According to 2010 Fast Pitch Presenter Meredith Curry, before going through the Fast Pitch program, “There was no way for me to explain what we did in less than 15 minutes.”
Meredith Curry presented in Fast Pitch during her tenure as Executive Director of South Central Scholars, a nonprofit that provides a support network to ensure that underprivileged students are equipped with the tools they need to graduate from college and succeed in life. South Central Scholars is a multi-faceted organization with a diverse offering of programs and services.
After the Social Innovation Fast Pitch, Meredith could break down the essential facts about South Central Scholars in less than 3 minutes in a way that is interesting and compelling. Meredith certainly grabbed the judges’ interest at the Fast Pitch competition, taking home the prize for Best Pitch.
In addition to the $5,000 Best Pitch prize that they received, South Central Scholars made connections with audience members at the Fast Pitch event that led to new volunteers for the organization and a $25,000 grant to put towards STEM scholarships (science, technology, engineering and math). Meredith also sustained her relationship with her Fast Pitch coaches, who still serve as her personal and professional mentors. “My coaches were fantastic,” says Meredith. “They are two of the most supportive people I have met in my professional career.”
Fast Pitch also helped Meredith connect with her peers in the nonprofit sphere. She realized that nonprofit professionals have few opportunities to connect with each other in their day-to-day work, so “the opportunity for collaboration and networking between nonprofits through the programs LASVP provides is super valuable.” Meredith still meets with three other Fast Pitch participants regularly to share resources and offer each other support. Inspired to keep the collaborative spirit going, she also started the College Access Brain Trust, a group for nonprofit professionals working to help all students achieve college access and success. “We can talk about how to improve what we do and build off each other’s work, and that’s been a great learning experience.”
Fast Pitch is “a gift that keeps on giving,” says Meredith. “I tell every nonprofit to apply for Fast Pitch… It’s an amazing resource.”
At the time of her pitch in 2010, Meredith was Executive Director of South Central Scholars. Currently, Meredith is the Director of Operations at the California College Guidance Initiative. You can watch Meredith’s pitch below:
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LA Social Venture Partners 