Volunteers Join ELLA Fellows for First ELLA Pitch Day

All ELLA Fellows and Volunteers smile for a group photo

On December 13, 2025 Sadie Nash hosted our very first ELLA Pitch Day! The ELLA Fellowship — named for social activist Ella Baker — is a year-long program offering in-depth project development experience as Fellows bring to life a social justice project in their community. This year’s cohorts of ELLA fellows gathered at The Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, and Transgender Community Center, and were met by a group of incredible volunteers from all parts of the Sadie Nash community. The ELLA fellows’ projects are still in their early stages of development, and volunteers supported fellows in fine tuning their goals.

Volunteers smile for a group photo right before meeting with the ELLA fellows

Why Pitch Day? 

Why did we launch ELLA Pitch Day? Director of Programs, Kadiatou Tubman (she/they) explained, "I believe deeply in the power of mentorship. ELLA Pitch Day was inspired by feedback from our Nashers and their desire for more opportunities to share their ideas and stories. At its core, this work is a reminder to young people that meaningful projects are built in community and with community– you don’t have to do it alone."

Kadiatou Tubman (she/they), Director of Programs and Charlie Ambrose (they/them), College Access and Career Success Manager guiding ELLAs and Volunteers in an introductions activity

The Process

Then, ELLA fellows paired off with volunteers and had 30 minutes to fine tune their project pitches to present to the larger group. Each pitch had them consider the following questions:

• Who are you?

• What is the project?

• Why this project?

• Who is it for?

• Lasting Impact?

Volunteers and ELLAs dived into the questions. Volunteer Ariana Joharjian, Manager of Brand Communications and Partnerships at Magnolia Bakery, said “I love seeing the passion that comes from the youth and I love seeing that passion being put into action. If we can help guide them and affirm that they can put that into practice, I'm happy to be a part of that.”

ELLAs and Volunteers working on their pitches

Nashers worked with Volunteers to put together a short slide pitch about their projects, tackling any questions and areas of possibility together before each ELLA took five minutes to present their pitches. They received live “glow and grow” feedback and took home written reflections, building confidence in sharing their projects in a supportive, affirming space.

Sadie Nash board member and volunteer Nicole Norton (she/her) spoke of the energy, “Being with everyone just makes me really appreciate everything that everyone at Sadie Nash does. It just excites me to just keep doing more. Everyone that is involved is just so smart and have so much potential and talent. It’s amazing to be able to see it first-hand.” 

Photos of ELLA Fellows and Volunteers in front of each pitch deck

ELLA fellows were also supported by returning Sadie Nash Alumni. Summer Institute 2020 Alum and volunteer Sadiqah Whittington (she/her) reflected on her own experience in Sadie Nash and said, “Being in Summer Institute was really beneficial to me, and the older I get, I really start to value organizations that have the willingness to reengage with alumni whether that’s through volunteer opportunities like this or simply checking in on us since I’ve been a part of the program.”

Fatima Kaleem (she/her), an ELLA Fellow and current sophomore at NYU Gallatin said, “This has been an amazing opportunity. Being able to work with people who are interested and working in the field now was a really good learning and growing experience.” 

Carrying the Work Forward

ELLA Faculty Member East Luna (she/her) thanks attendees at the end of the event

As ELLA Fellows continue developing their projects, Pitch Day marked a meaningful step in turning vision into action. With mentorship, feedback, and community behind them, Fellows are moving forward with greater clarity, confidence, and momentum as they build initiatives rooted in justice, care, and collective leadership.

Learn more about the ELLA Fellowship, volunteer with Sadie Nash, or invest in youth-led leadership that puts young people’s ideas into practice.