Nitzan Pelman

CEO & Founder, Climb Together
Berkeley, California

Nitzan Pelman is the CEO and Founder of Climb Together.

Previously, Nitzan founded and served as CEO for Climb Hire, which prepares working adults for jobs that require a background in Salesforce. Previously, at LinkedIn Social Impact, Pelman explored innovative ways to expand social capital for people who do not have robust networks and come from disadvantaged communities. In 2015, Pelman founded ReUp Education and served as its founding CEO. ReUp partners with universities to re-enroll students who have dropped out of college. ReUp has successfully brought back nearly 4,000 students to college. Prior to ReUp, Pelman founded the New York region of Citizen Schools and served as its first Executive Director for six years. Citizen Schools is a hands-on learning program. During Pelman’s tenure, the program expanded by 3x and student outcomes improved dramatically. Earlier in her career, Pelman held leadership roles at Teach For America, KIPP Academy, and the New York City Department of Education.

My Truth

Having completed an Entrepreneur in Residence role at LinkedIn this past year, I now know that people are 8 times more likely to get jobs through referrals. Bootcamps and training programs have focused specifically on skilling up, not recognizing that social capital building is a key part of the equation. Eric Schmidt, the Shusterman Foundation, and Google.org have committed $2 million to help launch Climb Hire. Climb is a new workforce initiative focused exclusively on working with people who systematically face economic barriers, have taken some college credits, and are underemployed nevertheless.

Stories featuring Nitzan Pelman

Group of Ascend Fellows at Wind Cave National Park
My heart is filled with love and gratitude for the courageous community of leaders our Ascend at the Aspen Institute team works with everyday.  And I...
PublicationFebruary 14, 2023
This year, the Aspen Idea Festival returns to in-person programming at our campus in the Rocky Mountains June 25 - July 1, 2022.
Ascend FellowshipJune 15, 2022
Four outstanding organizations and partnerships have been selected to receive flexible grant funding to accelerate their work moving children and fami...
BlogDecember 9, 2020
Black Lives Matter. As a collective of leaders committed to advancing two-generation strategies to end multigenerational poverty, we believe that the ...
BlogJune 29, 2020
Kwame AnkuChairman and CEOBlack Star Fund Sacramento, CAMy Vision – The problem I am focusing on solving is breaking the economic disparity...
Ascend FellowshipJune 19, 2019
2018 Ascend Fellows
NEWS RELEASE Contact: Lindsay Broyhill Ascend at the Aspen Institute Tel: 202.721.5596 Lindsay.broyhill@aspeninstitute.org Prestigious Aspen Institute...
Press ReleasesSeptember 6, 2018