Pronouns : she / her / hers
Neal Montoya has a childlike curiosity that guides her and a background in facilitating multiple projects while building community. Before Elevate, she served an AmeriCorps VISTA term with Food Recovery Network (FRN). When she began working at FRN, Neal had limited knowledge about the food justice sphere, but her love for learning new things gave her the confidence to take the role. As a result, she learned about food insecurity and food recovery while building robust systems for the FRN Network and fostering relationships with students and alumni across the nation.
Neal attended the University of Maryland, College Park, and received a BA in English Literature with a minor in History. During her undergraduate years, she interned at the Dickinson Electronic Archives, participated in two Alternative Break trips, and served as a production assistant on student films.
When she’s not working, you can find Neal reading a book, playing video games, taking random photographs of her surroundings, or practicing songs and scales on her beloved bass guitar.
Pronouns: she/her/ hers
Meghan has a passion for education and sustainable development, and prior to joining the Elevate team, she worked with various nonprofit organizations across New England and abroad. Experienced in service-learning leadership and teaching, Meghan is excited to deepen her understanding of the nonprofit sector and develop her fundraising skills as a Project Coordinator.
Meghan holds a BA in International Relations and Spanish from Eckerd College. She is the recipient of the 2020 Global Service Award and the ASPEC Shepherd-Williams Award in International Relations and Global Affairs. Meghan is also a member of two honor societies, both Phi Beta Kappa and Pi Sigma Alpha.
Apart from work, Meghan enjoys taking in her natural surroundings. She is a fan of biking, yoga, and spontaneous road trips.
Pronouns: she/her/hers
Kirsten has a background in project management and process improvement in the private, public, and non-profit sectors. She has a passion for working with others and supporting their ability to bring their aspirations to life. Kirsten has used this experience to assist small businesses with planning and marketing to begin their entrepreneurial journey.
Kirsten is also deeply passionate about youth advocacy. She has coordinated events focused on improving literacy & art education in her hometown. Kirsten is dedicated to creating pathways to success for those that need it most. She earned her Master of Public Administration from Capella University.
During Kirsten’s free time, she enjoys exploring, music, cooking, and anything else that feels joyful.
Pronouns: He/Him/His
Jacob is passionate about helping to build a more equitable and sustainable world. Before joining the Elevate team, he interned and worked for organizations like the Institute of International Education and the New Cities Foundations. Jacob interned at Resilient Cities Catalyst, working with the city of Minneapolis to develop equity-oriented economic recovery programs in collaboration with communities most affected by the Covid-19 pandemic. He supported client relationships and conducted qualitative and quantitative independent research focused on case studies and trends in census tract data.
He received a Bachelor of Arts degree in Political Science and Music from CUNY – Hunter College as a member of the Roosevelt Scholars Program. He graduated with honors as a Salutatorian of the 2020 class.
When he is not working, you can find him traveling, writing fiction, playing piano, or reading.
Edgar has a lifelong passion for community outreach and political activism. Before joining the Elevate team, Edgar spent a year working as a writer and political telefundraiser. He joined the Elevate team to work with nonprofit organizations trying to give back to their communities.
Edgar continues to volunteer in voter outreach and believes in taking an active role in upholding democracy. He received a Bachelor of Arts in English from Baylor University, where he also received the Charles G. Smith Award for Academic Excellence and Noble Character. Edgar intends to continue his education with Law School in the future.
Beyond supporting our grant writing teams, Edgar enjoys reading comic books, drinking iced coffee, and listening to a thought-provoking podcast.
Pronouns : she / her / hers
As an experienced project coordinator, Claire brings a passion for increasing educational equity to the Elevate team and its clients. In her former role with Americorps, she managed a maker-focused education program and associated grants for an Oakland, California school.
She has also contributed her skills to various education nonprofits in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, most recently, serving as a teaching artist at the Children’s Museum of Pittsburgh, where she designed and implemented a middle school-making course.
A Bay Area native, Claire holds a BA in Applied Mathematics from UC Berkeley, where she graduated with honors. Outside of work, Claire enjoys hanging by one of Pittsburgh’s many rivers, cooking meals with friends and taking her dog Rollo out on the town.
Pronouns: she/her/hers
Sara is passionate about building healthy communities for people and our planet. Before joining Elevate, Sara worked on the 2020 election with Work for Progress as a Campaign Associate. She canvassed voters in Colorado and provided information about candidates for state and federal elections. She also recruited new staff to join the Work for Progress campaign. Prior to her work during the 2020 campaign cycle, Sara was an Administrative Assistant for Can-SOLVE CKD, a pan-Canadian patient-oriented kidney research network. She provided administrative support for the operations team, coordinated logistics for meetings and events, and assisted in developing an online learning module about patient-oriented research and kidney research in Canada.
Sara is a volunteer for Climate Crisis Policy, where she uses her cartography skills to map membership of the coalition. Sara earned her BA in Geography with a focus on Environment and Sustainability from the University of British Columbia.
In her free time, Sara loves to cook vegetarian meals, explore the outdoors, and read books about food and plants.
Mathea has an interest in both public health and fundraising. Prior to joining the Elevate team, she worked with two Minnesota-based nonprofits. At the Iraqi and American Reconciliation Project she was introduced to grant writing and worked on two grants with the Executive Director. She went on to serve as a Health Intern at the International Institute of Minnesota, where she connected refugee clients with health resources and aided in the refugee resettlement process. To further explore her interest in public health, Mathea interned at the Minnesota Department of Health, where she analyzed the projects proposed by statewide grantees as part of the Statewide Health Improvement Partnership.
Mathea recently began volunteering on the Communication and Fundraising Committee of WellShare International, an international public health nonprofit. This role enables her to explore her interests in public health and development. She graduated magna cum laude from Macalester College, where she earned her BA in International Studies and French with a concentration in Community and Global Health.
When she is not working, Mathea likes to run, hike, and camp around the Pacific Northwest. She loves chatting with her friends (even if it is over Zoom), listening to podcasts, reading outside, and baking.
Gena came to Elevate with a background in international relations and an interest in conflict resolution. Prior to joining the Elevate team, she interned at a nonprofit focused on promoting gender equality and peace through community-based projects in the Middle East and North Africa. She has experience conducting in-depth research, and enjoys turning ideas into action and supporting the administrative work needed to bring them to fruition.
Most recently, Gena earned a MPP from George Mason University. Before that, she earned a BA in Global Security and Emergency Management from Arcadia University. As an undergraduate student she had multiple chances to go abroad, and one such opportunity led her to Cyprus where she met with nonprofit leaders to discuss the challenges of reconciliation and daily life in a divided city. This experience solidified her interest in conflict resolution and encouraged her to pursue a higher degree.
During her free time, Gena enjoys writing short stories, browsing National Geographic, and playing multiplayer games with friends. (Except Uno, because that ruins friendships.)
Ngaire was born in Harlem, raised in Gaithersburg, and calls Baltimore home. With a lifelong passion for human rights and equity, they have dedicated their educational and professional careers to producing social change. They come to Elevate with a track record of organizing around advocacy through grassroots fundraising, diversity and sensitivity training, leadership development, and administrative services. They most recently worked with Food & Water Watch in an administrative capacity supporting the nonprofit’s efforts in lobbying for a fracking ban. They have a vested interest in the success of nonprofits and radical countercultures that uplift and maintain community. Their specific areas of interest include the politics of race, gender, class, sexuality, ability, and environmental justice.
Currently, Ngaire works with the Baltimore Transgender Alliance in creating a zine on the politics of LGBTQ identities and geographic location. They continue to engage in restorative justice and accountability in the Baltimore queer community through their interpersonal and working relationships. This work is informed by their BA in Gender and Women’s Studies obtained at the University of Maryland, Baltimore County where they were actively engaged in LGBTQ organizing on campus.
When Ngaire isn’t working, you can find them knee-deep in memes and all things internet/pop culture, working on creative writing projects, binge watching TV shows, or finding ways to soak up as much sun as possible.
