about malenia
I have acquired many skills from my decade-long career in for-profit and nonprofit industries; however, my upbringing and hobby side quests are as critical to the orientation of my work as my professional experiences.
evolving bio
As a daughter of the Low Country, my upbringing in rural South Carolina among the storied landscapes of the Old South profoundly shape my perspectives on community, education, service, and spirituality. I have a deep understanding of what it means to be invisibilized. Thus, my life experience has drawn me to becoming a champion of young people and Black communities, groups that are often deprioritized by those in power.
An exciting and meandering early career gave me crucial experience in branding and communications, as well as broad leadership and project management experience. I worked for music festivals along the Eastern Seaboard, managed alternative spring break logistics for large volunteer groups, developed and managed content for multiple brands under a tourism conglomerate, led tours in New York City enclaves, worked retail, and had a military career somewhere in there.
But in the Summer of 2015, I sojourned to North Carolina to alchemize these experiences into a new trajectory advocating for the most marginalized voices. My experience telling stories became a superpower as a newly minted nonprofit professional.
The last ten years of my career have been dedicated to working directly with youth and on issues that concern their personhood. I first worked directly in schools with K-12 students on literacy and enrichment programs through nonprofit initiatives. I saw firsthand how the lack of youth voice could lead to low program engagement, even if the interventions were considered best practices. I also began to understand the inner workings of philanthropy and, more broadly, storyselling and fundraising. How is it that [we] are doing this work in a community with young people who didn't have a say in its operation or vision? How is it that we get to craft the story of the work and fundraise more money from it? These questions led me to a more incisive calling: Working collaboratively with young people to strategize and build inclusive youth spaces, programming, and leadership development opportunities.
This work has also manifested through facilitation and strategic planning with nonprofits, small businesses, community initiatives, and government entities serving youth and their families, ensuring an equitable approach to each level of decision-making. I feel most integrated when I can support projects that directly relate to my cultural heritage, promote intergenerational collaboration, and help marginalized groups establish themselves as experts in their own experiences. My latest work involves artists' strategic coaching for nonprofit leaders, communication strategy and execution, and research and dissemination with scholars and institutions.
Since 2013, I have provided consulting services, technical support to nonprofit organizations, and support for artists and cultural workers to create equitable and innovative frameworks for exploring Black realities.
Let's collaborate on your strategic planning, communications projects, or youth initiatives. Learn more about my ethos and the process.
what's in a name?
As of 2025, Malenia Friday is my preferred name. A legal name change is currently underway. For now, Malenia Swinton, Malenia Swinton Friday, and Malenia Friday may be used separately.
enter BLACK.APEIRON
Explore my creative musings. [coming soon]