Meet the 2017 Camelback Finalists

Over the past three months, the Camelback team had to distill a record number of 181 applications for our 2017 Fellowship to the 34 social impact ventures listed below. Over the next few weeks, with the help of some of our friends and advisors, we'll be interviewing to select only a third of these organizations. This final stage is always the toughest as all of these ventures are well-deserving of support. It has been both a humbling experience and our pleasure to get to know all of our applicants and the important work that they are doing across the country to improve their communities. We put together this closer look so that way you may get to know and celebrate our Finalists as we have; read below for a quote from each Finalist and for more information about each venture's work. Please do not hesitate to reach out and support them; they are all truly inspiring individuals. Our team is looking forward to the opportunity to work with so many exceptional entrepreneurs; happy new year to all!
- Jacob Pouncey, Manager of Operations & Strategy

Non-Profits | S chools | F or-Profits & Hybrids

Non-Profit Finalists

Use the arrows in the top right corner of the gallery to scroll through the Finalist cards and read more about each organization. Finalists are listed alphabetically by organization name.

21 Progress

MOZART: "I'm excited about the opportunity to potentially learn from education innovators and grateful for how much the Camelback process has taught us about ourselves already."

About 21 Progress
21 Progress provides programs that enhance leadership development among the hard working people of Washington, their families, and communities through popular education, civic engagement, and arts & culture.

Adventure Girlz

TRACIE: "I’m extremely excited about expanding Adventure Girlz to serve 500 Black girls in low-income communities and underperforming middle schools across New York, North Carolina, and South Carolina. More importantly, I'm excited for the many adventures the Camelback Fellowship would allow us to extend to Black girls engaged in our program; they are the reason we do this work!"

About Adventure Girlz
Adventure Girlz seeks to stop the pipeline by reimagining leadership programs that empower Black girls. Our culturally responsive program prioritizes educational attainment for Black girls in grades 6-8 with an academic year-long program at our sites in New York and South Carolina that culminate in a week-long, overnight summer camp.

Beloved Community

RHONDA: "I'm elated! I've navigated start-up on my own before, but being a Camelback Fellow means having a community of practice. Beloved Community will pilot its first programs in 2017 and early feedback from Camelback will help us further refine the model before launching."

About Beloved Community
We employ three strategies to ensure shared regional goals for economic growth, sustainability, and equitable population distribution that result from diverse schools, diverse communities. We lead regional coalitions of public education, housing, corporate, government and community leaders.

Bridging Education & Art Together (BEAT)

JAMES: "No idea is powerful until it is shared, and I am incredibly excited about the possibility of sharing and developing our venture with the Camelback community of coaches, consultants, and co-creators. Partnerships and collaborations are critical to the growth and elevation of our idea and organization, and to be in the third round of consideration for the Fellowship is at the same time humbling and thrilling. I look forward to the opportunity of building with the Camelback community, and ultimately, impacting the millions of young people in need to speech therapy worldwide."

About BEAT
The Beat Rhymers Curriculum is a comprehensive 25-lesson curriculum designed to use MC/rapping, poetry, songwriting, and performance as tools for self-expression and community building.

Building Opportunities & Opening Minds (BOOM)

Jamie: "We're entering into a new chapter in our nation and have some serious work ahead of us in 2017. It's incredibly inspiring to witness the message that Camelback Ventures is sending to the world by supporting the awesome, dynamic and necessary work being led by the amazing finalists in this group: women and people of color changing the game! To spend my days working for the freedoms of the coming generations is already a privilege, so to be a Camelback Finalist is a true honor. Let's make our ancestors proud!"

About BOOM
BOOM connects Black-African students (ages 12-19) to the extensive history and heritage of African people, violently forbidden for enslaved Africans and their descendants.

How Our Lives Link Altogether!

ANDREW: "Healing is an intentional practice of political resistance against the on going onslaught of generationally inherited structural violence and secondly, to embrace and develop indigenous and grassroots traditions and practices of socio-psycho-spiritual healing to recover from the impacts historical trauma caused by chattel slavery and its multiplying legacies."

ABOUT H.O.L.L.A
We develop grassroots and culturally relevant indigenous practices and workshops for working through and transforming trauma in the lives and families of youth of color. We provide/offer/engage youth with the political history and analysis of systems of oppression in regards to their personally and community experiences.

InterAction

DEANDRA: I am beyond excited and humbled to be considered a finalist for the 2017 Camelback Fellowship! The opportunity to join an ecosystem of passionate women and entrepreneurs of color shows me what is possible and that the work we are doing with InterAction is exactly where we need to be. In 2017 we're looking forward to delving full force into our work by creating more spaces for the stories that need to be heard locally and ultimately channeling those stories to social change through new partnerships.

About InterAction
We offer strategic processes to build and sustain diversity and inclusion on college campuses and in communities through storytelling and the arts. Through our workshops and programs we facilitate the process of uncovering marginalized student voices and channeling them into strategies for building a better society. We strongly believe in the power of art and storytelling to bring communities together and break down barriers and structures of injustice.

Leap Year

AMBER: "I am incredibly excited and humbled that Leap Year has been selected as a Camelback Ventures Fellowship Finalist! When I received the notice, I went through the list of all the finalists and am truly inspired by their work. As we enter the New Year, I am excited about Leap Year's plans to expand our reach and impact helping first generation students get into and succeed in college, and am also excited and appreciative of the opportunity to potentially be a part of this amazing community. I am honored to be a finalist!"

About Leap Year
Leap Year’s mission is to prepare talented students to reach their academic and leadership potential by attending college and breaking the cycle of poverty. We accomplish this mission by recruiting low income high school graduates for a paid, service learning gap year to prepare them to attend and thrive in college.

MindRight

ASHLEY: "I'm feeling incredibly humbled to be included in this group of inspiring social entrepreneurs. As the New Year approaches, we're excited to work alongside other Camelback finalists to address issues of educational equity and level the playing field for every student."

About MindRight
Our texting service provides daily, personalized psychoeducation that helps youth develop positive coping strategies to manage stress. Through our service, we help schools better identify students in need of in-person escalated services. We provide real-time data on student emotional wellness to promote healthy learning environments.

P.S. 305

YANNELL: "Across the country, leaders are pushing on the status quo, and I am grateful for Camelback for supporting this great work in a real way. I hope to grow and push alongside other entrepreneurs and accelerate our learnings toward the benefit of our communities. 2017 promises to be an impactful and hopeful year."

About P.S. 305
P.S. 305 is a non-profit project that strives to be the driving force for educational excellence in Miami. Students, parents, teachers, and community members are informed about the performance of schools and are actively working to improve academic outcomes through advocacy at all levels of the education system.

Self-eSTEM

ADAMAKA: "I’m truly honored that we have been selected to the final round. I’m extremely excited for the opportunity to tap into resources for capacity building, for operational support and access to a community of practice to accelerate our growth. The Camelback Fellowship will serve as the catalyst to continue the momentum of our team. I know our organization started from nothing, moved from nothing to something, and now we are heading towards something GREAT!"

About Self-eSTEM
Self-eSTEM is a nonprofit organization that promotes science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM) educational and career opportunities for young girls and women from underrepresented communities. Our program encompasses three strategic pillars: a one-week summer camp, a networking program, and an internship placement and career services program.

Square Root Academy

THEODORE: "Square Root Academy is incredibly excited about the possibility of partnering with Camelback Ventures as a fellow. By joining Camelback's social innovation ecosystem, we look forward to leveraging the knowledge and expertise of our peers and advisers, allowing us to continue engineering creativity one student at at a time."

About Square Root Academy
Square Root Academy is a nonprofit organization dedicated to exposing Sacramento youth to the fundamentals of S.T.E.M. while promoting collaborative learning, innovation and academic excellence.

Story Works Alaska

REGAN: "I am honored to have made it to this stage and I am thankful for the opportunity to learn about the inspiring work of other applicants and past fellows. I am also grateful that the Camelback application has (gently) pushed Story Works to think and communicate using the business sides of our nonprofit brains. It's been a productive and fun process. What I'm most excited about for 2017: My new little nephew who will be arriving soon!"

About Story Works Alaska
Our high school storytelling workshops bring volunteer storytellers and story coaches into schools to encourage and support student storytellers. The stories that emerge offer opportunities for learning and connection: for peers, for community members, and for the individuals who tell them.

Student Dream

NENA: "2016 was a huge year of learning for me. I'm excited to apply that towards helping more a thousand students turn their dreams into companies."

About Student Dream
We run an accelerator that trains collegiate students of color to launch startups by connecting them to the best knowledge, network and capital sources. This takes place during our three main programs - boss membership, nextUP founders, and Inheritance accelerator.

TalkingPoints

HEEJAE: "Super excited to have the opportunity to get to know and be part of an awesome cohort who support each other, share knowledge and most importantly keep each other going towards the same goal of pushing forward educational equality for all : )"

About TalkingPoints
TalkingPoints provides a multilingual texting platform that teachers and schools use to communicate with families via text messages and in their home languages for home-school connection. Teachers use an application to send/receive messages (as if it's an email inbox), while families receive text messages in English and in their own languages and can reply in their own languages.

The Fellowship for Black Male Educators

VINCENT: "I am happy for the opportunity to bring a venture to the table that I believe in. I hope to grow this vision with Camelback to address a social justice issue in U.S. education with diversity, equity and access. We have a lot of work to do when it comes to the Black male experience (both educators and students) and our broader positive impact on all students and school communities. Let's network and build this important work along side our boys and young men in schools!"

About The Fellowship for Black Male Educators
The Fellowship is a professional membership and activist organization dedicated to advancing the development, recruitment and retention of Black male educators in Philadelphia’s public schools. Our mission is to triple the number of highly effective Black male educators in Philadelphia public schools to 1,000 by 2025 by ensuring a sustainable school-to-career pathway for them.

ThinkLexic

JOHN: "I am humbled and honored to know that ThinkLexic has reached the final stage of consideration for the Camelback Fellowship. This is the kind of news that reinvigorates our work and dedication. We wish all our fellow organizations a great year of impact in 2017."

About ThinkLexic
ThinkLexic aims to reimagine education for dyslexic students through key policy efforts, educator and administrator workshops, and programs for students.

TrainingGrounds

MELANIE: "I am very excited that TrainingGrounds is a finalist in the 2017 Camelback application process! TrainingGrounds has grown so much in such a short time and we are looking forward to 2017 to conduct our first pilots, refine our program offerings, and grow the company into a stable fixture in the New Orleans Early Childhood landscape. Camelback will be an amazing support as we continue to build our infrastructure to assist families, educators, and communities in strengthening the foundation on which children can succeed."

About TrainingGrounds
TrainingGrounds is a non-profit organization that provides evidence informed programming with a focus on age appropriate developmental practices. We assist families and professionals throughout the greater New Orleans area with understanding the importance of how rich learning experiences and positive adult-child interactions in the first five years of life contribute to later success and overall child well-being.

WeThrive

DAQUAN: "We're excited to take the next step in our Camelback process as a Finalist. We have some big plans in store and we'll be laser focused on execution and follow-through."

About WeThrive
WeThrive aims to provide low-income, under-resourced youth with knowledge, skills, attitudes, and beliefs that will empower them to overcome the achievement and opportunity gap and achieve their personal definitions of success and, ultimately, social mobility. WeThrive is a program in which undergraduate university students lead youth from under-resourced communities in the creation of a business venture, mentoring them and teaching them critical life skills along the way.

SCHOOL FINALISTS

Use the arrows in the top right corner of the gallery to scroll through the Finalist cards and read more about each organization. Finalists are listed alphabetically by organization name.

Achievers Academy

EFE: "For 8 years, Osen and I have worked to find educational solutions to help disadvantaged students shape their own futures. We feel lucky that we've gotten this far in Camelback’s process, and view this as validation that Achievers Academy is on the right track! We are nervous about the magnitude of the work that lies before us, yet excited about the chance to spearhead that work with the support of this community. More than anything, we are thrilled that students and families in New Brunswick will finally have the chance to receive support to and through college when Achievers Academy opens its doors!"

About Achievers Academy
This will be the only STEM, rigorous, college prep secondary school (5-12 grade) that teaches to urban minorities in Elizabeth and Linden.

Crete Academy

HATTIE: "I am humbled and honored to be considered a finalist of Camelback Ventures. If selected to a part of the 2017 cohort, I am most excited about meeting other fellows and social entrepreneurs who are making a difference for others. I know that this opportunity will propel my school forward in a way that I could not in my own effort. This is an exciting time and I congratulate each one who is standing with me!"

About Crete Academy
Crete aims to provide a high-quality college preparatory education, while simultaneously manifesting the expectation of not only attending college, but graduating and pursuing dreams after earning the degree. The vision for the school is not only to help low-income or homeless students but also their families.

HackSchool

WISDOM: "I am excited to be a step closer to building community with other entrepreneurs of color. There is nothing more inspiring to me than seeing members of marginalized/oppressed groups think for themselves and courageously pursue their own liberation."

About HackSchool
HackSchool is developing a center-based high school model in which time and attention are separated by social issue rather than by traditional subjects. For example, students will not spend an hour each day in classes like mathematics, literacy, science, etc... Rather, students might rotate and “live” in different focuses such as the Technology and Entrepreneurship Center or the Wilderness Survival and Environmental Sustainability Center.

Leep Academies of Texas

JOSÉ: ""Podrán cortar todas las flores, pero no podrán detener la primavera." ("You can cut all the flowers, but you cannot keep spring from coming.") - Pablo Neruda.
I feel the regenerative power of what a Camelback fellowship can symbolize for our work in the community. In 2017, we will thrive; build our model, engage the community and soon open the doors to a high quality dual language model-- allow flowers to grow and spring to come. LEEP Academies--presente!"

About LEEP Academies
LEEP Academies of Texas is a community-based, small cluster of affiliated K-8, dual-language schools. Our plan of action seeks to increase the number of high performing educational options for the inner city.

The Nia Academy

AERAN: "Successful social impact is a complex endeavor that I sincerely believe cannot be accomplished in isolation. I am honored to be a Camelback finalist and for the opportunity to forge connections with other visionaries and creatives in order to spark and sustain meaningful social change. Camelback is a key milestone towards the vision of starting a school that will propel girls of color into positions of leadership and purpose. I envision 2017 as an amazing chance to both grow and give."

About The Nia Academy
The NIA Academy is a 5-day a week public boarding school for 9-12th grade girls in the foster care system. Partnering with HBCUs and other private and public institutions, NIA works to create supportive academic and residential spaces for girls in the foster care system to grow and thrive.

For-Profit and Hybrid FINALISTS

Use the arrows in the top right corner of the gallery to scroll through the Finalist cards and read more about each organization. Finalists are listed alphabetically by organization name.

2017 Finalists - For-Profit

Anyone's Learning Experience (ALEX)

SERGIO: "The Anyone's Learning Experience (ALEX) Team is excited and humbled to be a finalist for Camelback Ventures! We are passionate about increasing access to higher education as a means of creating pathways our of poverty. Crossing our fingers, to potentially join a like-minded game changing community of color to help each other persist and excel through this tough start-up journey!"

About ALEX
ALEX is an online marketplace where people can advance their careers by taking individual courses from across universities. In a world where we can place people onto empty seats in cars and empty beds in houses, ALEX places people onto empty seats in classrooms.

ClassTracks

LIDA: "2016 was a big year for ClassTracks: a pivot, our official product launch, growing our team and our first sales. 2017 will be all about execution and momentum so we can serve more teachers to empower more students. I'm most excited about working with our newest team members - who have already risen to every challenge we've thrown at them - to tackle even bigger goals this year!"

About ClassTracks
ClassTracks is a web-based content creation and assessment platform whose purpose is to help English Language Learners bridge the 20,000 word gap more quickly. ClassTracks allows teachers to assign custom vocabulary lessons to meet their students' unique needs and then guides students to complete each lesson through a highly-effective, game-like interface.

Fletch

MARQUETT: "I still think of myself as a teacher, which is how I started my career. Young people need examples. Fletch, a technology company, lead by an African American, CEO is now backed by a venture capital firm created by an African American man. This matters."

About Fletch
Fletch is an app that helps colleges increase utilization, efficiency and effectiveness of the support services that drive student retention and graduation.

Gameheads

DAMON: "We have incredible momentum behind our program. I am very excited to see what we can continue to build on the organizational pillars we built in 2016. I'm enjoying a nice holiday break but I'm chomping at the bit to get back to work."

About Gameheads
Gameheads is a youth program at United Roots’ Youth Impact Hub whose goal is to prepare low income youth and youth of color (ages 15-24) for a career in the tech and video game industry. The intention of the Gameheads program is to address the knowledge divide but to do so in a way that is focused on one arm of the tech field: electronic entertainment. Participants of Gameheads will learn how to create, code and design games, building skills across a variety of disciplines from visual art, creative writing, design, programming, sound design, animation, game theory and history.

INrichME

SHAMBREKIÁ: "Having an organization as highly respected as Camelback Ventures validate my work is more than an honor. I have never been more excited about bringing an idea to life than I have about INRICHME and I am THRILLED to have made it this far in the process. The levels of success for users are boundless with my application and the hope for achieving what may have seemed impossible would only be a few clicks away. I am humbled to present my dream to people who value the same fundamental beliefs I do. Simply put, I consider it a blessing and I look forward to have the chance to grow my idea into its full potential utilizing the guidance and leadership skills I would receive by being a named Camelback Fellow. Many Thanks!"

About INrichME
The mission of INrichME is to empower students to achieve academic advancement through boundless interaction while creating a network of respectable, confident leaders. We plan to connect current students with their peers by assisting them in locating other classmates and colleagues on their respected campuses who are able to offer tutoring services, study groups and even mentor opportunities to those individuals who truly need them.

Literator

XIAOHOA: "I feel fortunate to pursue my passion; to build a technology startup focused on increasing equity in education. I am honored to be included as a finalist for Camelback Ventures because it means I have the support of a community that recognizes the value of supporting diverse leaders to drive innovation. This year, I’m most excited to do the work necessary to truly make the dream of serving every single student a reality."

About Literator
Literator frees schools from relying on infrequent testing data by providing actionable insights through daily observations. We replace paper tools with a mobile app that guides teachers through collecting individual student data. We also provide schools with a dashboard that alerts administrators to problem areas throughout their organization.

Mind Hatchery

DEENA: "I am so excited to be a finalist for the CamelBack Fellowship! The opportunity to become a CamelBack Fellow and work with and learn from other like-minded entrepreneurs would forever change the trajectory of our business. While we had a successful Kickstarter campaign and launch of the DreamKeepers Box in 2016, we still have a long way to go. In 2017, we will focus on scaling our business and establishing strategic partnerships to bring our product to more children and families."

About Mind Hatchery
Mind Hatchery produces the DreamKeepers Box, a monthly subscription box curated for children age 8-12. Each box allows children to explore a wide-variety of science, technology, engineering, arts and math (STEAM) careers and learn about African American heroes in the focus industry.

Peer Connect

TYLER: "I'm feeling great! I'm most excited about building the Peer Connect brand and providing quality training services to schools interested in shifting culture. It is a great feeling to build capacity within all stakeholders so that they can empower themselves to effect change."

About Peer Connect
We train both youth and adult stakeholders to build, engage in and sustain community relationships, restorative practices and youth voice.

WeirdEnough Productions

TONY: "I feel humbled and fortunate to be considered for the Camelback Ventures Fellowship. I'm excited to share my passion for media literacy and storytelling with the Camelback team. In 2017, I'm most excited about empowering students around the country with the tools needed to use media for social change."

About WeirdEnough Productions
WeirdEnough Productions is a multimedia production company specifically dedicated to creating positive media images of people of color. We create original content that combats media stereotypes and we deliver information about media literacy to the communities that need it most.

WordsLiive

SAGE: There's a phrase from my artists friends that goes, 'All we ever needed was a stage'! As an entrepreneur of color, real mentorship, skill building, and capital is that stage. I'm exuberant that 2017 will be the year we get the platform we need to really scale to our potential!

About Words Liive
Words Liive believes our students are effectively communicating sophisticated themes, ideas, and thoughts through multiple formats everyday. Words Liive provides new approaches to literacy using contemporary languages such as the lyrics of urban music and code/computer programming languages.

perspectivesCamelback VenturesJanuary 5, 2017