Malzkuhn, ML2 announced as Elevate Prize Finalists 

Melissa Malzkuhn, director of The Motion Light Lab, has been named one of 24 finalists for the prestigious Elevate Prize. The Elevate Prize, awarded by the Elevate Prize Foundation, is a global movement that finances change agents’ goals of ushering system change through different initiatives ranging from climate change to language access. 
 
The 24 finalists are a diverse group of impressive individuals, two of whom Malzkuhn knows from her 2018 Obama Fellowship cohort. Out of those 24 finalists, ten will be chosen to receive $5 million in funding.  

If ML2 makes it through the final round and secures the Elevate funding, this would be the second high-profile grant the lab has garnered within a year span. 
 

Grants are a vital component of funding for ML2. They give the lab the ability to develop a wide range of ASL resources aimed towards language literacy for Deaf children. Malzkuhn says, “This recognition fuels our work in ensuring sign language resources and access for all deaf children. Thank you to everybody who has supported us along the way!” 

In 2022, the Lego Foundation awarded the Motion Light Lab a $1 million capacity-building grant that is dedicated to the PLAYFVL (Play and Language Access for Your Family through Visual Learning) project, which is a collaboration with SKI-HI.  

Congratulations and best wishes, Melissa and ML2!