Welcoming the 2026-2027 Systems Change Fellowship Cohort

As we celebrate the connections made at Story of Us, we’re excited to introduce our 2026–27 Systems Change Fellows!

After reviewing applications from leaders doing extraordinary work across Los Angeles, we selected a cohort bringing lived experience and a shared commitment to creating meaningful systems change.

From September through May, these fellows will come together each month to learn,  and deepen their work alongside one another and the broader SJPLA community. They are tackling interconnected systemic issues through policy advocacy, narrative and culture shift, community organizing, and building power. 

• Sim-Marcel Bilal - Youth Climate Strike Los Angeles:

  Sim Bilal (he/him) has nearly a decade of experience building youth power through organizing, direct action, and community-owned climate infrastructure, helping win the phase-out of urban oil drilling in LA, training over 1,000 youth organizers, and building mutual aid networks that supported 400+ families during fires, heatwaves, and ICE raids. He believes that those closest to the problem are closest to the solution, and that the future is not something to wait for, but something to build.

• Vanesa Iniguez - T.R.U.S.T. South LA: 

  Vanesa Iniguez (she/her/ella) is the Director of Climate Initiatives at T.R.U.S.T. South LA, where she leads work at the intersection of climate resilience, disaster preparedness, clean mobility, and community power. Born and raised in South Los Angeles, Vanesa has built her career around addressing environmental inequities in the communities that shaped her. Her current work includes advancing a Community Resilience Center, strengthening neighborhood disaster preparedness, and helping carry forward the South LA Eco-Lab, a major place-based climate investment in South Los Angeles.

• De Anna Pittman - Young Women's Freedom Center

  De Anna (she/ her/ ella) is a mother, organizer, and lifelong student. Born and raised in Compton to a Mexican American mother and African American father, she witnessed inequality early through her family’s experiences with incarceration and her mother raising three children as a working single parent. As a young adult, De Anna learned from community organizers in Santa Cruz and Washington, D.C. fighting gentrification and displacement. She later returned home and co-founded the Compton Tenants Union, supporting working-class renters during the COVID-19 pandemic. After graduating from UCLA with a degree in African American Studies in 2021, De Anna joined the Young Women’s Freedom Center as a fellow. Since then, she has worked in coalitions advancing youth justice legislation, led support groups for pregnant and parenting youth, and supported young people in becoming advocates. De Anna is living proof of what is possible when young people are truly seen and invested in.

• Sheila Bates- Black Lives Matter Grassroots

  Sheila Bates (she/her) is a graduate of California State University, Long Beach, with a bachelor’s degree in both Child Development and Family Life Education and an associate’s degree in Sociology with an emphasis on race, class, and gender.

  Sheila Bates is the Policy Coordinator for Black Lives Matter Grassroots where they use policy as one tool to advance Black liberation. Sheila leads on federal policy and supports the chapters in their formation with their local work. She started as a volunteer organizer with Black Lives Matter- Los Angeles. Where she now serves in leadership engaging in policy work, organizing, direct action, supporting families, and healing justice.

• Shawn Morrissey-Union Station Homeless Services

  Shawn Morrissey (he/him) is Vice President of Advocacy & Community Engagement at Union Station Homeless Services, where he leads advocacy, community engagement, and systems change efforts to transform how communities respond to homelessness. Shawn has dedicated his career to advancing approaches grounded in lived expertise, belonging, and authentic community integration. As a person in long-term recovery with lived experience of homelessness, addiction, and trauma, he believes lasting change happens when people are recognized not only for their needs, but for their strengths, leadership, and capacity to contribute. 

• Savannah Bradley- A Resilient Tomorrow

  Savannah Bradley (she/ her) is the Executive Director and co-founder of A Resilient Tomorrow (ART), a disaster recovery and climate resilience nonprofit rooted in Altadena, CA. ART was born directly from the 2025 Eaton Fire; Savannah was displaced from her own community and began organizing distribution drives before the smoke cleared. What she witnessed in those early weeks of who could access aid and who could not, became the foundation of ART’s mission. ART works to close the gap between the systems that exist and the communities they fail to reach, operating at the intersection of community organizing, policy advocacy, and climate resilience. 

• Gente Organizada - Claudia Vanessa Rodriguez-Reyes

  Vanessa (She/ they) is the proud daughter and granddaughter of immigrants. The experiences of her family fostered in her a need to dedicate her life and career to fighting to dismantle all forms of systemic oppression. Her dedication to use her knowledge and voice to advocate for that change has led her to work for Gente Organizada (Gente) as the Manager of Operations. She uplifts Gente’s mission by managing the finances and operations of the organization, while also conducting research and writing reports to highlight our community's story. Outside of her career, Vanessa is passionate about taking care of her and others' wellbeing. She believes that, in order to make changes in the world, you have to start with yourself. Vanessa enjoys painting, sewing, singing, dancing, writing, being outside, staying active, and spending time with her loved ones.

• Project Optimism- Ishmael Pruitt

  Ishmael Pruitt (he/him/his) believes that meaningful social change begins with the education and empowerment of young people. He is a proud alumnus of Sacramento State University and Long Beach State, where he earned his Masters degree in Student Development. Ishmael has spent several years working in both community colleges and university settings, supporting historically underrepresented students. He now is the Co-founder and CEO of Project Optimism, a California based nonprofit that provides K- college mentorship programs and community engagement initiatives to support the development and wellbeing of youth. Known for his ability to blend humor, theory and cultural awareness, Ishmael has taken his message as a speaker to secondary schools, colleges and nonprofits across the county helping young people reimagine what is possible for their lives. Ishmael is a father, husband, proud member of Alpha Phi Alpha Fraternity Inc.

• Pilipino Workers Center- John Perales

  John (he/him) is the youngest of three siblings, a first-generation college graduate, and a Filipino immigrant who grew up in Taguig, Philippines, before moving to Los Angeles during the COVID-19 pandemic. A former educator and community organizer, he now leads the Caring Workforce Training Program at the Pilipino Workers Center. John creates accessible training, employment, and worker-ownership pathways for immigrant caregivers across Los Angeles County. He is committed to building a caregiving industry where workers are valued as leaders and can pursue dignified, family-sustaining careers.