yep! @ You Lead

Since yep!'s inception, we have worked to become more active in the local and statewide communities by working to create a better environment for young professionals to thrive in Pennsylvania. In the past, our Civic Engagement Committee has worked on the local level to organize political debates and forums to educate our members - and the community at large - about issues that impact our age demographic.

yep! -like many young professionals organizations from across the Commonwealth - can help politicians connect to younger voters in many different ways. In addition, each organization can provide the perspective of their membership to help create better legislation and overall impact in Pennsylvania.

A few days ago I received a e-mail from Erin Molchany at PUMP - Pittsburgh Urban Magnate Project - about an initiative she is working on with Pennsylvania State Senator Rob Wonderling.

The initiative is called You Lead and to quote their press release is " a statewide effort to engage citizens age 21 – 34 in policy with the goal of the program to make Pennsylvania a premier state for young adults to live, work, and start a business. By providing a forum that welcomes discussion about issues and public policy throughout the state, and by working together with individuals from all regions, young people will be empowered to advance a legislative agenda that brings a fresh perspectives and creative solutions to Pennsylvania’s challenge of attracting and retaining new generations of residents and business owners.

On November 19, 2008, YouLead hosted a conference in Harrisburg with young people, entrepreneurs, educators, and legislators to discuss the issues important to Pennsylvania’s youth. The result was a number of proposals centered around three areas: Entrepreneurship; Education; and Empowerment. This winter, we have been working on legislation to address these issues, along with organizing a statewide young person’s network, and developing a platform for the younger adult population of the state to have their voice heard in Harrisburg."

I will be traveling to Harrisburg next for the kickoff of the YouLead initiative and look forward to working with the yep! leadership team to help us make a larger impact.

yep! WQLN Interview

yep! was featured on the March 1st edition of We Question and Learn. Thanks to Tom Pyz and WQLN for conducting the interview.

Click here to listen to the interview

About the program:

We Question and Learn" is dedicated to being a community interest program devoting an entire hour to interviews with Erie's prominent leaders, business people, educators, focusing in on business and technology as well as interviews with community development leaders.

Video killed the radio star

WPSE-AM 1450 interviewed Rebecca Styn and I about the 2009 Generation E Leadership Awards that will be held on April 24th at the Bayfront Convention Center.

The clip recently aired and can be heard by clicking here.

Thanks to Ron Slomski and his staff for helping us get the word out about yep! and Generation E.

Opportunities in the Erie Region

An added bonus of being yep! President is that you learn a lot more about all of the organizations in the community. I have had the privilege of meeting with several groups since January and have found that many of them are looking for young professionals to get more involved. In addition, many local employers contact us on a regular basis when they are looking to fill job openings.

yep! advertises these opportunities on our website and also via our monthly newsletter that is sent to our members. Be sure to check our opportunities page for the latest volunteer and job positions that are available in the region. We also added a Indeed.com search box on the site to help you locate positions that are posted on local and national job boards.