Over the past several years, Ash has spoken at fundraising events across the country and raised nearly $100,000 for organizations including Understood.org, Made by Dyslexia, and the National Center for Learning Disabilities. His advocacy work also connects to Swarthmore in an unexpected way: The Orton-Gillingham reading method, which shaped his early education, was co-developed 125 years ago by Anna Gillingham, Class of 1900.

Long before philanthropy entered the picture, though, Ash’s creative instincts surfaced in that second-grade classroom. During an assignment to design a mug, he decided to attach a miniature basketball hoop to the back (for throwing marshmallows into hot chocolate) as a Hanukkah gift for his brother. Classmates began copying the idea — something that initially frustrated him until his mother reframed it as a compliment. With his family’s encouragement, Ash partnered with a 3D designer and manufacturer, eventually building a thriving, small business, MAX’IS Creations to sell the Mug with a Hoop and other sports-themed mugs shaped like baseballs and soccer balls.

At Swarthmore, Ash channels that drive into his engineering coursework and the golf team, which he describes as a “family away from home.” Practices, workouts, and time on the course fill most of his free hours. But Ash lights up when talking about the camaraderie.

“We push each other to be the best students, athletes, and people we can be.”