Our Team | Next Ones Up

It starts with a vision...

Founded by Tucson local and Harvard student-athlete Evan Nelson in 2023, The Next Ones Up Initiative hopes to educate the youth and future leaders of Tucson and to help them realize their change-making potential by pairing fellows with mentors in their areas of interest and helping fellows shape a vision for their futures.

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Founder

Evan Nelson

My name is Evan Nelson. I'm a rising Junior at Harvard studying Sociology and I am a co-captain on our basketball team. Growing up in Tucson as a first-generation, low-income college student, I have an enormous sense of gratitude for the sacrifices my mentors and role models have made and for the countless doors they have opened for me. I now realize that I owe it to those figures to pay it forward by fostering the same relationships with the youth in my community. I look forward to putting my academic and professional work experiences together to help our fellows make a difference in our community.

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Director of Operations

Jake Herlihy

My name is Jake Herlihy. I am a rising Senior at Harvard studying Economics whose passion is set on public service. I grew up in a suburb outside of Boston, and I was fortunate to have had access to numerous supportive resources, from community basketball teams to after school programs. These activities filled my free time and provided me with life-changing mentors and incredible learning experiences. Since then, I have spent much of my free time contributing towards programs that I benefited from as a child.