Meet Luis Cabrales-Vasquez, pronouns They/He. Luis holds a master’s degree in social work and celebrates over six years working at Year Up United. Today, they are the Associate Director of Diversity, Equity, Inclusion, and Belonging (DEIB), bringing connection, a lot of laughs, and even more kindness to the Year Up United workplace.

Yesenia Morales is a Year Up United graduate from the Bay Area who continues to gain momentum in her career at LinkedIn. She considers herself a natural introvert who got out of her comfort zone and challenged herself both personally and professionally. Through Yesenia’s words, we understand the power of self-belief, opportunity, and community.

Meet Maygan Hooper: a Year Up United graduate from Los Angeles who took a new approach to achieving her dreams and currently works at Sony Interactive Entertainment.

Introducing Thai Nguyen: a community leader and a proud Year Up United graduate from Tampa Bay. Thai has not only found success in the professional realm at JPMorgan Chase, but he has also leveraged his alumni status to make meaningful contributions through the Year Up United community and beyond. Since completing the Year Up United program, Thai has been a peer mentor, a volunteer, and he’s also become a homeowner — emphasizing the profound positive impact, not only on his own life but also on the lives of others. His advice to future Year Up United students? Thai advocates for investing in one's future, and in experiences that pave the way to a brighter and more successful tomorrow.

Meet Tatiana Beltre and Sakara Sharp. The two Year Up United alumnae have achieved noteworthy milestones – both personal and professional – since graduating from the Year Up United program. Today, they work full time at Bank of America, a Year Up United partner since 2007. In this Q&A, we learn about some of those achievements, as well as the advice they have for those interested in following in their footsteps.

The Year Up United graduate from the National Capital Region now works as a Business IT Analyst at Exelon Corporation, the nation’s leading competitive energy provider.