Meet the Team!

The M.A.R.S. Youth Initiative was founded by Chikaodinaka Akazi, Sarah Bembenek, and Danielle Bruno, three students who met in an education entrepreneurship course at the University of Pennsylvania and discovered something powerful they had in common. Though we come from different backgrounds, we are united by a shared truth: we each remember what it felt like to learn how to read growing up, and how that journey shaped everything that came after. That shared memory became our mission. We believe every child deserves the chance to reach proficiency at their grade level, not just as an academic milestone, but as a foundation for confidence, opportunity, and the ability to thrive in every aspect of life. And what greater way is there to unite the community of Philadelphia and inspire the next generation of leaders, than by training high schoolers to become literacy mentors to elementary school readers? Literacy isn't just a skill; it's a doorway. And we started M.A.R.S because we believe every child deserves to walk through it.