Who We Are
We are a youth advocacy nonprofit founded and led entirely by college students. As students, we’ve seen firsthand how young people are excluded from the political conversation. To bridge that gap, we mobilize young people to achieve electoral and policy outcomes that will center youth perspectives and achieve long-term change.
Our Founding
The Young People’s Alliance was founded by Sam Hiner and Mick Tobin when they were high school students. They jumped into advocacy after coming up with state legislation to stop partisan power grabs. While they were able to contribute to advocacy on other issues, like ending child marriage and protecting teens on the road, their own legislative ideas were not taken seriously.
Sam and Mick realized the danger of this lack of youth power. With their perspectives not being seriously considered, issues affecting young people wouldn’t be solved in ways that actually solved the problems faced by young people. Since young people felt dismissed from the political process, more and more became disengaged from it, posing a risk to our democracy. To change this narrative, Sam and Mick started the Young People’s Alliance to give young people a real voice in the political process and to encourage long-lasting civic engagement.
Our Work
Our teams on Capitol Hill, in state legislatures, and across 9 college campuses work to empower young people in politics. We engage and mobilize students through voter registration and mobilization events, hosting community events to connect students to the political world, and advocating for youth issues on campus. We also build relations with legislators and other non-profits to include young people’s perspectives in the law-making process. Learn more about the impact we’ve had on college campuses through our Campus Organizing and at the state and federal capitols through our Advocacy.
Team
Sam Hiner
Executive Director & Co-Founder
Student at UNC Chapel Hill from Mooresville, NC
Ava Smithing
Advocacy & Community Director
Full-time employee from Nashville, TN
Alexandre Dray
Field Operations Director
Student at Duke University from Miami, FL
Mick Tobin
Operations Director & Co-Founder
Student at Duke University from Mooresville, NC
Elina Murarka
Communications Director
Student at Duke University from New Haven, CT
Noah Coffman
Research & Policy Director
Student at University of Notre Dame from Tulsa, OK
Brien Brennan
Development Director
Student at Duke University from Youngsville, NC
Colby Kelley
Compliance Director
Student at UNC-Chapel Hill from Mooresville, NC
Neil Sairam
Policy Advisor
Student at George Washington University from Washington, DC
Andrew Fingeret
Policy Advisor
Student at George Washington University from Pittsburgh, PA
Kennedy Smith
Campus Field Director
Student at East Carolina University from Raleigh, NC
Amarah Din
Campus Field Director
Student at Appalachian State University from Cary, NC
Briana Harmon
Campus Field Director
Student at Davidson College from Kamuela, Hawai'i
Maite McPherson
Campus Field Director
Student at Duke University from Marshall, MN
Emily Wilson
Campus Field Director
Student at North Carolina A&T State University from Detroit, Michigan
Drayton Coleman
Campus Field Director
Student at UNC-Greensboro from Durham, NC
