Dear friends,

Nearly five years ago, I came to People For the American Way Foundation with the goal of building a nationwide program to support young progressive leaders — to identify and prepare them for lifetimes of leadership in the movement — as campus activists, community organizers, business leaders, philanthropists, nonprofit directors, campaign directors and elected officials.

I found this purpose especially critical given the strategic investment the radical right had been making in young conservative leaders for the past 30 years. I wanted a chance to build our own thriving network of young progressives to fill the statehouses, the halls of Congress, the executive branch and the courts — to support the community leaders, skilled organizers, academics and media personalities that will help shape the public debate and create positive social change.

From the start, Young People For has been committed to supporting the next generation of leadership. To that end, over the last year I have been transitioning my leadership at Young People For to a trusted, capable and exceptional staff now led by Shaunna Thomas. This quarter, in culmination of that transition, I am stepping down as director of Young People For. My final day will be June 30. I am excited to take time off to be with my family (Isaac is now 10 months old!). I look forward to celebrating the continued successes of the program as the next leadership team steps forward to infuse Young People For with their ideas, energy and vision. After taking a three- to six-month break, I will rejoin the People For family as a consultant working on a variety of exciting projects.

When we started Young People For in 2004, we sought to design a series of programs to turn young people’s innovative ideas into action, to give them unique professional experiences in the movement and to make sure they had powerful opportunities to engage in public and political life — beyond Election Days.

Now recruiting for our fifth fellowship class, we continue to grow our network of nearly 1,000 young, diverse progressives in 24 states around the country, recruiting in places that are too often overlooked. Though it has always been a group effort, I take personal pride in the fact that our network is intentionally supporting leaders from a growing network of tribal colleges, community colleges, technical colleges, historically black colleges and universities and Hispanic-serving institutions. We will continue to focus on building a platform for these inspired and inspiring young leaders to find and raise their voices.

As these young leaders have moved through Young People For, we have responded to their needs by launching multiple long-term leadership programs to support their professional and personal development. From career and life coaching to state-based networking to mentoring relationships to internships and fellowships, all of these programs are designed to ensure that these young, diverse leaders continue to positively impact our movement beyond their college experience — to turn what might have otherwise been a limited role in the progressive movement into a lifelong one.

Five years ago, I could not have imagined the impact we would be able to have in such a short period of time. This success is in large part due to you and your visionary and critical support of us throughout the years.

I want to thank you for making this leadership transition possible through your generous, strategic and continued support of our work. Together we truly are building a network of diverse, talented and visionary leaders for the progressive movement.

This is an exciting time for Young People For. I hope you will join me in celebrating and ensuring the program’s continued success.

Warmly,

Iara D. Peng
Founder and Director, Young People For