Year Up Founder and CEO Gerald Chertavian to Speak at Social Innovation Summit

BOSTON, June 4, 2020 /PRNewswire-PRWeb/ -- As the United States continues to grapple with an economic crisis — and as systemic racism continues to deny opportunity to people of color — the nonprofit workforce development program Year Up announced that its Founder and CEO, Gerald Chertavian, will speak at today's Social Innovation Summit at 11 am ET on "Closing the Opportunity Divide" and how to increase access to meaningful careers for young adults without four-year college degrees.

"Young people today need to know that there is hope – that their talent, determination and motivation to succeed can lead to a career and that there are programs and partnerships in place to provide them with pathways to opportunity," said Chertavian. "At the same time, we recognize just how much work we still need to do to ensure a more inclusive, just and equitable country and economy. My talk will focus on how we can rebuild and recover, and how the private sector can lead moving forward."

Launched in Boston in 2000, Year Up has served 30,000 young adults to date in cities across the U.S., with 90 percent of graduates employed or enrolled in postsecondary education within four months of completing the yearlong program, earning average starting salaries of $42,000/year. Almost half of Year Up's students are Black/African American, and almost one-third are Hispanic or Latino. The nonprofit partners with more than 250 leading companies to provide them with a pipeline of skilled, diverse talent.

Chertavian will join other distinguished speakers and executives at the Social Innovation Summit on topics ranging from Future of Work; Education & STEM; Sustainability; Emergency Relief & Recovery; Tech for Good; Economic Inclusion; Impact Investing; Youth Development; Leading with Purpose; and Gender Equity. To view the full roster of speakers and detailed agenda, please visit https://www.socinnovation.com/.

For more than 15 years, Social Innovation Summit has provided the ultimate platform for sharing best practices, early lessons gleaned, and rising challenges among those who share a commitment to enabling more inclusive and equitable communities.

"Social Innovation Summit serves as a critical convening, where the most important conversations take place and vital partnerships can be quickly developed and engaged," shared Zeev Klein, founder and curator. "This year's virtual Summit will deliver inspiring content designed to bring together those dedicated to amplifying purpose-driven work in this crisis environment."

The Summit will take place in bite-size sessions from 11:00 am-1:00 pm ET and 2:00 pm-4:00 pm ET from June 2-4. Each morning and afternoon session will comprise of a variety of formats including digital main stage conversations, interactive breakouts/workshops, and VIP networking.

The event is supported by sponsors including: AARP, Best Buy, Blackbaud, BlackRock, Comcast NBCUniversal, Discovery Education, eBay, Fidelity Charitable, Horizon Therapeutics, Kauffman Foundation, Lyft, Microsoft, NAF, NIKE, Postmates, Prudential Financial, PwC, Starbucks, The Giving Back Fund, UBS, and WE Communications.

Attendees can register for free here.

About Year Up

Year Up is an award-winning, national 501(c)3 organization that enables motivated young adults to move from minimum wage to meaningful careers in just one year by providing the skills, experience, and support they need to reach their full potential. Through a one-year, intensive program, Year Up utilizes a high-expectations, high-support model that combines marketable job skills, stipends, coursework eligible for college credit, and corporate internships at more than 250 top companies. Its holistic approach focuses on students' professional and personal development to enable young adults with a viable path to economic self-sufficiency and meaningful careers. Year Up has served more than 30,000 young adults since its founding in 2000, and expects to serve 5,000 young adults this year. Year Up has presence in 27 U.S. cities, including Arizona, Baltimore, Bay Area, Charlotte, Chicago, Dallas/Fort Worth, Greater Atlanta, Greater Boston, Greater Philadelphia, Jacksonville, Los Angeles, the National Capital Region, New York City/Jersey City, Pittsburg, Puget Sound, Rhode Island, South Florida, Tampa Bay, and Wilmington. Year Up has been voted one of the "Best Non-Profits to Work For" by The NonProfit Times. To learn more, visit http://www.yearup.org, and follow us on LinkedIn, Facebook, and Twitter.

About Social Innovation Summit

Operating at the nexus of technology, philanthropy, and business, Social Innovation Summit brings together the brightest minds – across industries, sectors, and generations – to catalyze inspired partnerships that are disrupting social impact. We have worked diligently to curate and convene a social good community that is an influential and action-oriented agent for impact, and a unique platform in which the norm is challenged, the new is embraced, and the unexpected is celebrated. After 17 successful summits in Chicago, Silicon Valley, Los Angeles, Washington, D.C., and the UN in New York, online registration is now open for the Summit's three-day virtual experience on June 2-4, 2020 that will include main stage programming, interactive breakout sessions, and VIP opportunities.

For more information, please visit http://www.socinnovation.com.

SOURCE Year Up