Antonio Arellano is a multi-media journalist and human rights advocate who has been nationally recognized as one of the most influential young Latino voices in the United States, by Hispanicize. Originally from Michoacán, Mexico he served as a social media correspondent for KTRK ABC13 in Houston, Texas prior to joining Jolt in September 2018

His social media accounts combined reach an estimated 100 thousand millennial voters. He uses his platforms to engage and empower the youth to fight for immigration reform, racial equality, LGBTQI issues, and civil rights. Antonio’s consistent innovation has garnished national attention, and he has been featured in national publications such as the Washington Post, Vice News, Huffpost and USA Today.

Brigid Hall is a leader in the civil rights movement who has dedicated her career to ensuring marginalized communities have a seat at the table in the decisions that impact their lives. She has helped take immigrant and racial justice organizations to scale in Texas, impacting the lives of millions of people across the state. Her niche is in the finance, fundraising, and operations of million-dollar entities. Brigid has worked at organizations in Texas, California, and Chile, and brings her unique leadership style wherever she goes.

In her role as operations and human resources director, Jackie will drive Jolt’s talent acquisition, training and development initiatives, and human resources responsibilities.

Jackie is a first generation college graduate. She attended the University of Houston Downtown where she obtained a B.S. in Criminal Justice and then obtained a M.A. in Criminology from the University of Houston Clear Lake.

Jackie is excited to be part of Jolt, an organization that empowers, equips, and mobilizes individuals to speak up not only for themselves but for those who are afraid to do so for fear of reprisal.

Maria is a proud Texas native, Chicana, and first-generation Mexican-American. She is the granddaughter of migrant farmworkers and daughter to immigrant mother from Monterrey, Mexico. Maria has been in the non-profit sector for 16 years working with underserved communities, single-parent households and at-risk youth to remove barriers while developing employment and educational opportunities. She is a proud mother of five and a hobby sugar artist/baker for local and national charities.

Through her personal experiences of the injustices facing the Latinx communities and political issues that were near and dear to her heart, she was drawn to become involved with Jolt. She wants to be a voice of empowerment and become a force for positive change in the Latinx community.  

As the Organizing Director, she hopes to encourage, educate and mobilize the Latinx community to use their voting power for positive change in addition to advocating for those who cannot vote.

Before joining Jolt, Pedro was most recently the Organizing Director for the Warren Campaign in Northern California. Across nine states, Pedro has spent several years directing organizers in building electoral and advocacy campaigns. Pedro joined Jolt because he believes in the organization’s vision that young Latinos in Texas are a political sleeping giant. His passion for empowering youth activists – especially in the Latinx community – brought him to Jolt.

Carmen Ayala serves as the Culture and Events Manager at Jolt. Prior to joining Jolt, she served as the Executive Director of the Dallas County Democratic Party. She is working to shift cultural tides by harnessing the power of Latino culture to create a new generation of civically engaged Latinos. She is a proud Mexican American with ties in Michoacan, Mexico. She graduated from El Centro College in Dallas and the Texas Women’s University in Denton.

Vanessa is responsible for establishing and supporting Jolt student chapters in North Texas. While attending Roosevelt University, she worked as a scholar/activist for the Mansfield Institute for Social Justice. Vanessa became interested in finding how Latinx students with disabilities where being directly affected in Chicagos’ public school system. Through her research and advocacy, Vanessa realized her desire to apply her education to empower her community in Texas.

Kelvin is a recent transplant to Texas; he previously resided in Wichita, KS where he graduated with a degree in Political Science at Wichita State University. Realizing the potential to civically engage the Latinx community in Texas, he was eager to make the move. Kelvin first began his involvement with Jolt in September of 2018 as a canvasser and then transitioned to become the Houston Organizer. Before working for Jolt, Kelvin participated in various city-wide organizing for immigrant’s rights and working to make his campus and hometown more welcoming to immigrants and the Latinx community. Most notably, in September of 2017 when the President announced the termination of the Obama-era DACA (Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals) program, Kelvin mobilized over 400 people at a rally in support of DACA recipients exactly one week later.

Nadia Tamez-Robledo is a native of San Benito in Texas’ Rio Grande Valley. She has a background in journalism and, prior to joining Jolt, worked as a reporter on U.S.-Mexico border in Brownsville and the Coastal Bend in Corpus Christi. Nadia strove to amplify the voices of immigrant and underserved communities through her work, which included reporting through a grant from the International Center for Journalists on the lives of American-raised youth in Mexico City. She also brings experience in nonprofit communication and initially became involved with Jolt as a volunteer in 2017. Nadia holds a degree in mass communication from the University of Texas-Pan American (now UT Rio Grande Valley).

Zoila Cabera serves as Logistics Coordinator at Jolt. Prior to joining Jolt, Zoila Worked at Job Corps as an Outreach Admission Counselor, and also worked as an HR Generalist. In December 2018, she graduated from San Jacinto College in Pasadena, Texas, with an associate’s degree in accounting. She was born from immigrant parents and is the first in her family to graduate from college. She is passionate about helping the Latino community specifically, empowering Hispanic women.

Gabrielle is a native Southeast Houstonian. She first fell in love with public service when she volunteered for the Obama ’08 campaign as a phone banker. While in high school, she lobbied for and won a larger selection of books on the Mexican-American history of Texas in her school’s library. Gabrielle graduated from Texas Tech University with a Bachelor of Political Science and the University of Texas at San Antonio with a Masters of Public Administration. Her experiences includes interning for Congressman Joaquin Castro and working for State Rep. Roland Gutierrez as a field organizer.

As Poder Quince Outreach Specialist, Keyli focuses on making connections with local Latinx businesses, Latinx influencers, and uplifting young Latinas who are preparing to be part of this culture-shifting campaign. Before joining Jolt, she helped Houstonians overcome day-to-day obstacles as an intern for District C with Mayor Pro-Tem Ellen Cohen. That experience inspired Keyli to help elevate her community, which spurred her volunteer efforts at nonprofits including Loaves and Fishes, the Houston Food Bank, and Jolt.

She is a senior at the University of Houston-Main Campus working towards obtaining a B.A. in Political Science and a minor in Law, Values and Policy. Keyli is also a proud dog mom of a fierce Chihuahua named Bambi.

Leslie Hernandez is a recent first-generation college graduate and a native to the East End community of Houston, TX. The lack of resources for and investment in Latinos in her community encouraged her to pursue a degree in sociology with a concentration in Latino and Mexican-American studies at THE Texas A&M University. During her time there, Leslie served as a leader for various diverse organizations, pushed for progressive legislation through Student Government, and advocated for the rights of organizations composed of minority students on campus. As census organizer, Leslie will engage and build relationships with individuals and marginalized populations who have previously been undercounted on the census to ensure they receive the resources they need.

Ashley Segura-Gonzalez is a native Texan born in San Antonio and raised in Houston. Her background is in content creation and social media strategizing. Prior to joining Jolt, she worked as a full-time influencer for her website New Mom in a New Era, where she was dedicated to creating a positive narrative around being young Latino parents through sharing stories about her family’s lifestyle. She also worked as a Public Relations Specialist for Big Oak Tree Media and is a former Intelligence Analyst for the Texas Army National Guard.

Elizabeth is responsible for supporting Jolt’s Executive Director and serving as a liaison to fellow staff members. Elizabeth is a first-generation Texas native with a vibrant Texas upbringing! She is a proud Houstonian and supporter of Latinx-centered engagement, sparked from her upbringing in a rural Texas town, that highlights the underserved Latinx community. She has applied and developed her knowledge in communications to provide the utmost support to Executive Director Antonio Arellano in the creation of organizational systems and daily support.