Project 555 Team
Program Director
Nitan Shanas
ns@project555.org <- Click here to email me
Nitan is a rising senior at Rutgers University - Camden majoring in Psychology, Urban Studies, and Economics and minoring in Ethics. He is deeply passionate about helping underserved and vulnerable populations; particularly persons experiencing homelessness. As a Bonner Foundation scholar, he has worked at a local homeless shelter and advocated on behalf of the city of Camden’s homeless population through various initiatives and awareness campaigns. This includes Rutgers Camden’s annual Hunger and Homelessness Week as well as his most recent campaign - the Rutgers Sleepout for Homelessness Awareness - which raised funds for a local homeless shelter. This summer, Nitan joined the Rutgers Advocacy Corps program and The Borgen Project internship where he met with congressional leaders and their staff to lobby for financial aid and global poverty reduction, respectively. Nitan is also an undergraduate associate at the Eagleton Institute of Politics, a Newman Civic Fellow alumnus, and a recipient of Phi Beta Kappa’s Key into Public Service scholarship. After graduation, he plans to pursue a Master's in Public Administration with the eventual goal of joining an agency addressing homelessness.
Hobbies & Interests: World travel, weightlifting, watching news, reading and volunteering.
Why did you join Project 555: “I was always interested in politics and political engagement on a personal level but had never before considered helping others engage in it too. This changed after meeting other inspiring students who reminded me that voting affects any and all of my passion areas and that helping to uplift the voices of others is a really effective avenue with which to enact positive change. Austin introduced me to the world of voting engagement, nonpartisanship, and more so I am thrilled to be working with him and the rest of the team on this initiative!”
Education Director
Aliyah Jones
aj@project555.org <- Click here to email me
Aliyah is a double-major in Psychology and Social Work at Rutgers University - Camden. She is passionate about children, advocating for their rights and providing equal access to opportunities, specifically for those from underserved communities. During the school year, Aliyah teaches preschool children through the Jumpstart program. As a volunteer at the Rutgers Youth Success Center, she organizes direct and educational programming to court-involved youth while serving as their mentor. Through these leadership opportunities, she dedicates the majority of her time to work with her passion groups. In addition to her civic engagement in the city of Camden, Aliyah is a Christian who believes in the power of bringing light into other’s lives.
Hobbies & Interests: Ziplining, reading, listening to music, sightseeing and volunteering.
Why did you join Project 555: “I knew that voting was important, but I never understood why. While I do read and watch videos to inform myself on important topics, I rather immerse myself to gain fuller understanding. The opportunity at Project 555 was the perfect chance for me to truly understand the importance of voting while also stepping outside of my comfort zone.”
Organizing Director
Tania Martinez
tm@project555.org <- Click here to email me
Tania is a third-year, honors college student at Rutgers University - Camden majoring in political science and philosophy with a minor in Spanish. Since the age of 15, she has been an advocate for immigrant rights. This summer, she interned at New American Leaders - an organization dedicated to supporting and training first, second, and third generation community leaders to run for office. She has also previously interned at Free Migration Project - an immigration law firm in Philadelphia that works at the intersection of law and advocacy through working on individual cases, supporting families in sanctuary, and vying to shut down family detention facilities in Pennsylvania. On campus, Tania began her own podcast series, titled “Voices of Immigration”, which focuses on the power of storytelling to connect immigration policies with immigrants affected by such legislation. She is also the vice president of the Rutgers-Camden chapter of Define American through which she raises awareness about immigration issues and the daily struggles faced by immigrant families. Upon graduation, Tania aspires to attend law school and eventually become an immigration lawyer, working both on individual cases and immigration advocacy.
Hobbies & Interests: Guitar playing, writing, reading, hiking, and painting.
Why did you join Project 555: “I am a strong believer of amplifying and uplifting the voices of those who get pushed down in society. Young people oftentimes don’t realize the amount of power they really hold as they transition into adults that have a unique and intelligent perspective. With this project, I hope to ignite in high school students and young people that realization of power within themselves.”
Special Events Coordinator
Sydney Johnson
sj@project555.org <- Click here to email me
Sydney is a third year student at Rutgers University-Camden majoring in theatre and history. Sydney has always largely cared about those placed in destitute conditions and has made it a goal to help anyone she possibly can. Her political career began when she joined NJ’s largest BLM Coalition and actively began advocating for her beliefs and helped run several successful peaceful protests. Thanks to much encouragement from her peers, she plans to run for her town’s Board of Education to further her mission of equality and diversity, starting in schools. On campus, Sydney has actively been a leader in Student Government, Art Student League, and Writer’s League and has actively participated in many theatrical productions to satisfy her love of art. After graduation, Sydney hopes to go onto law school and eventually become a politician and/or activist.
Hobbies & Interests: Hiking, art (of all kinds), reading, writing, thrifting, and baking.
Why did you join Project 555: “I believe the way to make impactful change is to impact the youth. The children of today are our future, and so they should be educated and encouraged to vote. Being a student myself, I know there is a lot of resentment about voting so my goal is to try to remedy that.”
Youth Civic Engagement Coordinator
Austin Ginsberg
ag@project555.org <- Click here to email me
Austin is a rising senior at Rutgers University - Camden majoring in Theater Arts and minoring in political science. As a freshman, he quickly assumed the chair role of the Rutgers - Camden chapter of NJPIRG where he worked to increase campus-wide awareness on a variety of social issues. In this role, he also oversaw his chapter’s New Voter’s Project which sought to increase voter participation at the high school and collegiate levels. Academically, Austin has been awarded with inductions into the political science honors society (Pi Sigma Alpha) and the leadership honors society (Omicron Delta Kappa). Austin is excited to bring his creative intuition and experience to the Project 555 team. He is the current costume designer and wardrobe supervisor for all theatrical productions on campus; he is also the president of the Art Students League and has worked with a variety of local performance/production companies such as Opera Philadelphia and the Kimmel Center. After graduating, Austin hopes to attend a theatrical apprenticeship and move on to an MFA program in Costume Design.
Hobbies & Interests: Hiking, running, thrift shopping, and scriptwriting.
Why did you join Project 555: “Voting has always been an important topic to me. One of my favorite parts of voter education efforts has been talking to and registering high-schoolers, so Project 555 was a perfect fit.”
Public Relations Representative
Alexandria Figueroa
af@project555.org <- Click here to email me
Alex is a rising senior at Rutgers University–Camden, majoring in English and minoring in Psychology and Film. She is a part of Civic Scholars and Honors College and loves the aspect of collaborating with so many different people to address myriad social issues. Her specific passion lies in working with young people and children and she has carried that passion into volunteering with the Housing Authority of the City of Camden’s After-School Program as well as the Tenth Presbryterian Church’s King’s Kids Summer Camp. Through these experiences, she has had the privilege to work with children in urban cities and low-income homes, uplifting them and helping them find their voice. As a Christian, Alexandria’s top priority is showing love and understanding to others no matter their background. Her belief is that everyone deserves justice and to be treated with equality. Her plan after graduation is to receive a Masters in Teaching and become an elementary school teacher.
Hobbies & Interests: Cooking, drawing, finding new music (currently taking recommendations 😊), and photography.
Why did you join Project 555: “From my own experience, especially recently, I have seen how one person's voice can make a change. Growing up I was skeptical of how my vote or opinion would matter in our country, but now know that it is so important for young people to use their voice to fight for what they believe in. Real change can happen if everyone speaks out.”
