Baking
A
CHANGE
OUR TEAM
Cheyanne severance-helms
Advisor
Cheyanne Severance-Helms is a teacher at Weddington High School, where she has taught English since 2020. She attended Western Carolina University, earning degrees in English, English Education, and Spanish. As the faculty advisor for Baking a Change, she is passionate about supporting students in leadership opportunities and their mission to foster community relationships through their passions and talents. Outside of the classroom, you can find her reading a good book, spending time with her fur babies, or baking the one thing she knows how to bake (chocolate-chip cookies!).
AARON FORD
Advisor
Aaron Ford (he/him) is a freshman at Tulane University, where he studies political economy and hopes to engage in student government. Aaron first began baking during his freshman year of high school, often making snacks for student clubs and community gatherings. As a junior and senior, he began baking from scratch, developing particular skill in chocolate chip, butter and sugar cookies, and red velvet cookies. While baking in college has been more challenging due to dorm life, Aaron continues to bake during school breaks, especially alongside his grandmother in Pennsylvania—an experience that grounds his belief in baking as both a creative practice and a form of care, connection, and community building. As an advisor to Baking a Change, Aaron brings a youth-centered, equity-driven perspective rooted in both advocacy and the belief that small, intentional acts—like baking—can be catalysts for connection and social change.
Kelly Banks
Advisor
Kelly Banks- Atlanta, GA
Kelly Banks (she/her) is a proud Black trans woman, entrepreneur, and advocate committed to uplifting marginalized voices and building community through creativity and care. She is the founder of 2CakeGirls Bakery, a growing luxury dessert business whose work has been featured in Ebony Magazine. With a background rooted in both the culinary arts and community engagement, Kelly brings resilience, leadership, and purpose to everything she does.
As part of her philanthropic commitment, Kelly regularly donates baked goods to small nonprofit organizations across the Atlanta area, supporting conferences, fundraisers, and community gatherings—particularly those centered on trans youth, who are often overlooked and under-resourced. For Kelly, baking is more than a business; it is a tool for affirmation, visibility, and care, and a tangible way to show up for young people navigating systems that frequently marginalize them.
Beyond entrepreneurship, Kelly is deeply invested in advocacy and mentorship.
Drawing from her lived experience as a trans woman, she works to challenge stigma, promote visibility, and help create safe, affirming spaces for LGBTQ+ youth and young adults. Through public speaking, grassroots outreach, and community partnership, she empowers others to live boldly and authentically. As an advisor, Kelly brings to Navya’s work a deep commitment to community care, showing how generosity, craftsmanship, and intentional giving can meet real needs and affirm young people who are too often pushed to the margins.
Let’s Bake, Learn, and Give Back—Together.