Letter from Sara: A New Chapter for the Model Alliance

The last four and a half years at the Model Alliance have been incredibly productive and rewarding. Today, though, I am writing to let you know that I have accepted a position with The Workers Lab, where I have the opportunity to lead an exciting new project and advance political and strategic conversation about the future of work. As a result, today, I am stepping down as Executive Director of the Model Alliance.

While this is a fantastic opportunity that will complement our efforts at the Model Alliance and that also promises to be challenging and exciting in new ways, it is difficult to be moving on from working day-to-day with such an outstanding team and running this very special organization that we have built together.

In my place, I am grateful that Madeline Hill, Meredith Hattam and Aine Campbell are stepping up as interim co-directors of the Model Alliance. They have all worked as fashion models and used their insights and experiences to educate the industry and the public through our organization.

Madeline joined the Model Alliance in 2014, after working as a model for six years. As someone who has worked as both a straight-sized and "plus-size" model, Madeline advocates for size equality within the industry. After retiring from modeling, Madeline studied at Oxford University and graduated with a degree in Sociology from the University of Georgia, where she researched the working conditions of Western models in Japan. Currently, she works as a writer and digital strategist in Los Angeles.

Meredith joined our team in 2012 after working as a model for four years, in the U.S. and abroad. Her desire to see change in the industry led her to work with the Model Alliance, where she has served as an Advisory Board member and as our creative lead to date. Meredith is an interactive designer with a background in journalism, and has written at length about injustices in the industry for publications including The Atlantic, VICE, and others.

Aine joined the Model Alliance in 2012 and became an Advisory Board member in 2014. She has co-organized events and guest lectured at Rutgers University about models' labor conditions. In addition to modeling internationally, Aine has worked as a campaign strategist for a number of nonprofit organizations. In New York, she also started a group called Beyond the Runway, which aims to support models' professional development and interests outside of modeling.

Moving forward, I am committed to supporting a smooth transition and I will continue to play an active role on the Board of Directors. Although I am leaving this position, this is not a goodbye so much as an update on my plans and an introduction to Madeline, Meredith and Aine as we plan ahead.

With gratitude,

Sara

Author

Sara Ziff

Sara Ziff is the founding director of the Model Alliance. She has worked as a model for nearly two decades and produced the feature documentary Picture Me, which chronicles her and other models’ experiences of their industry. Sara spearheaded and oversaw efforts to extend labor protections to child fashion models in New York State. She also helped to draft and introduce legislation that would create the first federal protections for child performers. Sara received her B.A. from Columbia University and her M.P.A. from Harvard Kennedy School of Government.