Keely Cat-Wells, CEO of Making Space, named a L’Oréal Paris Woman of Worth 2025

Selected from more than 4,000 nominations, Making Space is 1 of 10 2025 honorees. For 20 years, L’Oréal Paris has honored women who uplift their communities through service. These non-profit leaders, our Women of Worth, each receive $25,000 to support their causes, mentorship from the L’Oréal Paris network and a national platform to share their stories. Learn more about the 2025 Women of Worth and their journeys of strength, ambition and hope below.

Introducing Our 2025 Changemakers This year’s trailblazers share the rules they’re rewriting, the beliefs they refuse to abandon, and the visions that drive them forward.

“The Leaders program is about lifting up the next generation of changemakers who are already making a difference in their communities,” said President Obama. “Each year, I am struck by the passion, creativity, and determination these young people bring to the table. My hope is that through this program, they’ll build lasting connections, learn from one another, and continue driving the kind of change that shapes a more just, sustainable, and hopeful future.”

Making Space combines the best of Indeed and MasterClass to connect disabled workers with career opportunities and to facilitate efforts by employers to increase the hiring of people with disabilities.

Keely Cat-Wells is a 2024 Presidential Leadership Scholar and the Co-Founder and CEO of Making Space and Making Space Media, an organization that provides the necessary resources and opportunities for disabled people to create meaningful careers and become influential leaders. She shares her dedication to advancing the rights of disabled people and how the Presidential Leadership Scholars Program impacted her ability to lead and collaborate in meaningful ways.

Keely Cat-Wells, the founder of Making Space, a talent acquisition platform to help companies connect with workers who have disabilities, said that comments like Mr. Trump’s damage a community that is already severely underrepresented in the work force. People with disabilities are twice as likely to be unemployed, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics.

When I became Disabled in my late teens and started searching for work, I was confronted with barriers including disability discrimination, inaccessible environments, and attitudinal biases. I lost a job simply because a no-cost adaptation was rejected. My story isn’t unique. And it’s just one example of how systemic barriers prevent Disabled people from accessing meaningful employment.

Talent acquisition platform Making Space, founded in 2023 by noted disability activist Keely Cat-Wells, announced today that it has closed on an oversubscribed $2 million pre-seed round led by Beta Boom.

As a Disabled person, I measure my energy strategically, evaluating events and opportunities with a heightened discernment. I try to approach managing my energy like my finances, investing it thoughtfully and intentionally, aiming for a meaningful return on investment. This often means researching who will be there, ensuring that my efforts are directed toward connections and opportunities that truly matter.