National Nonprofit Year Up Appoints Cyril Turner as President

BOSTON, March 04, 2019 /PRNewswire-PRWeb/ -- Continuing to expand its proven workforce development program for young adults, the nonprofit Year Up announced today that it has appointed Cyril Turner as its new President, effective March 4, 2019.

Previously, Turner served as a Senior Vice President of Delta Air Lines, Inc. He was President of Delta Global Services (DGS) and Delta Private Jets (DPJ), where he led the successful turnaround of both subsidiaries. He also oversaw Delta Connection, overseeing six regional airlines for Delta, including Compass, ExpressJet, GoJet, Republic and SkyWest, as well as Delta's wholly owned subsidiary, Endeavor Air.

"Cyril's leadership, innovative thinking and strong history of driving growth in the private sector will be critical as we continue to grow Year Up and build more partnerships with top companies across the U.S.," said Gerald Chertavian, Year Up Founder and CEO. "His experience in scaling large organizations will enable us to provide more talented, motivated young people with access to meaningful careers and higher education."

As President of Year Up, Turner will report to Chertavian, and will be accountable for driving performance in all aspects of the organization and managing its overall P&L.

"I'm overjoyed to join Year Up, which I believe is uniquely positioned to improve the outcomes for young adults without college degrees, an underserved and under-addressed population," said Turner. "Helping to close the Opportunity Divide — and ensure more young adults can gain the skills and experience they need to succeed in the workplace — is the most meaningful work I can do and Year Up provides a great platform for me do this work."

During his tenure at Delta, Turner's team more than quadrupled the number of employees at Delta Global Services and oversaw its expansion to 180 locations. His team doubled profits at Delta Private Jets for two consecutive years and increased its market share, expanding the company from five owned jets to more than 75 leased private jets. Prior to Delta, Turner held numerous leadership roles at Coca-Cola Enterprises, as well as at Frito-Lay and Deloitte & Touche.

Turner is based in Atlanta, Georgia, where he serves on a number of community boards. He is currently a member of the Executive Leadership Council (ELC), a board member of CHRIS 180, and is an executive board member of Junior Achievement of Georgia. He also serves on the advisory board of the Future Foundation.

Turner simultaneously earned a Bachelor of Science in Physics from Morehouse College and a Bachelor of Science in Mechanical Engineering from Georgia Institute of Technology. He earned his Master's of Business Administration in Finance from The Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania, and also studied at Harvard Business School and the London Business School.

Founded in Boston in 2000, Year Up now serves more than 4,500 young adults every year, connecting them with meaningful wage careers in business and IT at hundreds of top companies across the country. A recent federally-sponsored evaluation of Year Up showed a 53% increase in initial earnings for young adults randomly assigned to Year Up compared with similar young adults in a control group—the largest impacts on earnings reported to date for a workforce program tested in a randomized controlled trial. Ninety percent of Year Up graduates are employed and/or enrolled in postsecondary education within four months of completing the program, with employed graduates earning an average starting salary of $40,000 per year.

About Year Up

Year Up is an award-winning, national 501(c)3 organization that enables motivated young adults, ages 18-24, 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 24,000 young adults since its founding in 2000, and will serve more than 4,700 young adults in 2019 across 25 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, 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 for eight consecutive years, and rated a 4-star charity by Charity Navigator for twelve consecutive years, placing them in the top 1% of tracked organizations.

To learn more, visit http://www.yearup.org, and follow us on LinkedIn, Facebook, and Twitter.

SOURCE Year Up