Catalyst for Change: Introducing our Community of Practice for ESEs Employing Opportunity Youth and Justice-Impacted Communities

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Redefine Alliance is proud to announce our Catalyst Cohort, a new national community of practice designed to strengthen employment social enterprises (ESEs) that are creating pathways to employment and economic power for Opportunity Youth and individuals with justice system experience.

Made possible through the support of the Annie E. Casey Foundation, the Catalyst Cohort brings together 20 leaders from 10 ESEs across the country to learn, experiment, and solve challenges together. The participating organizations are members of the Redefine Alliance Community and were selected based on their commitment to serving relevant communities and their experience with employee success practices.

*Catalyst Cohort members attended an in-person training in June 2026 in Chicago.*

The Catalyst Cohort program centers on Redefine’s economic power framework, which is a structured way to understand and expand the conditions that allow individuals to build wealth and exercise control over their lives. In the program, Catalyst Cohort members are working to bolster the impact of their employee success programs. Each organization has crafted an experiment tailored to the needs of the people they serve, with peer coaching from an experienced ESE leader. Through structured technical assistance, peer learning, and hands-on experimentation, participants are strengthening their organizations, building stronger pathways to quality jobs and economic mobility, and contributing to best practices that benefit the broader ESE field.

This community of practice officially launched during the June 2026 Redefine Alliance Community Retreat in Chicago and runs through September 2026.

The Annie E. Casey Foundation supported the design and development of the Catalyst Cohort and is learning alongside the cohort members to better understand the experiences of ESE leaders and the support that ESE participant workers need.

Organizations Participating in the 2026 Catalyst Cohort

This Catalyst Cohort includes leaders from the following employment social enterprises:

- Appetite for Change (Minneapolis, MN)
  - Bobby Lyons and Latasha Powell
- Binghampton Development Corporation (Memphis, TN)
  - Andy Kizzee and Antwoine Clark
- Deep Time (Asheville, NC)
  - Dustin Mailman and Gene Ettison
- Drive Change (Brooklyn, NY)
  - Kalilah Moon and Travis Sylvester
- Juma Ventures (San Francisco, CA)
  - Claire Wheeler and Donna Franklin
- Main Street Youth and Family Services (Stockton, CA)
  - Andrew Pineda and Ashley Mitchell
- Root NS (Salem, MA)
  - Derek Almeida and Nate Berkowitz
- Spir Candle Co. (Seattle, WA)
  - Nate Stone and Shane Schachere
- The UC Theatre (Berkeley, CA)
  - Marcello Magana and Victoria Staples
- Urban Alchemy (San Francisco, CA)
  - Alfredo Rodriguez and Joseph Calderon

“Too many young people face barriers that make it hard to get a foothold in the workforce and grow toward a well-paying career,” said Sara Cooper, a director at the Annie E. Casey Foundation’s Center for Economic Opportunity. “Through this cohort, we’re learning alongside employment social enterprises about what it takes to connect young people to quality jobs, particularly those who have experienced disconnection or involvement with the justice system. The Foundation hopes the practices and lessons from this work to reach beyond the cohort, so more young people can build skills, advance in their careers and reach lasting economic independence.”

As the cohort progresses, participants will continue testing new ideas, sharing lessons learned, and strengthening their capacity to create lasting economic opportunity for the people and communities they serve. Together, they are helping advance innovative practices that strengthen ESEs nationwide.