The 2018 CA Fellows

We are thrilled to announce our 2018 cohort of New America CA Fellows. This year’s fellows come from diverse regions and backgrounds, yet share a passion for improving the lives of people in their local communities. From economically empowering survivors of domestic violence to promoting community-centered redistricting reform, these visionary leaders are working to address important issues in California and beyond.

“We need to move from seeing public problems as unavoidable to seeing them as unacceptable,” shared Autumn McDonald, Director of New America CA. “And to change the narrative we need these new narrators.”

“Great leading edge civic innovation and social change continues to come out of California,” added Anne-Marie Slaughter, President and CEO of New America. “Our third cohort of California fellows is the embodiment of the renewal that is happening across this country.”

Of the almost 90 applications that were submitted, more than half were from women and people of color. The cohort will focus on the following issues: economic opportunity, education, tech for good, and civic engagement. Meet our 2018 CA Fellows:

Rey Faustino - One Degree - Revolutionizing, via tech, how low-income families access the social safety net

Fanna Gamal - East Bay Community Law Center - Protecting the education and due process rights of homeless students

Lili Gangas - Kapor Center - Creating/fostering an inclusive tech ecosystem and regional economic growth

Nicolas Heidorn - California Local Redistricting Project - Empowering local communities to create independent redistricting commissions

Sonya Passi - FreeFrom - Financially empowering survivors of domestic violence to provide safety and healing

Over the next year, New America CA will support these fellows by providing them with a public platform through media partnerships and live events, the opportunity to engage with our national network of policy experts, and a $30,000 stipend. Given the current state of policy and politics in California and nationally, we aim to inspire new forms of civic innovation and engagement by sharing and amplifying the stories of our CA Fellows.

New America CA is a civic nonprofit working to amplify the reach of California change agents whose innovations solve public problems in bold new ways.