Meet the 7th annual Baltimore Corps Elevation Awards’ winners

For the past several years, the nonprofit Baltimore Corps has annually recognized a cohort of 10 local changemakers with grants of $10,000 as part of its Elevation Awards. This year, nine entrepreneurs, with missions ranging from youth enrichment to overdose initiatives, received these awards for the 7th iteration of the awards.

In the past, Baltimore Corps’ planning grants were one of the first initiatives to provide money to help B-360 founder Brittany Young make her efforts with STEM and dirtbikes a full-time concern.  Clymb, which made our 2021 RealLIST Startups list under the name Infinite Focus Schools, completed the Elevation Awards program in 2018 and has been on a seeming roll ever since; founder Ashley Williams was recently named a 2024 Roddenberry Fellow, a US-based fellowship given to leaders who use strategies to “safeguard human rights” with an aim at a just society.

According to Baltimore Corps’ website and LinkedIn, educator and community advocate LaVerne Sykes was named one of the initial Elevation awardees for 2023. That said, she was not among those to present their organizations and solutions during a hybrid showcase held in November.

Here are the 2023 awardees, with descriptions from Baltimore Corps:

• Brandon Clayton of Young Successful Leaders — “Impacts the lives of youth in Baltimore and transforms their communities by strengthening skills in financial wealth building and leadership.” 
• Christopher Flack of Baltimore City Architectural & Design Collaborative — “Trains, mentors, and leads underserved African American youth through the steps to become a certified Architect in the State of Maryland.” 
• Cari Holmes of Youth Literacy Through Technology — “As an educator and reading specialist, Cari focuses on integrating technology to address learning and literacy gaps in children.”
• Keith Holt of The Johnny Overdose Initiative — “Uses non-traditional education strategies to motivate and engage community members across Baltimore in addressing social determinants of substance abuse and saving lives.”
• Takia Ross of So You Want to Pitch — “As an entrepreneurial coach and professional make-up artist, Takia focuses on developing entrepreneurs’ pitch skills to grow their businesses.”
• Gilbryonna Shaw of Nu Momish — “Hosts monthly meetups for mothers that focus on mental and physical health, and overall wholeness. Also provides in-home support services for daily mothering tasks.”
• Sheba Sheikhai of Multidisciplinary Art Therapy For Healing Trauma — “With a background in art therapy, Sheba uses a multidisciplinary approach for those experiencing trauma, integrating the arts, mindfulness, and ecological consciousness”
• Jessica Smith of The Mental Health Emergency Fund — “Reduces financial barriers for community members struggling with their mental health and cannot afford therapy or related services.”
• Morgan Stokes of Sacred House — “Offers a variety of wellness classes and health services with expert instructors and coaches at a new studio aimed at bridging health gaps in West Baltimore.”

This editorial article is a part of Leadership Development Month of Technical.ly’s editorial calendar.