2026-2027 Youth Advisory Council

Author: Ikeia Miller | 5-min read | November 9, 2026

The Britebound Center for Career Navigation at JFF is excited to welcome our newest 2026-2027 Youth Advisory Council (YAC), a powerful group of young people selected through a highly competitive process. The council brings together fresh voices from across the country who are passionate about improving career exploration and education pathways for their peers.

They follow in the footsteps of last year’s cohort of young leaders who turned their lived experience into leadership and set a strong foundation for the work ahead. Members of the 2025-2026 cohort shared their insights on the supports, tools, and experiences young people need to navigate education and careers and brought youth voice into national conversations about policy, AI, and the future of work. We are proud to celebrate their leadership, curiosity, and commitment and are excited to see how this year’s YAC will continue to build on this foundation and provide their own voices and leadership to this work.

Ranging in age from 18 to 24, these council members represent a mix of young people from across the nation at various stages of their career navigation journey, from students to early-career professionals, each with a unique perspective to share. They will receive stipends for their work in this advisory role.

Read on to meet this year’s Youth Advisory Council members and hear, in their own words, their hopes for the future of young people in our country.

YAC members

Samarah Bentley

I’m Samarah Bentley, a geeky New Orleans-based advocate and artist with a passion for storytelling. I’m the creator of Often Reality, a community-driven initiative that addresses the intersectionality of diversity in media, literacy, and culture. I believe Gen Z is a resilient and creative force. We must be more represented in leadership spaces dedicated to improving quality of life and ensuring we not only survive but thrive throughout our lifetimes. This is why, within the next few years, I plan to publish my first book: a middle-grade novel that uses fantasy and sci-fi as a lens to explore identity and youth empowerment.

Kaiwan Bilal

My name is Kaiwan Bilal, and I am an 18-year-old physicist at the University of Michigan working toward developing a career in quantum molecular research. As I further my own career, I hope to open doors for students and young adults who have so much to offer but lack the resources and guidance to do so. Bringing this into my YRF position, I’m looking forward to making early-career resources more accessible to larger audiences during my time with the Britebound Center for Career Navigation.

Jonathan Blankenship

My name is Jonathan Blankenship, and I am an Honors student at the University of North Dakota working toward my Bachelor of Science in Aeronautics at the John D. Odegard School of Aerospace Sciences, double majoring in Commercial Aviation and Unmanned Aircraft Systems while minoring in Leadership, Entrepreneurship, and Communication. Serving as Student Body President at both my high school and university, I have represented the voices of more than 16,000 students, helping me grow in navigating competing perspectives and advocating for people with different backgrounds and priorities. My hope for the future of young people in our country is that a person’s background never dictates their economic potential or career success. I want to ensure that programs designed for young adults are built with our real lived experiences in mind. I am eager to collaborate with educators, employers, and policymakers to design equitable career solutions and advocate for my peers

Evelyn Christina Wiredu

My name is Evelyn Christina Wiredu, and I am a recent graduate of Georgetown University with a Bachelor’s degree in Foreign Service. I aspire to earn my PhD with a research focus in education, migration, and linguistics. I believe every young person should have access to guidance in the job search process, including where to look for opportunities, how to ask for support in making those opportunities possible, and how to present themselves well in applications or interviews. By providing young people with as many tools as possible, we can make more informed, confident decisions about our futures.

Ariagna Hernandez

My name is Ariagna Hernandez, and I am a fourth-year student at Brown University, majoring in Education Studies and Sociology. My passions range from public service—particularly in education, the Latinx community, and immigration—to making iced matcha lattes in my spare time. I hope for a future where young people, especially those from underrepresented communities, have the appropriate tools, resources, and support needed to navigate their careers with confidence and pursue opportunities they are passionate about.

Marissa Jones

My name is Marissa Jones, and I am a sophomore honors double major in international affairs and economics from Milwaukee, Wisconsin, currently attending Howard University. In my spare time, I enjoy writing and analyzing films. Through research and engagement, I am building my career in economic and foreign policy analysis. One hope I have for the future of young people in our country is equitable housing and education, with access to clean resources such as water and air. I am excited to serve as a youth research fellow and a member of the youth council because of the opportunity to make a real, tangible impact for those around me.

Dawn Meo

Hi! I’m Dawn Meo, a college student based in Northeast Philadelphia focused on the workforce economy, health care, and opportunity youth. Much of what drives my work comes from navigating systems that, in most cases, weren’t built with youth like me in mind, and I’m dedicated to trailblazing a path where tomorrow’s leaders don’t have to struggle to find the same opportunities, resources, and support that I had to find for myself. I’m super ecstatic to be on this council because I don’t want the next generation spending their time deciphering the same road I did, and I want to help leave a few more lights on for our future: the rising youth.

Autumn Reynolds

My name is Autumn Reynolds, and I currently work at CVS Health as a Senior Analyst in the Signify Client Success & Operations department. I’ve seen how much having the right guidance and opportunities early on can shape someone’s career, and I want more young people to have access to those same opportunities. I’m especially passionate about supporting first-generation students and those who may not have the resources or connections to get their foot in the door. I’m excited to be part of this council because I want to help make that process a little easier and help young people see what’s possible for themselves. Outside of work, I love to travel and experience new places and cultures.

Jude Tieken-Rullamas

Hello, my name is Jude Tieken-Rullamas. I am a double major in Education and Psychology at Arizona State University. I have had the fortune of working with many great educators to help co-design and co-teach student curriculum. Additionally, I am a part of several psychology labs here at ASU, working with participants and gaining experience in quantitative coding. I firmly believe that young people need a better community to network, grow, and understand the opportunities available to them. Too often, avenues of communication are limited, stifling the potential of young adults and instilling a feeling of helplessness—I want to work to change that. In my spare time, I tend to take walks at sunset. Here in Arizona, we have some of the most beautiful sunsets, and it’s nice to see the sky span such vivid reds, oranges, and purples. It’s something that always makes me awestruck.

Jason Vadnos

My name is Jason Vadnos, and I am a senior at Vanderbilt University studying Human & Organizational Development; Culture, Advocacy, & Leadership; and Business. As a member of this Youth Advisory Council, I hope to empower my peers to discover the educational and employment opportunities that enable them to pursue their passions, cultivate new skills, and make a positive impact on the world. In my free time, I enjoy hiking, reading sci-fi novels, and food blogging.

Ingrid Vargas

My name is Ingrid Fatima Vargas, and I am a first-generation Latina building a career in law and public policy. I’m a second-year student studying Political Science and Communications at Northeastern University with a concentration in Law and Public Policy. My path has taken me through legislative offices at the local, state, and Capitol level. My long-term goal is to earn my JD and build a legal career in public service to eventually work for the Legal Counsel. I believe young people are capable of shaping the systems meant to serve them, not just waiting to be shaped by them. I’m excited to serve on this council because I want to help build the kind of consistent, intentional access to career navigation that I had to piece together for myself. I’m always interested in connecting with others working in policy, government, and public service, especially those focused on expanding access and opportunities for first-generation and underrepresented students. In my free time, I enjoy baking, making lattes, and going shopping!

Asma

My name is Asma, and I am a cybersecurity student and early-career researcher interested in the ways technology, policy, and access shape people’s opportunities. My work has taken me across threat intelligence, research, and youth-focused programs, and I am especially interested in how young people learn to navigate careers that are becoming less linear and more difficult to decode. I hope the future of work gives young people more than access to opportunities; it should also give them the information, guidance, and confidence to understand which paths are available to them and how to move between them. I am excited to join the Youth Advisory Council because I want to help shape career-navigation systems that reflect how young people actually make decisions, rather than how institutions assume they do.

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