forge leadership network
pjt 2025
WASHINGTON—The Heritage Foundation announced Monday that it has selected the Forge Leadership Network as a recipient of the Heritage Innovation Prize.
Forge will receive a $500,000 award over three years to expand its programs to new states and double the number of young leaders trained and mentored.
Heritage launched the Innovation Prize earlier this year to provide financial support to organizations executing bold ideas and providing innovative solutions to the most pressing issues facing America.
Heritage President Kevin Roberts released a statement on Forge being selected for the Innovation Prize:
“The Heritage Foundation is on offense, and we are playing to win. But the only way we win is if the entire conservative movement works together to defeat the Left and the radicals seeking to tear our country apart. That’s why Heritage launched the Innovation Prize earlier this year. We see it as our responsibility to use our material resources, so graciously provided to us by our fellow Americans, to help benefit other groups that are working tirelessly every day to make America stronger, safer, and more free.
“The conservative movement can’t truly remain on offense without a farm team. We must train young patriots to take up the mantle of freedom and engage with the culture and fight for what’s so good in America. I am so excited by the work Forge Leadership Network is doing to identify, prepare, and equip the next generations of conservative leaders, and I look forward to seeing their efforts expand in the years ahead.”
Forge co-founder and president Adam Josefczyk released the following statement upon announcement of the award:
“Thank you to Dr. Roberts and the Heritage Foundationfor your leadership of the conservative movement and recognizing that today’s conservative victories depend on tomorrow’s conservative leaders.
“Forge provides a long-term, formal way to raise up, steward, and deploy talented, faithful young conservatives in the states. Just as Major League Baseball cultivates talent through its minor leagues, Forge is the state-based farm system for the conservative movement and supplies talent to partners like Heritage.
“We’re so grateful for Heritage Foundation’s partnership and generous Innovation Prize to ensure that every state can have a formal pipeline in place by which to produce their next innovators in the marketplace, champions of free enterprise, culture shapers, defenders of the Constitution, and principled statesmen and stateswomen in office.”
The Heritage Innovation Prize recognizes and provides substantive financial awards totaling up to $1 million annually to results-oriented nonprofits for projects involving research, litigation, education, outreach, or communications, particularly those focused on empowering parents in education, holding Big Tech accountable, countering the threat of the Chinese Communist Party (CCP), securing America’s borders and reducing crime, ensuring free and fair elections, reducing the growth of spending and inflation, and promoting life and family formation.
For more information about the inaugural awards of the Innovation Prize, read here. For more information about the prize itself, read here.
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https://forgeleadership.org/about-forge/
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ABOUT FORGE LEADERSHIP NETWORK
Forge is raising up the next generation of conservative leaders in the public square.
Forge Leadership Network mentors, trains, and connects young conservatives, equipping them to lead in politics, culture, and business.
Forge Leadership Network recruits conservative students and young professionals, ages 18-25, wanting to lead in politics, culture, and business. Young adults often ask themselves, what comes next? Through our Leadership Summit and Mentorship Academy, Forge equips students to think about their vocation critically, examine public policy and ethics from a Judeo-Christian worldview, gain practical skills for cultural engagement, and establish connections to launch their careers.
Forge Leadership Summit:
The Forge Leadership Summit is a five-day intensive experience filled with dynamic trainings, professional development, and renowned speakers. Accepted students represent talented conservative students and young professionals, ages 18-25, from across America pursuing different vocations, but each dedicated to better understanding and defending the first principles of the American Founding in a 21st-Century context.
The Forge Summit trains young adults to think critically aboutlimited government, Judeo-Christian ethics, religious liberty, and economic freedom. Through professional media training, mock political campaigns, participation in theForge Legislature, and intentional networking coaching, students are equipped to become the leaders of tomorrow.
Learn More
Forge Mentorship Academy:
The Forge Mentorship Academy is a year long program offering experiential learning in national and international politics, training in argumentation and current events, an individualized mentor match, and connections to top internships and jobs. Designed to supplement full-time studies or employment, the Academy admits standout graduates of the Forge Leadership Summit.
Forge facilitates the Mentorship Academy through digital mediums, conference calls, and trips toWashington D.C. and Israel. Through each platform, Forge provides unique access to renowned thought leaders and power players of the conservative movement. Forge provides tailored career and personal development by matching each student with a field-specific mentor. Through this year of dynamic training, students create deep relationships with like-minded peers and mentors from around the country, building lasting networks for years to come.
Learn More
Your chance at these amazing opportunities begins by applying for the Leadership Summit.
Apply Today for the 2023 Forge Leadership Summit!
DONATE TO FORGE LEADERSHIP NETWORK
You are invited to participate in the mission and vision of Forge Leadership Network.
Your investment will:
RAISE UP A GENERATION
of young leaders known for their integrity, character, and ability to effectively communicate their beliefs and values to our world.
IGNITE AND PROPEL
the next class of innovators in the marketplace, movers and shakers in culture, and principled statesmen in government.
SECURE A LEGACY
that will revitalize the state, nation, and culture that your children and grandchildren inherit
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JONATHAN JAKUBOWSKI
Forge BoardChairman
Jonathan Jakubowski is the Author of an award-winning book that has gained national attention. Jonathan and Bellwether Blues – A Conservative Awakening of the Millennial Soul have been featured on the Rush Limbaugh Show, Newsmax, the Washington Times, Newsweek, The New York Times, BBC World News, The Federalistand dozens of other leading media outlets. He is also President of SmartSolve, an award-winning startup business focused on sustainable packaging. Jonathan played football and received his undergraduate degree from Bowling Green State University and Masters Degree in Public Policy from Georgetown University. Jonathan is the Founder of Champions in Action, Chairman of the Forge Leadership Network Board of Directors, and Executive Chairman of the Wood County Republican Party. Jonathan, his wife Missy, and their four children reside in Northwest Ohio.
Twitter: @jonjakubowski
PETER BURNS
Alumni Board Member
Peter Burns in the founder of Burns Group Consulting and manages a range of projects including working as Executive Director of the International Religious Freedom Summit. He formerly served as Special Assistant to theAmbassador-at-Large for International Religious Freedom at the Department of State. Before that, he worked as Government Relations and Policy Director at In Defense of Christians,and also worked as the Policy Analyst for Kansas Gov. Sam Brownback. He has been an advocate building movements from the time he founded the College Republican chapter while attending Southern Illinois University Edwardsville in 2014, and was campus director for the Bruce Rauner Campaign for Governor, to his work today amplifying the efforts of foreign policy focused NGOs. Peter has studied politics and foreign policy through selective fellowships with The Philos Leadership Institute, the Tikvah Fund and the Public Interest Fellowship. He has written for Washington Examiner, Providence Magazine, The Federalist, The American Conservative, and The Hill.
RUTH EDMONDS
Ruth Edmonds is the Church Relations Director at Center for Christian Virtue (CCV), where she heads the organization’s ministry to pastors and church congregations through the Church Ambassador Network (CAN).
Ruth is a leadership professional with over 20 years of experience in Community Relations marked by a network of government, nonprofit, and faith-based stakeholder relationships; and specializing in building partnership collaborations, facilitating dynamic group conversations, and public speaking presentations.
Ruth has served as a key aide to elected public officials on the federal, state, and county levels. She is recognized as an articulate communicator, connector, thought leader, inspiring writer, and most significantly, a prayer warrior. In 2019, she was licensed and ordained as a minister in the Christian church by her pastor Dr. David C. Forbes, Jr. of Columbus Christian Center.
Ruth is a graduate of Denison University and lives in central Ohio with her husband and bonus son. She has two adult daughters who are successful in their own right.
ELLIOT GAISER
T. Elliot Gaiser is an associate in the Issues & Appeals group in the Columbus, Ohio office of Jones Day.
Previously, Elliot practiced law as an associate at Boyden Gray & Associates PLLC in Washington, D.C., and in the litigation and appeals groups in the D.C. office of Gibson, Dunn & Crutcher LLP. He also served as a law clerk to Associate Justice Samuel A.Alito,Jr. at the Supreme Court of the United States, the Honorable JudgeNeomi Raoon the U.S. Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit, and the Honorable Judge Edith H. Joneson the U.S. Court of Appeals for theFifth Circuit.
Before receiving hisJ.D. at the University of Chicago, Elliot worked as a graduate fellow covering anti-poverty and immigration issues at The Heritage Foundation. He has written for Christianity Today, The Federalist, and Newsweek.
Elliot also holds a B.A. from Hillsdale College, where he studied Political Economy and Classical Rhetoric in the DowJournalism Program. Elliot enjoys playing the cello, swimming in the Great Lakes, rooting for the Buckeyes, and re-reading the poetry of T.S. Eliot.
MICHAEL HAMILTON
Michael Hamilton is aHeartland research fellowand managing editor of Health Care News. Michael writes and edits at the intersection of liberty, language, and learning. His efforts to reform public policy date to summers he spent working for The Buckeye Institute for Public Policy Solutions while a student at Hillsdale College. Upon graduating, Michael taught International Baccalaureate English at an innovative charter school near Boston, Massachusetts, followed by Advanced Placement U.S. Government and Politics in Dayton, Ohio.
In 2013, Michael co-founded the website Ohio Conservative Review and the freelance writing and editing company Good Comma Editing, LLC. He has written for The Federalist, PJ Media, WORLD, The Philos Project, Canon & Culture, LifeSiteNews.com, the Washington Free Beacon, the Victims of Communism Memorial Foundation blog Dissident, and other sites and publications. Michael serves as vice chairman of the board of Forge Leadership Network to help identify, train, and connect America’s future statesmen.
JOHN HART
John Hart serves as the General Counsel for Cedarville University. John just recently returned to his alma mater to become its first ever full-time in-house lawyer, having served as University Counsel/ Director of Legal Affairs at the University of Dayton for over 25 years. His areas of special emphasis include employment/labor law, academic and student development policy issues, athletics, real property, contracts, and the like. He has made numerous presentations to various professional, educational, and community groups, and was invited to and participated in the Blackstone Colloquium on Higher Education Law at the Oxford University’s Round Table on Education Policy.
John has also been involved extensively with NACUA (National Association of College and University Attorneys), serving on their Board of Directors in addition to various committee responsibilities. Currently, he serves on the Legal Services Review Panel of NAICU (National Association of Independent Colleges and Universities). John is engaged with community organizations like the Greater Dayton Volunteer Lawyers Project, serves as an advisor to the Christian Legal Society chapter at the law school, is active in church ministries, and loves his family. He received his B.A. from Cedarville College in 1981 and his J.D. from the University of Dayton School of Law in 1985.
HEATHER PFITZENMAIER
Heather Pfitzenmaier serves as Senior Talent Program Advisor at the State Policy Network. In addition, she is the Director of Strategic Engagement at the Network of enlightened Women, previously serving as Vice President. Before that, Pfitzenmaier was Executive Vice President, and earlier Vice President and Director of Chapter Programs, at America’s Future Foundation. Prior to her time at AFF, Pfitzenmaier served as Director of the Young Leaders Program, and earlier as Intern Coordinator, at the Heritage Foundation. She is the recipient of Forbes magazine “30 Under 30” in law and policy, the Young Conservatives Coalition Buckley Award, and “30 Under 30″ recognition by Red Alert Politics. In addition, Pfitzenmaier serves on the Advisory Board of the Forge Leadership Network, leads AFF’s Detroit chapter, and is a member of the American Enterprise Institute’s Leadership Network. She holds a bachelor’s degree in English and Political Science from the University of Michigan and currently resides in the great state of Michigan.
JUSTIN POWELL
Justin Powell is the founder and CEO of Huntington Outdoor, Blue Ash Media, and Aurora Marketing Group, serving a variety of clients with their marketing and advertising needs in Ohio, Indiana, and Florida. Prior to starting his business, Justin was the Director of Social Media for the Family Research Council. In 2012, he co-founded Ohio Conservative Review, a platform for conservative beliefs to be expressed, debated, and promoted in Ohio. He has also served on numerous political and issue campaigns on the local and state levels.
Justin earned a degree in Business Management from Liberty University. He grew up in Arcanum, Ohio where he still resides and is an active member of his community, serving on the board of Ohio Christian University and leading Crossing, a young adult ministry program at his church. Justin co-founded Forge Leadership Network and now serves on its board of advisors.
Twitter: @JustinGPowell
JOAN QUINTANA
Joan Quintana is an entrepreneur, writer, facilitator, consultant, and executive coach. For more than thirty years, she has served her own clients and worked in academia and state government. After nearly fifteen years in the public sector, Joan began to put her time and talents to work as an entrepreneur supporting other startups and non-profit organizations.
Currently, Joan serves as director of communications and client strategy at AdventGX, a community and economic development company she co-founded with her husband in 2004. With every project, Joan works to understand the needs of the customer and define sound yet innovative strategies for enhancing individual and organizational impact throughout the US and around the world.
Among the projects that Joan has directed and supported are Innovation Underground, a privately owned business and technology incubator; Science, Engineering, Art, and Design (SEAD) Gallery; Thinking Beyond podcast; and numerous strategy development engagements with customers working across a broad range of industries.
In addition, Joan serves on the board of a variety of non-profit organizations including You Are Women’s Conference and Forge Leadership Network. Joan is married to her business partner, Jose Quintana. They enjoy sharing life with five adult children, two sons in law, and four grandchildren.
CHIP WEIANT
Chip Weiant is a senior fellow at both the Sagamore Institute for Public Policy and the BBB National Center for Character Ethics. He is very interested in leadership character and designed the adult leadership equipping guides; UncommonSense and The Civil Society Tutorial to revive the culture-making connection between freedom, self-leading and virtue. Chip is a public policy graduate of Miami University and the University of Rhode Island.
Chip is investing his life in the principles of classical liberalism and is a free enterprise advocate with the Better Business Bureau and former executive team member of Schmidt’s Hospitality Concepts of German Village and Island Resorts of Put-In-Bay. He is also an advocate for faith-friendly public policy serving on the Ohio Governor’s Office of Faith-Based & Community Initiatives board defending religious liberty for all, under four governors.
Capacity-building of non-profits, so essential to community flourishing, is another focus for Chip who helped found Mission Columbus and has served on a dozen non-profit boards.
DANIEL ZIEGLER
Dan Ziegler is the Executive Director of the Republican Study Committee, a group of 146 conservative Republicans in the U.S. House of Representatives currently chaired by Congressman Jim Banks of Indiana. Prior to joining the RSC he served as Managing Director of Government Relations for Heritage Action for America, where he focused on building support for conservative policy on Capitol Hill.
He has a long history of working in the conservative movement. He has worked for several non-profit conservative organizations, including the American Energy Alliance, a free market energy advocacy group. His time in government included an earlier period working as the Legislative Director to CongressmanDoug Lamborn of Colorado, and as a political appointee in George W. Bush administration at the Department of the Interior under Secretary Dirk Kempthorne. He started his career as an intern in Vice President Dick Cheney’s office. Originally from the Buckeye State, Dan graduated from Malone College in Canton, Ohio. He resides in Alexandria, VA with his wife Rae-Lynn and daughter Adaline.
Adam Josefczyk is thePresident of Forge Leadership Network, an organization that he co-founded with Justin Powell.
Prior to launching Forge, Adam served, at the age of 24, as a vice president ofa leading public policy organization in Ohio. In 2013, he also co-founded Ohio Conservative Review, a web platform for conservative ideas to be discussed, debated, and promoted in the Buckeye State. In 2012, while teaching public speaking and current events at a high school, Adam led grassroots efforts for conservative causes in the presidential election. His regional phone banks led the nation with over 500,000 phone calls made.
Adam graduated summa cum laude from the University of Dayton in 2011, earning honors as the top student in both the history and political science departments. Adam was the first-ever recipient of the Timothy Award from the Center for Christian Virtue in 2017. He was chosen as one of the 2017 William F. Buckley Award winners, presented nationally by America’s Future Foundation to five young professionals for their “above-and-beyond service to the liberty movement.”
Adam, his wife Jessica, and their young children Jane and Henry, are proud to call Southwest Ohio home and are members of Centerville Christian Fellowship. He is an avid golfer and long-suffering, die-hard fan of his hometown Cincinnati Bengals.
BRAD GRUBER
Chief Operating Officer
Brad Gruber is the Chief Operating Officer of Forge Leadership Network. He is responsible for all aspects of Forge’s day-to-day activities.
Prior to joining Forge, Brad was the COO of State Policy Network. He also serves on the boards of multiple nonprofits. Outside of Forge, much of his time is spent re-establishing intergenerational households.
Brad has spent timebuilding addiction recovery programs based on Biblical principlesand travels to closed countries to assist missionaries.
Brad earned a Master’s Degree from Regent University and an Undergraduate Degree from the University of Florida. He is a former officer in the U.S. Air Force. He is married with five children and lives in Cincinnati, OH.
JEREMIAH MARTIN
Vice President of Programs
Jeremiah Martin is the Vice President of Programs for Forge Leadership Network and an alumnus of the Forge Mentorship Academy.
Prior to joining Forge, he worked as Executive Director of First Freedom Ohio, the grassroots action partner of the Center for Christian Virtue.As Executive Director, Jeremiah was tasked with overseeing the administration, programs, and strategic plan of the organization. This included developing and executing a grassroots plan to educate voters and advocate for pro-freedom policies.
Jeremiah is an U.S. Army Veteran with a combined 14 years of military service, including two tours overseas. On his most recent tour, he deployed to Iraq in 2017 as a part of a joint taskforce consisting of Army, Air Force, Navy, and Marines. Jeremiah currently serves in the Army Reserve as a Chaplain Assistant.
Before that, he worked as the State Director for the Ohio Chapter of Concerned Veterans for America (CVA). During his time at CVA he worked to ensure veterans have access to world class healthcare. Jeremiah led one of the most successful teams in the country and advocated for veterans on the state and federal level.
He graduated from Lee University with a Bachelor of Science in Pastoral Ministries and from Liberty University with a Master of Arts in Christian Leadership.
Jeremiah currently lives in North Central Ohio with his wife and four young children.
JENNIE SIMUNEK
Logistics & Events Director
Jennie Simunek is the Logistics and Events Director for Forge Leadership Network. Having a wealth of experience in organizational growth and development, Jennie brings structural leadership to Forge as she executes logistics for all programming and events.
Jennie’s calling into education began as a founding board member for a private Christian academy in Cincinnati. During her tenure there she also served as an executive assistant to the elementary and high school principals, both during times of increased growth and expansion for the school. Having been invited by the principal to teach history, Jennie embarked on an adventure that grew into a love of teaching middle and high school students in history, comparative worldviews, and government.
A graduate of Miami University, Jennie holds a multidisciplinary degree in International Studies with focuses on Europe and the Middle East. As an undergraduate, Jennie spent a year in Luxembourg studying international relations and economics, and traveling throughout Europe, the Soviet Union, and Saudi Arabia. This experience equipped her to later serve as an analyst for the Central Intelligence Agency during the Reagan administration.
Jennie is a member of Faith Christian Fellowship Church, and she and her husband, Jim, live in Cincinnati. They have three grown daughters, who all live in Chicago, allowing Jennie to return often to where she grew up.
GRACE BARRON
Director of Marketing & Student Recruitment
Grace Barron is the Director of Marketing and Recruitment for Forge Leadership Network and an alumna of the Forge Mentorship Academy.
A graduate ofGrove City Collegewith a degree in History, Grace served as Editor in Chief of the college newspaper The Collegian and facilitated student events with organizations including American Enterprise Institute, American Majority, Leadership Institute, American Conservative Union, andAmericans For Prosperity.
Before joining the Forge team, Grace worked on a conservative New Hampshire congressional campaign developing a thriving intern program that was responsible for thousands of voter contacts.
Grace is a life-long New Englander who enjoys collecting random historical facts and lives with her husband in New Hampshire.