A WashU Brown School student has won funding to expand a youth civic engagement initiative aimed at increasing public understanding of policy issues and supporting emerging leaders.
Ella Dennis, who is pursuing a master’s degree in social work, was awarded an Innovation Grant through the WashU Skandalaris Center for Interdisciplinary Innovation and Entrepreneurship during the Spring 2026 Skandalaris Venture Competition (SVC) on April 15.
Dennis was named an Innovator Funding winner for her startup, the Alliance for Civic Engagement (ACE). The student-centered policy program provides hands-on mentorship and publication opportunities to young policy thinkers while producing accessible, nonpartisan policy briefs to cultivate a more informed public.
“Too often, policy conversations feel inaccessible to the very people most affected by them, including young people,” Dennis said. “ACE was really founded to help close that gap between people and policy by equipping young leaders to translate complex issues into clear, nonpartisan information that communities can actually use. Especially given the growing polarization and distrust in media today, ACE is fighting to amplify policy reporting that’s both trustworthy and easy to read.”
Her venture was one of 16 finalist teams selected from a competitive pool of 107 entries submitted by students and recent alumni.
“SVC is representative of what WashU does so well: activating student passion from a variety of disciplines,” said Adam Wilson, associate director of the Skandalaris Center. “What differentiates WashU is that our entrepreneurs hail from every discipline, every school, every walk of life; our diversity of thought is our superpower.”
Dennis received $2,000 to support the continued development of ACE, which focuses on expanding access to policy education and increasing civic participation. The organization offers pathway programs that equip undergraduate and graduate students, particularly those from underrepresented backgrounds, with skills, exposure and connections to lead policy conversations nationally and at home. Participants, known as ACE Policy Fellows, receive intensive training in policy analysis and nonpartisan brief writing. As part of the program, Fellows have the opportunity to publish briefs on undercover policy topics to ACE’s national audience of more than 500,000 readers.
“This funding will help us continue expanding opportunities for young people, particularly students whose communities are historically underrepresented in policy spaces, to hone their policy research skills and amplify their voices,” Dennis said. “Given today’s volatile funding environment for mission-driven organizations like ACE, we’re excited to have dipped our toes in the venture capital space, and see this win as one step down the path to long-term sustainability and growth.”
In addition to the grant, Dennis was recently selected as one of four young leaders to be interviewed by former President Barack Obama and comedian Stephen Colbert for a segment on The Late Show with Stephen Colbert highlighting the new Obama Presidential Center in Chicago. The segment aired May 5.