The gentrification of the Mission District brought a "gang list" that affected young people in a 60-block radius, limiting their freedom of movement and association. Vicente Garcia used his 2007 Young People For fellowship to organize the community to stop the gang list.
Young People For Team
Rebecca is the Director of YP4. A progressive young leader with extensive experience in community organizing and leadership development, Rebecca is passionate about empowering youth to affect change in their communities. Prior to joining YP4, she served as Program Manager for the District of Columbia Youth Advisory Council in the Executive Office of the Mayor, where she provided policy, leadership, and professional development opportunities to the youth council. She has also served as the Legislative Director for the United States Student Association (USSA). Rebecca has provided trainings to students nationwide and has been featured on C-SPAN, in the Washington Post, and the New York Times discussing higher education access and affordability issues. Rebecca comes to YP4 with extensive leadership training including the Women's Campaign School at Yale, the White House Project, and the Center for Progressive Leadership's Michigan Political Leaders Fellowship, among others. Rebecca is originally from Detroit and is a graduate of Northern Michigan University.
Fellowship Department
Zach is the Fellowship Program Manager for YP4. Zach is a proud 2007 YP4 Fellow and former Steering Committee member. He was responsible for managing our 2009 fellowship class that was comprised of 150 leaders on 86 campuses in 29 states. As an active student leader at Florida State University, he served as the director of the Pride Student Union, where he helped to establish the LGBTQ Student Resource Center. In this capacity, he also co-founded and served as chief organizer for the Coalition for an Equitable Community, an alliance of students and organizations dedicated to expanding the university's nondiscrimination policy. During this time, Zach also worked for Refuge House, a local domestic violence and rape crisis center, where he helped develop a social justice program for college-aged participants.
William is the Fellowship Associate at YP4. As a campus leader at the University of North Carolina Wilmington, he held many leadership positions including vice president of the Black Student Union and Resident Assistant. William was elected the first openly gay and second person of color as the Vice President of the student body. He also served as the National Queer Student Coalition Chair for the United States Student Association. Upon graduation, William received a fellowship with the Center for Community Change where he worked to register voters in Northern Virginia. He also serves as an online peer educator for Advocates for Youth, a non-profit that works on adolescent reproductive sexual health issues.
Sakeena Gohagen is a Fellowship Associate at Young People For. She is a graduate of The Florida State University with a Bachelor's degree Sociology and African American Studies. Sakeena is an alumni of the Congressional Black Caucus Foundation and a member of Omicron Delta Kappa National Leadership Honorary. She is also an alum of the United State Student Association, where she served for 2 years on the National Board of Directors for the United States Student Association, as well as a Grassroots Organizing Weekend Trainer, and campus organizer for the 2008 election cycle. Sakeena is an alum of YP4's 2009 class and is excited to support the fellows and alumni in efforts to forward to young progressive movement.
Advanced Leadership & Alumni Department
Joy Lawson is the Advanced Leadership & Alumni Program Manager at YP4. Joy began her career as a student organizer at the University of Kansas. She worked with local organizations to ensure Kansas youth received medically accurate sex education by campaigning local and state school boards. For her work on Sex Education Joy was awarded the Generation-to-Generation Chapter Leadership Award and soon after joined the staff at Choice USA as a National Field Associate and later as the Midwestern States Field Coordinator. At Choice USA she worked to build a stronger progressive movement by training and developing a diverse base of young reproductive justice leaders. Joy is excited to continue her work in leadership development through the YP4 Alumni Network.
Young People For Summer Interns
Terah Edun, 2007 Fellow, is the Advanced Leadership & Social Media Intern at Young People For. She is a recent graduate from Bryn Mawr College with a Bachelor's in Political Science. While at Bryn Mawr she was an active student leader, serving in the Student Government Association as the co-head of the Ethnic Studies Committee and Dorm President. Terah was a Class of 2007 fellow and used her experiences with YP4 to found and serve as the campus Campaign Organizer. Because of her academic focus on conflict resolution and activism, Terah has received several awards, including a grant to attend the 2009 Education Without Borders Conference in Dubai, UAE and a Mellon Mays Undergraduate Fellowship. As an intern with YP4 she hopes to continue working with socially progressive leaders to help develop a base of strong, young leaders.
Diego Janacua, 2010 Fellow, is the Fellowship Intern at Young People For. Diego is currently a senior at the University of California, Los Angeles, majoring in Latin American Studies. On his campus he is a young leader committed to improving his Los Angeles community. Diego has successfully organized students around issues of education, civic participation, urban poverty, and immigration reform at Los Angeles City College and UCLA. As a passionate advocate of higher education, Diego works to increase the enrollment and success of historically underrepresented groups in higher education by working with various high schools, community colleges, and organizations throughout the Los Angeles area. During the summer of 2009, Diego worked for the Governor of California helping to coordinate state outreach efforts to underrepresented populations for the 2010 Census. After graduating, he hopes to enter a MPA program and pursue a career in public service.
Corey Paris, 2010 Fellow, has diligently served his school, community, state and nation in various positions throughout his life. Corey was raised in a family that instilled in him the value and principles of public service and commitment, and this remains the true passion of his heart. Today he is actively involved in many levels of government as he serves as Student Body President for Johnson County Community College, one of the largest community colleges in the nation.