ATXelerator Announces its 8th Cohort

AUSTIN, TX – The ATXelerator announced Thursday its 2026 cohort of 20 talented Austinites from districts across the city to learn about Austin city government and the value of future-focused policy to plan for the city’s long-term future success.

“I am extremely impressed with this broad and diverse 2026 ATXelerator class,” said ATXelerator founder and executive director Ward Tisdale. “With backgrounds in technology, law, government, nonprofits and real estate, among other professions, this cohort represents council districts from various parts of the city and brings a lot of excitement and expertise to the table.”

The ATXelerator class starts March 27, 2026, with opening weekend activities including:

• An Esther’s Follies performance

• History of Austin by Michael Barnes of the Austin American Statesman

• City council panel featuring Ryan Alter, Krista Laine and Zohaib "Zo" Qadri

• The 8th consecutive ATXelerator presentation by Mayor Kirk Watson

• Scooter Tour of mixed-use development in the UT West Campus area

• Red Line tour led by Capital Metro, followed by dinner at the Domain

• Future of Austin Demographic Presentation by the Austin City Demographer’s Office

The class then starts six weekly Wednesday sessions on April 1 taught by experts in the fields of transportation, land use, utilities, public safety, city governance, the nonprofit community and a variety of other issues intended to prepare future candidates and city board and commission members. 

When this cohort concludes its class in May, the ATXelerator will have an alumni base of more than 200 Austinites, including more than 30 current or former city board and commission members, three council candidates, two elected school board members, a state representative candidate, and District 2 City Councilmember Vanessa  Fuentes.

The ATXelerator, a nonpartisan, nonprofit organization founded in 2017, is the only elected office candidate recruitment engine in Austin. It is designed to identify, mentor and promote the next generation of future-focused leaders interested in public service. 

The 2026 class includes:

• Alex Bennett (District 1), Software engineer, Cox Automotive

• Jared Bethke (District 9), Transportation Planner, HNTB

• Matthew Dang (District 1), Operations Manager, Central Health

• Hannah Garcia (District 9), Government and Community Affairs Director, Austin Apartment Association

• Ricco Garcia (District 1), Attorney, Airbnb

• Edward Graham (District 9), Retired (2024), former ExxonMobil Senior Executive

• Dan Hamilton (District 2), Chief of Staff, ICON

• Victoria Kidder (District 6), Government Relations, Home Builders Association of Greater Austin

• Kimberly Levinson (District 9), retired, Downtown Commission Vice Chair

• Favianna Moreno (District 10), Chief of Staff, Texas House of Representatives

• Monica Peña (District 4), Director of Operations, EGBI

• Fred Richardson (District 3), Principal, CI International

• Andree Sahakian (District 3), Real Estate Development Manager, LV Collective

• Guadalupe Sanchez (District 7)

• Neha Shah (District 3), Product Management, Expedia Group

• Reilly Shelton (District 2), Legislative Staffer, State Representative Penny Morales Shaw

• Elisa Tamayo (District 9), Government Affairs, El Paso County

• Jakob Tawney (District 9), Chief of Staff, Smart City Policy Group

• Jane Westfall (District 9), Digital Product & Innovation Specialist

About the ATXelerator

The mission of the ATXelerator is to identify and prepare future-focused leaders for public service and educate the community about solutions that will improve Austin's quality of life for generations to come. The program aims to encourage citizens to pursue and prepare for elected office and board/commission service through a technology accelerator model. For more information, please visit www.atxelerator.org.