MEET THE TEAM
Thank you to everyone that made the block party a success
AVERY HAMILL, SDA PHILLY
Avery is a high school student at AIM, a school for children with language-based disabilities. He has co-founded his school's chapter of SDA and the Philly Chapter. Avery also focused on using theater and performance arts for social justice. He had a background in running large scale fundraising events and helping to found his school's service club. Running service events for around 15 people. During COVID he pulled together a weekly speaker series for his school's service club connecting students with service opportunities while at home. You can connect with him on Instagram @avery_hamill or his website https://averyhamill.weebly.com/
LISA CHIN MOLLICA, VOTE IN OR OUT
The app is the brainchild of Lisa Chin Mollica, a 40-year-old Asian-American UX designer, with over 20 years of experience in product design and growing startups, who is currently the Head of Product Design directly under Arianna Huffington at Thrive Global. She is a mother of two, is married to a firefighter serving as a Lieutenant in the FDNY and resides in Brooklyn, N.Y.She feels there has been a degradation in our political discourse due to social media as it currently exists and decided to do something about it with her creation.
JULIA FUSCO-LUBEROFF, VOTE IN OR OUT
Education Science teacher and co-founder and President of Enhanced Events. Julia has taught in the NYC public school system for 17 years and has developed strong relationships with youth organizations and students across the country. Her mission at Vote In or Out is to amplify the outraged voices of the young to effect real change for their future. She has extensive experience in motivating and facilitating large groups of young people to take action on the issues that affect them. Julia wants to use her background in public speaking, performance, science and political comedy to strengthen the knowledge and communication skills of our young people. Julia deeply believes that this app can passionately launch their ambition onto this platform and out into the world.
JANI RAD, JRPW
Niranjani Radhakrishnan (or "Jani Rad") is originally from Knoxville, TN but has called many places 'home' over the years, including Chapel Hill, NC and Washington DC. She currently lives, works, and plays in Memphis, TN. She has a Master’s in Public Health (MPH) and a Master’s in City and Regional Planning (MCRP) from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. Jani’s professional and academic background revolve around addressing health and social inequities through GIS mapping, data visualization, theatre arts, and storytelling. Jani is passionate about social justice and advocacy. She is most well-known for Co-chairing the 2017 Minority Health Conference. Two of her biggest accomplishments are 1) receiving the Kathryn J. Kerr Memorial Scholarship for 2016-2017 while at the UNC Gillings School of Global Public Health, an award that recognizes students who exhibit a strong sense of activism and commitment to community health; and 2) delivering a talk at TEDx Memphis in February 2020. She has been a facilitator-trainer-speaker since 2009. Jani has built her portfolio through her years working with interactive educational theatre groups, a university health and wellness center, career development departments, health equity focused non-profits, a social justice and human rights law firm, a training and education center for the federal government, and a health care system. Outside of work, you will probably find Jani in a dance studio, walking her dog along the river, hanging out at a sport event (Go Tar Heels!), watching standup comedy, and generally just enjoying the Memphis life!
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KAYLEIGH WOLFE, SDA PHILLY
Kayleigh is a rising high school senior in Collegeville, PA. She began volunteering with Students Demand Action during her freshman year of high school when she joined the text team. After some time she became a text team captain and continues that role to this day. In March, she wanted a meaningful way to spend her time during the Covid stay at home period, so she became a leader for the PA Virtual Field Office. She loves working with Students Demand Action and making connections through her volunteer work. Kayleigh has made friends from all across the country through Students Demand Action. Outside of Students Demand Action, she enjoys playing softball and basketball. She is so excited for the Philly Virtual Block Party and hopes everyone enjoys it!
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EVIE FIELD, SDA PHILLY
Hi, I’m Evie! I’m a pre-med sophomore at the University of Rochester, but I live here in Philly! I love to hang with friends, go on hikes with my dog, and dance!! I got involved with students demand action 4 years ago while I was in high school! I’m very passionate about gun safety and gun violence prevention!!
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MICHAEL COTEY, #ENOUGH PLAYS TO END GUN VIOLENCE
Michael is a Chicago-based, Milwaukee-bred theatre-maker. Michael is the creator and producer of #ENOUGH: Play to End Gun Violence (www.enoughplays.com), a theatre activism initiative that calls on young people to confront gun violence through playwriting, which resulted in 184 submissions its first year from young writers hailing from 72 schools in 22 states and 3 countries. As a director, Michael has directed at Illinois Shakespeare Festival, Milwaukee Chamber Theatre, Next Act, First Stage, Northwestern University, UW-Madison, University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee, Illinois Wesleyan University and Youngblood Theatre. Michael has also assisted at Goodman Theatre, Oregon Shakespeare Festival, Utah Shakespeare, Steppenwolf, and Milwaukee Rep, for prominent directors, like Tony Award-winners Mary Zimmerman and Robert Falls. Michael was also the Founding Artistic Director of Youngblood Theatre in Milwaukee from 2009-2013, providing professional opportunities to early-career emerging artists, introducing the works of provocative new playwrights, and staging theatre in raw found spaces that invoked Milwaukee’s storied industrial past. He's taught theatre at UW-Madison, Roosevelt University, Northwestern, and UW-Milwaukee. Michael graduated from UW-Milwaukee with a BFA in Acting and from Northwestern University with an MFA in Directing. In 2014 he was named UWM’s “Graduate of the Last Decade.” www.michaelcotey.com
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LEYNA HANAN, VOTE IN OR OUT
Leyna Hanan knows that successful students become successful adults. During her tenure as a New York City public school teacher, her most valuable teaching tool is encouraging the power of voice. This passion led her to embark on a journey with the Vote In Or Out team. She is currently the Director of Social Media and Youth Outreach for Vote In Or Out, a non-partisan grassroots platform designed to educate citizens and give the power back to the people. Leyna is also an activist, working to help uplift voices and ensure that everyone has a seat at the table. In 2020, she co-chaired Women’s March NYC Rise and Roar, striving to bring the divided city together to create transformative social change. Leyna believes in the power an individual holds, and she knows that Vote In Or Out has the power to transform political discourse and save our democracy.
GABRIELLE BROWN, SDA PHILLY
Gabrielle is rising junior at Drexel University, majoring in Architectural engineering. She first began volunteering for Student Demand Action three years ago during her senior of high school. She began to take a more of an active role as an SDA student leader in April of this year, in height of the state sanctioned stay-at-home order. Gabrielle feels passionate about Gun safety and voter registration among young people and communities of color. And, she hopes to dedicate her life and career to uplifting people within black and brown communities, whose voices and stories have historically been ignored.