New Beginnings at Leeway and Beyond

A lot of changes are happening at Leeway, but as Octavia Butler reminds us, "All that you touch – you change. All that you change – changes you. The only lasting truth – is change...” In these moments of change, we often hold a spectrum of emotions as we work through a process of releasing what we know, alongside the excitement of creating new beginnings. It is in that spirit we invite you to join us in saying…

Welcome! to Brittnie Knight, who will join the staff of Leeway as our new Communications Director in June. Brittnie (she/her) is a black/biracial arts administrator with over five years of experience working in communications and programs for large to small scale nonprofit organizations. Her passions lie in connecting and engaging people online and in-person. Coming to the Leeway Foundation from the John S. and James L. Knight Foundation Brittnie, has previously worked at a range of Philadelphia nonprofits including Indego Bikeshare, and the Greater Philadelphia Cultural Alliance. 

Best wishes! to Sara Zia Ebrahimi, Leeway’s Program Director since 2016, who will be leaving her position effective June 6th. During her time here, Sara Zia found exciting ways to embody Leeway’s mission through behind the scenes and public-facing efforts as a fierce ally of the community of artists and cultural producers the Foundation seeks to engage. See her message below.

“It is with mixed emotions that I am announcing my departure from Leeway as the Program Director. I have been honored and incredibly lucky over these past three years to connect with the visionary artists and organizations that make up Leeway’s community. I’ve been grateful for the opportunity to learn and grow with you all as we build cultural strategies for social change together. My last day at Leeway will be June 6th; I will be starting the following week as the new Development Manager of Working Films (working remotely from Philadelphia), supporting their distribution of documentary films as tools for building social change movements. I’m happy to share that Melissa Hamilton will be taking the helm as the Interim Program Director. Melissa brings a wealth of experience from her time at Leeway as the Program Assistant years ago as well as her work as the Community Engagement Director at CultureWorks. We’ll be working together to ensure a seamless transition of Leeway’s programs’ management! Thank you all for this time together, which I will cherish in my future adventures.”

Welcome back! to Melissa Hamilton who joined us as interim Program Director last week. Melissa is an arts administrator, educator, and creative who has been involved in Philadelphia arts and culture for over a decade. Committed to economic and racial justice, she is dedicated to leveraging her privilege to help artists not only survive, but thrive. 

Prior to returning to Leeway, Melissa worked in office, nonprofit, and educational environments – experiences which led her to create both long-standing and emerging connections with a variety of communities in the Delaware Valley region and beyond. A proud Philadelphia native and fat, queer writer and comic creator, she is thrilled to be back (home) at Leeway.