Meet the Team!

GEM (Girls Empowerment Movement) was founded by a group of junior and senior girls at Sage Hill School in Newport Coast, California. We are passionate about building independence and self-esteem in middle school girls. We will host the sixth annual GEMfest, a day-long event with inspiring guest speakers and hands-on workshops for approximately 200 middle school girls, on Saturday, March 8, 2025. GEMfest provides inspiration and education about tools for success in middle school, high school, and beyond! 

Leadership

Anna Yang
​Co-President

Fiori Lee
Co-President

Claire Casey
Producer

Anna (she/her) first attended GEMfest in middle school and fell in love with this empowering community. She is so excited to bring the same experience and to meet all the girls that were once just like her. Outside of GEM, Anna is the co-president of Reimagined, editor of Flare Magazine, and has her own fashion label, Stars4ever. She can’t wait to share her passions with everyone. ​

Fiori (she/her) is a current senior and has been a part of the GEMfest team since her freshman year. She is passionate about women's empowerment and looking forward to connecting with like-minded women and inspiring young girls. Outside of GEM, she is also Sage Hill School's Student Council President, the founder of a Letters of Love chapter, and a part of FLARE magazine. She is so excited for GEMfest 2025!

Claire (she/her) attended GEMfest herself for the first time in middle school. She is so excited to continue the GEM's mission of girls empowerment for another generation of girls! Outside of GEM, she is involved in yearbook, JCL, volleyball, DECA, and is a student ambassador.

Events Directors

Isaac Alegria 

Isaac (he/him) was a GEMFest Volunteer in the past. He is super excited to share his passion for equality, and bringing everyone together through GEM!

Sherine  Assif

Sherine (she/her) is a passionate senior dedicated to girls' empowerment. She aims to create supportive networks that encourage girls to pursue their dreams and make their voices heard.

Vivi Ta

Vivi (she/her) is a junior at Sage Hill School. She attended GEM in middle school and is so excited to inspire girls and hopes to make them feel as empowered as she did. 

Tina Tahbez

Tina (she/her) she went to GEMfest in middle school, she is excited to be part of the team to bring the same fun experience she had to the middle school girls. She is the president of the ISCC club and a peer tutor. She is looking forward to empowering young girls soon entering high school!

Marketing Team

Katelyn Yeh

Alyssa Cuff

Chloe Haddad

Aashna Sharma

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Alyssa (she/her) is currently a junior at Sage Hill School. Outside of GEM, Alyssa is apart of Sage Hill School varsity basketball team. She is looking forward to helping empower young girls in her community along with working alongside likeminded women. 

Chloe (she/her) is a new junior member of the GEM team and former volunteer. She is super excited to be a source of support for middle school girls. Outside of GEM, Chloe is on the Sage Hill Dance Ensemble and junior captain of the dance team club. She looks forward to creating a safe and welcoming community for young girls. 

Aashna (she/her) was inspired to join GEM after attending GEM in middle school and hopes to empower young girls. Aashna is also co-president of GirlUp and is on the board of Flare Magazine. 

Communications Team

Annika Shah

Chanah Yin

Evelyn   Wang

Mandy Zhou

Annika (she/her) is currently a junior at Sage Hill School. She volunteered at GEM 2022 and wanted to get more involved and create a safe and motivational space for young girls. She is so exited to bring her love for empowering women to GEM this year. 

Chanah (she/her) was one of the communications directors last year, volunteered at GEMFest for 2 years and is excited to be a part of the team. She is also the founder of Our Generation and the Editor in Chief of Electric.​

Evelyn (she/her) is eager to making this year's GEMfest an amazing experience as a Senior Communications Director. She is the founder of the Digital Civilty Project and on the boards of The Storm and Student Council. 

Mandy (she/her) is a current junior at Sage Hill School and she is so excited to be a part of GEMfest this year! She loves to sing, dance, and perform on stage. Mandy is also in SAME, a leadership group dedicated to educating and promote diversity in her school . Mandy is looking forward to help bring her ideas to the table and interact with middle school girls!

Outreach Team

Courtney  Tetteh-Martey 

Maddy Stagg

Anisha Hiranandani

Mirabelle Jiang

Courtney (she/her) is currently a senior at Sage Hill School. She serves as a Co-President for the Speech and Debate Team, Co-Chair for Sage Advocates for Multicultural Education (SAME), and Co-President for Sage’s chapter of Girl Up. She is so excited to help middle school girls gain inspiration and lift up one another!

Maddy (she/her) is currently a senior at Sage Hill. She is a new member of GEM and is so excited to share her love of empowering other women. Outside of GEM, Maddy is a competitive swimmer, swim coach, and student ambassador.

Anna (she/her) attended GEMfest throughout middle school and now hosts a coding workshop at GEMfest. She is also president of Art Club and a member of dance ensemble. ​

Mirabelle (she/her) is in her second year at GEM and looks forward to working with everyone this year! She's also the EIC of Struck Magazine and the Vice President of Mock Trial.

GEM Team 2024

 Our Founders

 Ishani
​Boston University

 Hannah
​UCLA

 Karli
​Tulane

 Eliza
Washington University in St. Louis

Lilly​
School of Visual Arts