2026 40 Under 40 Honoree: Chauncey T. Alexander (34)
“It is not my job to be in charge of the room but to facilitate decision making in such a way that new leaders emerge.”
PHOTO BY LAURA PETRILLA
Chauncey T. Alexander
Founder & CEO, Ascension Commission Center
Two days after the 2024 election, Chauncey Alexander stood outside a Washington, D.C., Metro station, talking with a friend about what he thought the post-election debate was missing.
He kept thinking about conversations he’d had with younger people; groceries and gas were expensive, debt weighed on them and many didn’t feel that government or politics spoke to their lives or futures.
“I said, ‘There should be a think tank that focuses purely on what young people need in policy,’” Alexander recalls.
So he built one.
Alexander returned to his native Pittsburgh after a career in national politics that included writing speeches for Vice President Kamala Harris and serving as deputy chief of staff for communications and outreach at the U.S. Department of Education.
His Ascension Commission Center focuses on Millennials, Gen Z and Gen Alpha and is developing a civic engagement playbook to help people understand government and bring their own policy ideas forward.
“Anything I am, started here,” he says. “Now I’m seeing that not only can I keep growing here, I can help the city grow as well.”
