Thank you for your service. Here is your next mission.

New Politics Academy is empowering a new generation of transformational leaders: we need you to enter the political arena

The leaders we need are already among us

New Politics Academy recruits and supports leaders who put community and country over self

The lack of political leadership in our country is not due to a lack of leaders. If you have served our country and our communities before, whether as a military veteran, AmeriCorps alum, returned Peace Corps volunteer, or service professional, you know what it takes to lead through difficult times. We encourage you to think about a second service: this time as an elected official.

The next generation of leaders starts here

Be a leader in new politics

You’ve already answered the call to serve. Now, you can lead where it matters most in public office.

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Shannon Jones

Shannon Jones is a dedicated attorney, community leader, and advocate for justice who is ready to bring bold, fresh leadership to Newport News. With years of experience in public safety and the legal system, she was elected as the Commonwealth’s Attorney to deliver a collaborative, community-focused approach to justice.

A graduate of Howard University School of Law, Shannon was inspired by its rich civil rights legacy and has devoted her career to promoting fairness and equality. Having worked on every team in the Newport News Commonwealth’s Attorney’s Office and currently serving in the City Attorney’s Office, Shannon brings both expertise and vision to lead with integrity..

Beyond the courtroom, Shannon is a passionate mentor and community leader. As the founder of the STARS Mock Trial Program, she empowers young people to explore careers in law and leadership. She also serves as a board member of the Newport News Bar Association, Past President of the Greater Peninsula Women’s Bar Association, and Criminal Justice Chair for the Newport News NAACP. Shannon is an active member of Ivy Baptist Church in Newport News.

Assistant City Attorney Shannon M. Jones beat longtime Newport News Commonwealth’s Attorney Howard E. Gwynn in June 2025 in a hard-fought campaign for the Democratic nomination for the post.

The leaders we need are already among us

Shannon completed Foundations prior to getting in the race. New Politics Academy programming helped her put together the foundations of a winning campaign.

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Shannon Jones

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Peace Corps Member

Running for office

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Phil Olaleye

State Representative Phil Olaleye, serving Georgia's 59th District, brings experience from his Peace Corps service and nonprofit leadership to his role. As Executive Director of Next Generation Men & Women, Phil focuses on workforce development and youth empowerment. His background as the son of Nigerian and Colombian immigrants and his education at Duke and Harvard inform his approach to state-level policy-making.

Phil grew up in a working class family in Stone Mountain, GA, the son of immigrants. In his youth, Phil had to travel two hours one-way to school each day to receive a decent public education. As soon as he was old enough, Phil began working at Waffle House and Best Buy to help support his single mother and family. These childhood experiences cemented values of sacrifice, dignity in work, and the value of a quality education.

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After working at Citigroup to pay off his Duke University loans, Phil left to serve his country in the United States Peace Corps. After three years of supporting an indigenous community in the Philippines, Phil returned to the U.S. to study at the Harvard Kennedy School of Government and organize in the Mississippi Delta (Baptist Town, MS).

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Phil became the Director at WorkSource Atlanta, helping job seekers receive training and support to increase employability and access career paths. As Executive Director of Next Generation Men & Women, Phil has grown a 50-student non-profit into one that serves almost 400 students across six Atlanta high schools and partners with 70 local colleges and companies to create exposure and mentorship opportunities for our young people.

Phil was elected on November 8, 2022, as a legislator at the 2022 US midterm elections representing Georgia House of Representatives District 59 under the Democratic Party, and he took office on January 9, 2023. In his relatively short time in the state legislature, he has sponsored critical legislation such as the "Protect the Dream Act," aimed at limiting corporate ownership of single-family homes to address housing affordability, and the "Student Teacher Promotion Act," which seeks to compensate student teachers to remove financial barriers for aspiring educators. He also championed the "Georgia Educational Opportunity Act" to reform the state's education funding formula to better support students living in poverty. His success in securing $23.4 million in the Fiscal Year 2026 budget for the renovation of Atlanta Technical College's Hank Aaron Academic Complex further solidifies his reputation as an effective advocate for educational infrastructure and opportunity, demonstrating his commitment to building a better future for Georgia's next generation.

Phil and his wife, Sabrina, live in Summerhill with their two sons, August and Antony.

Phil completed Answering the Call prior to running for State Rep.

The leaders we need are already among us

"Answering the Call provided a unique opportunity to dive deeply into my motivation behind running for office. The program inspired me to speak my truth on the campaign trail, and to better represent the needs of my peers and future constituents. It made me a better candidate - bar none."

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Phil Olaleye

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Military Veteran

Running for office

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Pat Ryan

Congressman Pat Ryan is a combat veteran and public servant. Pat’s first race was a closely contested 2018 primary for Congress. Though he lost, Pat demonstrated the resolve of a servant leader when he ran again and won his race to serve as Ulster, New York’s County Executive. When the opportunity presented itself, Pat again answered the call and ran and won his current seat representing New York’s 18th.

Pat’s life has been shaped by a desire to serve his community. Growing up in Kingston, his mom, Patti, was a public school teacher at Chambers Elementary School, and his father, Kevin, ran a small business in Kingston. They taught Pat that we have an obligation to give back to our community and to take care of everyone in it – especially the most vulnerable among us.

As a cadet at West Point, Pat learned and lived by the West Point motto: Duty, Honor, Country. He brings that ethos to Washington every day, where it's desperately needed. Ryan served two combat tours in Iraq, earning two Bronze Stars.

As an executive, Pat managed a $25 million annual budget and worked to build partnerships with government and nonprofit organizations. He implemented worker-focused policies like paid family leave and created a jobs training program for veterans without college degrees, equipping them with tech skills to ensure they had high-paying jobs.

Elected in 2019, Pat served as Ulster County Executive until 2022, leading the county through a once-in-a-century pandemic, spearheading the effort to transform the former IBM site after decades of sitting dormant, providing direct financial relief to small businesses and residents, building supportive and affordable housing, and re-investing in mental health services – all while never raising taxes.

Pat is a fifth-generation Ulster County native, decorated combat veteran, small business owner, US Congressman, and Fmr. County Executive who lives in Gardiner with his wife Rebecca and two young children, Theo and Cameron.

Pat has been an alum of New Politics Academy since 2016. He attended Answering the Call and Foundations, two programs that prepared him to run both personally and operationally.

The leaders we need are already among us

"Through every step of my journey in public service, I've seen how tribalism and the lure of power causes even the most well-intentioned to compromise their principles. I'm so grateful for New Politics and the movement they've built of like-minded leaders who are centered in their values and doing what it takes to serve others."

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Pat Ryan

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AmeriCorps Member

Running for office

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Lindsey Burke

Lindsey Burke is a native Lexingtonian and founding attorney of Micah Legal, a legal services nonprofit increasing access to justice for low-income central Kentuckians. Lindsey is a former social worker and two-time former AmeriCorps member. Before entering public office, Burke was a social worker and not-for-profit attorney. Her years working in community organizing and social services allowed her to observe social issues across Lexington, and create the programs and systems to address those problems—she is an entrepreneurial problem-solver and visionary.

Lindsey grew up in Lexington and graduated from University of Cincinnati College of Law in 2015. In law school, Lindsey was an award-winning negotiator and named as the first UC Law Public Interest Honors Fellow.

As an AmeriCorps member, Lindsey worked as a housing counselor and helped prevent homelessness for families experiencing loss of utilities or housing due to compounded effects of poverty through distribution of FEMA grant funds.

After law school, Lindsey founded Micah Legal in 2017. Migah Legal is Kentucky's first sliding scale legal services nonprofit. Their mission is to increase access to justice in Lexington by providing affordable civil legal services.

In 2022, Lindsey ran for state rep in Kentucky, HD 75 and won. She is now the #2 Democrat and Caucus Chair in the Kentucky State House.

Lindsey lives in Lexington with her husband, Spencer, and their two baby boys.

The leaders we need are already among us

Lindsey completed Answering the Call prior to running for State Rep.

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Lindsey Burke

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Staffing a Campaign

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Peace Corps Member

Frontline Service Professional

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John Scianimanico

John brings over a decade of diverse public service experience spanning K-12 education, state government, national politics, military affairs, and strategic philanthropy. Throughout his career, he has successfully launched multi-million dollar strategic initiatives, provided counsel to senior government and university leaders, and directed high-performing teams that have delivered significant outcomes.

John began his career as a high school math and statistics teacher with Teach For America in Huntsville, Alabama, where he developed a passion for economics and public policy.

This experience led him to serve in the White House Council of Economic Advisors on the Education and Labor Policy teams. After attending graduate school, John worked on the Results-Driven Government team at Arnold Ventures, a national philanthropy based in Houston, Texas.

A veteran of political campaigns, John also led a team as a Regional Organizing Director on the historic Pete Buttigieg campaign in northwest Iowa, where his team won more counties than any other campaign in the region.

John graduated from American University with a bachelor’s degree in political science and from the Harvard Kennedy School with a Master in Public Policy. Outside of work, he is an Ensign in the United States Navy Reserves and a competitive CrossFit athlete.

John attended New Politics Academy’s staff training program, where he honed his skills in campaign leadership and organizing.

The leaders we need are already among us

"At every step along my journey in politics, from volunteering on state-level races to working on a presidential race, the New Politics community has never been far from sight or mind."

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John Scianimanico

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The next generation of leaders starts here

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