Our Crew

Shawna Young is a social impact entrepreneur, educator, and speaker who has dedicated her career to empowering individuals and driving social change. Currently she is the Interim CEO of Prior Ada Developers Academy, a nonprofit that has trained over 1,000 women and gender expansive people of color as software developers, since 2013.  Prior to Ada, Shawna served as the executive director of the Scratch Foundation, Duke Talent Identification Program (Duke TIP), and MIT Introduction to Engineering and Science. She began her career as a science educator in North Carolina and also managed diversity programs at the Broad Institute of MIT and Harvard.

With a background in creating accessible educational opportunities for underrepresented communities, Shawna is an influential voice in education, equity, and social justice. As a visionary leader, Shawna has spent nearly 25 years nurturing talent and shaping the futures of thousands of aspiring changemakers. She received her BS in Chemistry from Howard University, MAT in Science Education from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, MBA from MIT, and Certificate in Nonprofit Management and Leadership from Boston University.

As a performance driven leader with over 20 years of experience, Bethany has led large cross-functional teams with up to 50 individuals across finance, accounting, human resources and corporate operations.

Bethany began her career at PricewaterhouseCoopers (Big Four public accounting/audit), then later extended her experience to other industries including telecommunications, energy/utilities, health care & clinical research, higher education and nonprofit. She is also a Certified Investments and Derivatives Auditor (inactive) and Lean Six Sigma Master Black Belt (process efficiency/performance expert & trainer). Most recently, Bethany has served in the capacity as partner at Rankin McKenzie.

Bethany’s areas of expertise include: team building & performance management; financial modeling and reporting; information technology and systems implementation; business process design; internal controls development and implementation, including Sarbanes Oxley implementation, federal award compliance; as well as human resources including recruitment, compensation, performance appraisals and employee relations.

A native of Kentucky, Bethany attended Grove City College in Pennsylvania where she earned a Bachelors of Accounting. In her free time, Bethany enjoys spending time with family and friends and traveling — there is no place she does not want to go!  Since it is impossible to physically go everywhere in one lifetime, she supplements travel with reading on a wide variety of topics and enjoys spending time taking long walks and gardening.

As a girl, Caroline never imagined herself working in the “business” world known for it’s stuffy suits and 9-5 desk jobs, favoring more free-spirited answers to “what do you want to be when you grow up?” Much later, her passion for social causes and desire to have a career with an impact sparked a curiosity in the role of small business in economic development. Startups specifically gave her a creative outlet and the freedom she was craving to experiment & build. She’s particularly inspired to tackle the diversity gap in venture capital for underrepresented founders. Fundamentally, she believes in leveraging her privilege to address systems of oppression. As a white woman from New Jersey and holding a Bachelor’s in Public Health from Tulane University, she is cognizant of how her identities influences her work. She is humbled by the informal “schooling” in intersectional community organizing she’s received from local leaders; she is grateful to these teachers for giving her the most powerful educational experiences. Caroline is a Venture for America fellow and SoGal Foundation chapter lead. When she’s not dreaming up side projects, she enjoys crocheting, and crushing the patriarchy.

As Vice President of Development, Cathy develops strategies to increase Camelback’s philanthropic support from diverse funders and partners. She is an accomplished fundraising professional with more than 20 years of experience at leading international, national, and community-based organizations focused on economic development, conservation, and social services. She has successfully forged creative and strategic partnerships between nonprofits and corporate, foundation, and individual donors that have resulted in lasting benefits for people and communities.

Cathy was born in South Korea and raised in central Ohio. She’s made the D.C. suburbs home for the last two decades. Her favorite things include butter, chocolate, and sugar which means she sometimes eats cake for breakfast. When not at Camelback, you can find her reading a book, cooking something delicious to share, or enjoying the outdoors.

Danielle Meltz brings a unique blend of problem-solving skills and idea generation to her role as Manager on the Fellowship team at Camelback Ventures. Her approach is deeply influenced by her upbringing in Dubai, where she witnessed the entrepreneurial spirit of her family. From her parents’ painting homes to selling ice cream, Danielle saw how creative entrepreneurship could be. 

Her journey took her from running environmental campaigns in Maine to working on sustainable agriculture in Benin. It was while working with small-scale women farmers, that Danielle also gained an appreciation for the determination and patience required by entrepreneurship. This foundation of being surrounded by changemakers and brainstorming solutions, is what brought her to Camelback Ventures. 

When not at her desk, Danielle is an active hobbyist. She spends her free time gardening, costuming, and brainstorming new business ideas.

Ebony Archie-Andrews is a marketing and communications professional with over 8 years of experience blending creativity, strategy, and storytelling to amplify impactful brands and organizations. With a deep passion for non-traditional storytelling, Ebony finds the most joy in crafting data-backed narratives and human-centered approaches that drive meaningful change.

Her career spans diverse sectors, from supporting wellness tech brands like GrowthDay to advancing large-scale governmental development efforts in Africa. She has also led marketing initiatives for Chicago-based nonprofits, research organizations, and health clinics leveraging her expertise to elevate organizations that do good in the world.

Ebony’s varied experience has shaped her ability to deliver creative strategies across digital, social, and experiential marketing, taking pride in amplifying the work of others that build lasting connections to inspire action and transformation. In her free time you’ll find her writing a newsletter about the intersection of wellness and self-love, yapping with her chosen community, and discovering new ways to express herself creatively.

Elaine is from North Carolina and began her career as a high school English teacher. Her foundation as an educator critical to her passion for advocating for expanded opportunities in education, technology, and entrepreneurship for diverse populations. She has worked with educational non-profits for almost a decade and is firmly committed to eliminating barriers and gaps in education and access to resources and funding, especially for organizations and children in underserved and excluded communities around the world. 

Throughout her 16-year career she has transitioned from instructional coach to early-stage entrepreneur to a nonprofit leader focused on steering organizational strategy, program innovation and expansion, and partnership cultivation. In her previous role as Head of Programs at Scratch Foundation, Elaine spearheaded the creation of the Scratch Education Collaborative, a program that engaged 225 organizations from 48 countries around the world in a global community of practice. Through her leadership, $2.5 million dollars in total grants have been awarded to almost 100 nonprofit organizations and schools/universities since 2022 resulting in more than 7 million children and educators being impacted. Before joining Scratch, Elaine was the Director of Academics for Duke TIP, a Durham, North Carolina-based organization that focused on providing learning experiences for academically gifted students.

Hannah is passionate about building relationships and supporting community. She gets to put these passions to work every day as a member of the Capital Collaborative team, building and supporting a growing community of funders and grantmakers committed to making the startup capital landscape more equitable.

Hannah brings a background in educational equity work to the team. While she was born and raised in the Pacific Northwest, she has called Arkansas home for the past eight years, and believes in the power of small communities to build a sustainable and equitable future everywhere. Outside of her work at Camelback, Hannah loves the outdoors, reading, fitness, cooking and eating with friends and family, and her rescue dog, Rhyn.

Krystal has always had a passion for the intersection of social justice and entrepreneurship. At Washington State University they explored these interests by studying Entrepreneurship and Social Sciences. Krystal graduated from WSU with a degree in Sociology & Anthropology in 2019. Krystal moved to New Orleans during their senior year of their Bachelor’s through a program called National Student Exchange. Since graduating from WSU, Krystal had the fortune of working in many different sectors in New Orleans, including the non-profit, start-up, and hospitality industries. In 2020 they became a Venture for America Fellow, a two-year fellowship program that gives recent college graduates firsthand startup experiences and helps them become leaders who make meaningful impact with their careers. They started their career and fellowship at SaaS company building out processes for a new sales and marketing team. 

Krystal aims to bring their passion for community building and creative problem solving along at Camelback Ventures. Krystal is proud to help out other Entrepreneurial Support Organizations like Fund 17 by serving on their DEI and Programs Committee. Krystal is also a Health Line Manager for the Plan B NOLA Program at the Reproductive Justice Action Collective, a network of Southern activists based in New Orleans which helps distribute free Plan B to the Greater New Orleans Area. In their free time, Krystal is happy to support community-based organizing, the arts, read, bike around the city, and spend time with friends.

Melvin is a born tinkerer. From taking apart and rebuilding VCRs as a child to studying Applied Physics and Mechanical Engineering at Morehouse College and Columbia University, he has been obsessed with understanding how systems work and why they do what they do. His current vision is to use data and technology as tools to help organizations better understand their own operations and opportunities for greater impact.

After beginning his career in investment banking, Melvin set his sights on better understanding the education system and what it would take for ALL students to receive a high quality education. So he began leading data initiatives in K-12 school districts, higher education institutions, and nonprofits. As an independent consultant, he’s built dashboards, architected data warehouses, and used automation to seamlessly integrate data across disparate systems. Most recently, he led the data strategy work at KIPP DC where he modernized the infrastructure to provide near real-time access to reports/dashboards for the 1,000+ teachers and staff. In his free time, Melvin enjoys stepping away from the computer to spend time with his family and getting his hands dirty on a home project.

Michaela, a proud daughter of Filipino immigrants, was born in Baltimore and now calls San Diego home. She is committed to building a world that prioritizes community care over profit and exploitation, and she thrives in spaces where people are free to express themselves, tell their stories, and create meaningful connections.

Her career in education spans from teaching 1st grade to facilitating global leadership programs for middle and high schoolers. With a Master’s in Organizational Leadership from PLNU, Michaela focused her research on empowering women of color in the workplace. Now, as the Senior Associate on the Search & Align team, she is continually inspired by individuals who are committed to equity and creating opportunities for underserved communities.

Outside of Camelback Ventures, Michaela is a playwright, cat lover (despite being allergic), reiki master, avid baker, and travel enthusiast.

Nadiyah is a creator of opportunities for individuals where very few quality options exist. She has done just that over her 15-year career, in both the public and nonprofit sectors, utilizing her experience to build innovative systems in workforce development and youth and human services. She is a consummate change manager that effectively (and efficiently) modifies organizational cultures and processes to increase productivity, improve team morale and effectively deliver quality services to all stakeholders and customers. 

As Director of Workforce Development for the City of New Orleans, Nadiyah raised over 10 million dollars through a combination of competitive grants, philanthropic donations and community partnerships; she revamped the local public workforce development program into a dynamic demand-driven system that connects thousands of previously unemployed individuals to training and employment. Nadiyah brings to the Camelback team a range of other leadership experiences, including recently serving as the Director of Workforce Development at Ochsner Hospital, Director of the CP3 Afterschool Zone, and Manager for the Louisiana Office of Social Entrepreneurship, the nation’s first, establishing and supporting the work of innovative organizations across the state. She is thrilled to join the Camelback team where she brings her expertise to lead our new economic development pilot. In her free time you will likely find her in the kitchen cooking her ancestral creole cuisine or curled up reading 3 different books on metaphysics because she has no time to waste — there is only now.

Born and raised in the Midwest, Riyaz cherishes his Asian-American identity and his journey to continuously better understand and live into that hyphen between Asian and American.  His journey has taken him to his parents’ home country of India, classrooms in Baltimore, the chilly winters of Minnesota, and currently the snow-capped peaks of Colorado. He is passionate about developing individuals and teams, building culture, and shaking up the status quo by nurturing developing leaders who work through an equity lens to become the change agents of tomorrow. Outside of work, Riyaz is a foodie. He approaches food as he does life – seeking diversity, opportunities to connect with others, and a chance to have a good time over a shared meal. Riyaz was lucky enough to attend Macalester College and Johns Hopkins University and strives to never stop learning and growing.

Selam is an Eritrean-American who worked in global development for nearly a decade, both with non-profits and the US government. Craving something different, she secured a role at IDEO.org where she led a social innovation program that supported early-stage innovators bring their ideas to life through design, affording her the opportunity to work with folks who were building bold solutions for their communities. Inspired, she embarked on her own entrepreneurial journey . It was her first time building anything from scratch, and it was easily the best and most humbling thing Selam’s ever done. She bootstrapped her tech  product  by consulting for the Unreasonable Group where she worked with a fabulous group to support growth-stage tech social entrepreneurs across the Asia-Pacific region. The cost of development slowed Selam’s entrepreneurial ambitions but not her desire to support entrepreneurs, specifically those who have been overlooked and undervalued, which is when she joined Camelback Ventures. Selam loves playing soccer, singing karaoking and reading speculative fiction because it fuels her imagination about what the world could be. She also loves spending quality time with her wife and their dog.

“If I’m going to go to bed exhausted at the end of a work day, I want to drift asleep knowing I’m making a positive impact in the world – however small.” -Tania on why she was eager to join the Camelback Ventures ‘Ruthless for Good’ crew and its mission. Constant growth and seeking out new challenges is what drives Tania in both work and play. She spent a decade and a half working as a broadcast journalist in various markets across the United States – fueled by the desire to give a voice to the voiceless. After a fruitful career, Tania chose to transition into communications + marketing based on her personal commitment to empower undervalued communities. She has worked as Communications Director for both the Youth Empowerment Project + NOLA Public Schools. Tania also served as a volunteer educator in Zambia teaching HIV/AIDS health education to middle + high school students. The daughter of immigrants (Tania was born in London) – she spent the majority of her life moving across the U.S. and world until she fell in love with New Orleans. In her down time, Tania enjoys volunteering in the community, jumping out of planes, dancing at second lines + in Mardi Gras parades, and most importantly, spending quality time with her family, close friends + her cat, Pepper. 

Jessamyn is an advocate for redistribution of power in philanthropy, nonprofit workforce wellbeing, feminine leadership – and quality therapy for everyone. After realizing she’s far from alone in her frustration with the status quo of power hoarding in philanthropy, Jessamyn co-wrote and illustrated the book, ‘Unicorns Unite: How Nonprofits & Foundations Can Build EPIC Partnerships’, with Jane Leu and Vu Le.

During a decade leading the Peery Foundation, Jessamyn co-created and shared the Peery Foundation’s Grantee-Centric approach to philanthropy as Executive Director/Co-CEO. Along the way she also created a social innovation university curriculum that is still taught at both undergraduate and graduate levels, and has been an advisor to Intrinsic Labs, The Wellbeing Project, GrantAdvisor, and Ashoka U, as well as an Executive Committee member of Big Bang Philanthropy Group.

Jessamyn is a proud high school dropout and community college graduate who also has a BA in Fine Arts and an MBA. She lives by a freezing cold beach in Copenhagen, Denmark with her ridiculously funny husband, insatiably curious daughter, and two headstrong house rabbits.

Aaron is on a journey to live in the spirit of his baseball hero, Jackie Robinson, who said “a life is not important except in the impact it has on other lives.” With this ethos, Aaron taught ninth grade English in West Philadelphia, put together deals for companies large and small as a lawyer, and supported new ideas to improve education as a portfolio director for the NYC Fund for Public Schools. Aaron is humbled to say that he graduated from the University of Virginia and Penn Law School. He also knows that this doesn’t entitle him to anything and is ready to earn his keep.