Young Adult Advocacy Council Leadership Team

Cameron Crouse is a biomedical engineer from Annapolis, Maryland. Diagnosed with type 1 diabetes one month before his third birthday, his family joined Breakthrough T1D the following year. He has participated in Walks with friends and family, taken part in Together We Can Campaigns and Children’s Congress with his mother, and participated in Rides with his dad; over two decades his teams have raised more than $10,000 annually. He earned Best Young Rider awards at the 2013 and 2014 Nashville rides and launched a fundraiser in his hometown of Tuscaloosa, Alabama, that has yielded over $1,000 each year since 2011.

Cameron earned a B.S. in Bioengineering from Clemson University, where he became involved in tissue‑engineering research. As an undergraduate, he interned at Boston’s Joslin Diabetes Center, and became acquainted with Dr. Cherie Stabler, his current graduate advisor. He is now a fifth‑year PhD candidate at the University of Florida, studying how oxygen influences cell transplantation outcomes.

In 2023 he became a YAAC member and has served for two years as co‑chair of its Research & Advancements Committee, interviewing researchers to demystify type 1 diabetes and developing a survey to assess clinical‑trial participation gaps among young adults.

Outside of research and advocacy, Cameron spends time with fiancée Kaitlin and their cat Calvin, lifts weights, plays intramural football, softball, and soccer, and supports the Virginia Tech Hokies and Baltimore‑area teams.

Cameron aspires to be a career advocate, championing type 1 diabetes research and speaking for those affected.

Arianna was diagnosed with T1D when she was 11 years old, which sparked her passion for diabetes technology. She graduated as the valedictorian of Stevens Institute of Technology with a degree in biomedical engineering, and received her M.S. in biomedical engineering from Columbia University.

 
She is the co-founder of Daia Diabetes where she is developing Lowcate, an app for smarter sugar sharing. Her team is working with the community to build a tool that provides education to the people who can help during a low blood sugar. She also works as a product manager for Gluroo, a comprehensive diabetes management app. She has contributed to published neuroscience research and previously interned in a laboratory that is researching stem cell reeducation as a potential cure for type one diabetes.

 
Outside of working in the diabetes space, Arianna is an active volunteer with Breakthrough T1D. Growing up, she attended local walks and was a Youth Ambassador. She was a Children’s Congress Delegate in 2019, and has been a part of the Young Adult Advocacy Council’s leadership team since its development in 2022. She regularly meets with government officials to advocate for funding for diabetes research.

Jonah Marks is a consultant from Los Angeles, California. He has had Type 1 Diabetes for 16 years and has volunteered with Breakthrough T1D for just as long. His family started the walk team “The Marks Jonah Marks is a consultant from Los Angeles, California. Diagnosed at six years old, he has lived with T1D for 16 years. His family started the walk team “The Marks Family Marchers” in the Greater Los Angeles chapter, which has raised over a quarter of a million dollars to date. In 2013, Jonah was selected as a California delegate for Children’s Congress, where he met with Congressman Brad Sherman, as well as Senator Barbara Boxer and then Vice President Joe Biden. He was also the President of the Youth Ambassadors for the LA chapter from 2020 to 2022. While he was in college, Jonah volunteered with the Northern California chapter. He is a three time participant in Breakthrough T1D On the Hill, where he has represented the state of California proudly.

Currently, Jonah is the Co-Chair of the Research and Advancements committee on the Young Adult Advocacy Council. He has been a member of the YAAC for four years.

Jonah holds two Bachelors of Arts degrees with honors from the University of California, Santa Cruz in Biotechnology and Psychology. He currently lives in Washington DC and works for the California based consulting firm Actum. He spends his free time volunteering with the Greater DC Metro chapter, playing recreational golf and paddling with a dragon boat crew.