bentley’s free time, they are on a personal journey to find the perfect pepperoni pizza and the perfect soundtrack to accompany it. While not engaged in that, they also enjoy browsing Atlas Obscura and pondering the existence of ghosts.
Ren leads Elevate’s capacity planning and staffing function within the Client Services department to ensure each client receives high-quality services. Ren also specializes in writing grants for clients on a range of issues, primarily focusing on health services, policy and advocacy, youth development, and services for individuals experiencing homelessness. Ren’s clients report that they have a knack for learning deeply about their programs and funding landscape to develop strategic grants that are highly competitive for funding. Ren draws from their own experiences as a Grant Writer to support the career development of Elevate staff.
Ren has followed a passion for promoting access to health services in the United States and abroad throughout their career. While pursuing their Master of Social Work, Ren saw how access to high-quality physical and mental health care plays a vital role in enabling individuals to achieve their fullest potential.
Before joining Elevate, they worked as a Graduate Assistant for the Carter Center’s Mental Health Program, where Ren assisted with writing grants for their programs in Liberia and Haiti. Ren was also an intern with Georgia State Representative Shelly Hutchinson, where they conducted research and wrote policy briefs related to improving access to health services, immigrant rights, and criminal justice reform.
Ren graduated from the University of Georgia with a Master of Social Work and a certificate in Nonprofit Management and Leadership. They also have a BS in Human and Organizational Development from Vanderbilt University.
In their free time, Ren loves doing anything outdoors! In particular, they enjoy hiking and playing ultimate frisbee.
Elena brings to Elevate a passion for nonprofits and nonprofit leadership as a catalyst for social change. Prior to joining Elevate, Elena worked for nonprofits in Denmark and the US, in the global health, environmental, civic engagement, and democracy sectors. Her development experience includes direct marketing, building fundraising capacity, major gifts, and grants at organizations such as Indivisible, League of Conservation Voters and League of Conservation Voters Education Fund, and Greenpeace.
Elena holds an MSc in Technological and Socio-Economic Planning from Roskilde University, Denmark, and a BA in History and Russian Studies from Bucknell University. She is currently pursuing a Ph.D. in Transformative Social Change.
When not wrapped up in the world of grants, Elena loves to read, spend time with the family dogs and cats, and stream British TV and movies while enjoying a cup of Yorkshire Gold tea. She also enjoys growing wildflowers and native plants, reformer Pilates, and interrupting her husband whenever he watches YouTube videos.
Pronouns: she/her/hers
Sarah has been with Elevate since 2019 and is currently a Supervising Director, working with Grant Writers and Senior Grantwriters, and serving on Elevate’s Continuous Improvement team. Her passion lies in the performing arts, with a focus on theatre, puppetry, and the aerial arts. Over the past four years, Sarah has worked with many of Elevate’s arts and arts education clients, in addition to community organizing and policy advocacy nonprofits.
A founding company member of DC-based Pointless Theatre, Sarah spent the decade prior to joining Elevate creating adventurous art in the nation’s capital. She also enjoys volunteering with the Miss District of Columbia Scholarship organization, serving as Co-Producer for the annual competition and helping to prepare local titleholders for the national Miss America scholarship competition. She received a BA in Theatre, Dance, and Performance Studies at the University of Maryland, College Park.
