Pronouns: she/they
Alison Hight is a Director at Elevate, a leading grant writing firm that provides top-level development expertise to nonprofits nationwide. Her certification as a Fundraising Executive (CFRE) is a testament to her commitment to excellence. Alison has supported organizations focused on democracy, equity and social justice in the arts, youth and adult education, workforce development, healthcare, and international development. She brings deep issue knowledge in the arts, media, civic engagement, advocacy, and human rights, and is deeply engaged in women’s and gender issues.
Alison is a relationship developer and partnership identifier who excels at connecting people based on what excites them and the type of impact they want to have. She creates relationships where everyone can deepen their impact while sparking new ideas that can further their mutual visions. Alison is also an accomplished trainer and presenter who has developed internal and external training materials on essential fundraising topics and development activities. Her background in Visual Communications and Economics, as well as training in video and audio production, has allowed her to explore creative solutions to complex problems.
Alison is deeply committed to creating a more equitable and just philanthropic sector. She believes that fundraising is a critical tool for social change, and that it should be approached in a way that centers the values of equity, justice, and community power. Alison works to dismantle systemic barriers that have historically excluded marginalized communities from philanthropy, and advocates for funding models that prioritize community-driven solutions. Alison has developed and leads trainings on the power of language and how fundraisers can use it as active participants in creating more equitable philanthropy, the first of which she presented at the Grant Professional Association’s national conference in 2019.
Outside of work, Alison explores the human experience through experimental multi-disciplinary art and creative coding. She is also a transformational coach, avid reader, traveler, and coffee drinker. Alison’s favorite aspects of working at Elevate are the variety of clients she works with, the ongoing opportunities to learn, and feeling like she gets to be part of deepening the positive impact of people on the world.
Pronouns: he/him/his
Zach entered the fundraising profession out of a desire to use his writing and critical analysis skills to affect positive, progressive social change. Since joining Elevate in 2018, he has supported local and national clients working in issue areas, including K-12 education, college access and persistence, youth organizing, and social services. His past clients range from nonprofits just launching their grants programs to established organizations seeking to grow their funding portfolios, with budgets from less than $1 million to almost $20 million.
His pre-Elevate nonprofit experience includes two years at the American Jazz Museum in Kansas City, Missouri, where he helped curate one of the largest existing collections of jazz performances on film.
A native of Southeast Michigan, Zach holds an MA in Media Arts from the University of Arizona. He has BA’s in both Film and Video Studies and Creative Writing and Literature from the University of Michigan, where he graduated with High Honors. Outside of his day job, Zach enjoys reading, record collecting, writing and podcasting about popular music, and playing video games with his son.
Elizabeth has more than 15 years of fundraising experience and a passion for social justice. She loves helping nonprofit organizations secure the resources they need to pursue their missions and create positive social change effectively.
Elizabeth leverages her expertise and project management skills in a hybrid role at Elevate. As the Director of Business Development, she works with Elevate’s New Client Partnerships team to grow and sustain the company’s partnerships with nonprofits across the country. In her role as Senior Director of Client Services, she leads client teams of all sizes, providing development strategy and institutional fundraising expertise to organizations working on issues including public health, civic engagement and advocacy, social services, immigrants’ rights, international development, and education.
Elizabeth loves forming close relationships with clients to help them build and sustain a tailored grants program that meets their organizational needs and goals, addresses their capacities, and can be adapted to meet challenges as they arise. She is especially skilled at working with organizations with multiple tax statuses, including 501c3s, 501c4s, and fiscal sponsorships. Clients who are new to grant funding benefit from Elizabeth’s expertise in setting up the internal infrastructure (budgets, program design, systems) necessary to prepare to pursue grants.
Prior to Elevate, Elizabeth was the Director of Foundation Relations at Alliance for Justice, a national advocacy organization. She was responsible for planning and implementing the organization’s $3 million foundation fundraising program. She also worked as the Assistant Director of Development for Foundation Relations at Hillel International, where she oversaw foundation relations for a $26 million international organization. She began her career in development at various international organizations, including the Centre for Development and Population Activities, the International Planned Parenthood Federation, and the Council of the Americas/Americas Society.
Elizabeth holds an MA in Latin American Studies from the University of Texas at Austin and graduated with a BA cum laude in Anthropology from New York University. She is also a certified ESOL (English to Speakers of Other Languages) teacher and spent two years teaching English in Mexico and Europe. She lives in Maryland with her husband and two sons. Outside of Elevate, she enjoys hiking and biking with her family, swimming, reading fiction, gardening, and listening to podcasts.
Pronouns: she/her
Since joining Elevate in 2017, Caroline has used her experience in nonprofit management and fundraising and her skills in grant writing, prospect research, and project management to support clients with various grant program needs and challenges. She specializes in advocacy and civic engagement organizations and has also worked with clients in the education, housing, and human services sectors.
Caroline enjoys working with clients to strengthen their proposal and report language to better articulate their mission and impact and build a grant fundraising program that aligns with their organizational needs and capacities. She aims to help clients focus their prospect research and qualification strategy and presented at the Grants Professionals Association annual conference.
In her prior position as deputy director at NARAL Pro-Choice Virginia, Caroline oversaw development efforts and strategic plan management during a period of significant growth for the organization. Previously, Caroline worked as an account executive at a consulting firm supporting major donor and grants fundraising for national progressive organizations.
Caroline earned her BA in Government with a minor in Sociology from Hamilton College in Clinton, NY. She was a student leader in political and social justice activism and worked as a writer in the college’s Office of Communications and Development. A long-time Washington, DC resident, she is active in local politics and activism.
Oumou is a Supervising Director at Elevate where she primarily manages Elevate’s outstanding Project Coordinators and leads work to support the company’s information, systems, and calendar management process across all teams.
Oumou first joined Elevate in 2017 as a Project Coordinator. In that time, she has served more than 25 nonprofit clients who work in a wide range of issue areas including Education, Civic Engagement, Social Services, Advocacy and Policy Change, and Food and Nutrition. She is a graduate of the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill.
Outside of work, Oumou is an avid sports fan. She is particularly passionate about Formula 1. Oumou also enjoys loose-leaf tea, discovering new coffee roasters, house plants, and maintaining her spreadsheet with her favorite movies.
Jake comes to Elevate after working for HELP USA, a homeless housing nonprofit located in New York City. At HELP USA, Jake worked closely with the Director of Development in researching potential donors, identifying and applying for grants, and assisting in various fundraising efforts. He also helped to construct grant proposals to match funding requests for HELP USA’s various sites and initiatives located across the country. Prior to HELP USA, Jake spent the 2015-2016 academic year in Slovakia teaching English at a secondary school through the United States Fulbright Program. While in Slovakia, Jake assisted the school’s English Department in expanding their curriculum, further developed the school’s English program, and taught a variety of classes ranging from culture to government. His experience in Slovakia has greatly influenced his knowledge of international exchange programs, and is always willing to expose anyone to Slovak food and beer.
Before leaving for Slovakia, Jake worked for the International Rescue Committee in New York City where he was tasked with providing assistance and re-settlement services to recently arrived refugees and authorized immigrants to the United States, primarily from Iraq, Afghanistan, and Myanmar. In previous internships, Jake worked for a public relations firm, and for the New York City Department of Small Business Services.
Jake graduated magna cum laude from Fordham University with a BA in History, Political Science, and Humanitarian Affairs. He served as captain of the men’s rowing team for his senior year at Fordham, competing in and training for competitions throughout his collegiate career. He also was elected Treasurer of Phi Alpha Theta and inducted into Pi Sigma Alpha and Phi Beta Kappa.
Jake is a life-long New York sports fan, with the exception of football and soccer in which he roots for the Miami Dolphins and Manchester United. He is an avid outdoor adventurer from his time as an Eagle Scout, and loves to travel and explore new towns, cities, and countries. He loves train travel and can have long conversations about historical events or about an episode of Doctor Who. He can be frequently spotted looking for the best cup of coffee or tea throughout DC, finding a great bookstore, running through parks, or watching the latest hit movie. Jake is thrilled to be at Elevate working with ambitious nonprofits working towards positive social change in and around DC and the United States.
Rachel has over 12 years of experience raising money, grant writing, and delivering strategic communications for major international and local nonprofits. Her goal is to serve as a thoughtful and trusted partner to nonprofit clients, guiding them toward the creation of more strategic and successful grants programs. Satisfaction is seeing clients win money that propels much-needed social and environmental change.
Prior to joining Elevate, Rachel worked as a Senior Writer at World Wildlife Fund and as the Director of Development at Minds, Inc. (Mindfulness in DC Schools), where she now serves on the Board of Directors. Previously, Rachel worked as a staff writer at CARE, helping to raise millions of dollars for CARE’s diverse poverty-fighting around the world. Rachel’s other work experience includes writing for the United Nations Population Fund, the Resource Foundation, and the Star-News Newspaper in Wilmington, NC.
Rachel was born in DC, and grew up on the coast of North Carolina. She graduated cum laude from Kenyon College and earned a Master of Public Administration from Columbia University. In addition, she is now pursuing a Master of Social Work with the ultimate goal of offering therapeutic support to individuals. Rachel is a trained yoga teacher and has taught meditation classes in DC for several years. She is happiest when out in nature, particularly mountains, and/or in the vicinity of dogs, goats, or other farm animals.
Ellen comes to Elevate with a passion for the arts and education. Before joining the Elevate Operations team, she interned and volunteered at a variety of nonprofits around the country. Her introduction to working at nonprofits began as a Development Intern at BBYO International Headquarters. Ellen later worked as a Public Affairs and Marketing Intern at the Smithsonian Institute’s Freer|Sackler Galleries. She also served as Co-President of Northwestern University’s Block Museum of Art’s Student Advisory Board.,
Ellen graduated from Northwestern University in 2016 with a BA in Psychology and Art History, and a certificate in Integrated Marketing Communications from the Medill School of Journalism. She also spent a semester studying Art History in Florence, Italy. While in Italy, Ellen worked as a Biblioteca Berenson Intern at Villa I Tatti: The Harvard Center for Italian Renaissance Studies.
When not working at Elevate, Ellen can be found exploring a new museum, attempting to finish a jigsaw puzzle, or cooking a homemade meal for friends and family.
Emily is passionate about supporting her clients’ forward-thinking and effective work in the DC area and beyond. Prior to joining Elevate, she served as the Senior Communications & Development Associate at the Arlington Partnership for Affordable Housing (APAH) in Arlington, VA, where she supported the organization’s fundraising, event planning, and communications activities. Before working at APAH, Emily served as the year-long Programs Assistant at Catholic Volunteer Network. She also completed a year of service with the Lutheran Volunteer Corps while working as the Development Assistant at an interfaith organization in Omaha, NE.
Emily graduated from Villanova University with majors in Political Science and Theology & Religious Studies. She is a Fall 2015 graduate of the Leadership Arlington Leadership Center for Excellence’s Young Professionals Program.
When she is not working with clients at Elevate, you can find Emily watching a beloved sports team (Nats, Caps, and Villanova Wildcats), trying a new happy hour spot, or giving endless attention to her dog, Oreo.
Pronouns: she/her/hers
As Elevate’s first Vice President of Client Services, Kelsey leads work to continuously improve all client services and develop systems and processes to support the career development of all 50+ client-facing staff. She is a member of Elevate’s 4-person executive team and leads the Client Services Management Team.
Kelsey first joined Elevate as a Grant Writer in August 2014, at a time when the company could still fit all staff around a single conference table. From that position, she grew along with Elevate, taking leadership roles on client teams and, eventually, as a member of the management team. In her current role, Kelsey strives to support staff members’ professional growth within the company, navigate the growth and evolution of the Client Services department, and build relationships with other consultants and nonprofit leaders working to strengthen the sector. “Getting Better at Everything, All the Time” remains her favorite Elevate value.
While Kelsey no longer serves Elevate clients directly, she continues to leverage her experience fundraising in the arts, education, and social services fields to support staff and consult with clients exploring changes to their contract to meet evolving needs and develop new tools to strengthen our services to clients.
Kelsey serves on the board of Jubilee JumpStart, an award-winning early childhood education center in Adams Morgan. She is a graduate of Grinnell College in Iowa.
