Platinum Sponsors:

On January 30th, 2007, Year Up's Class of January 2007 filled the Boston Park Plaza to capacity, celebrating their graduation with more than 450 family members, corporate partners, program supporters, and community leaders. The platinum sponsors of the event were Bank of America, Microsoft and TAC Worldwide. We were honored to have Stephen J. Pemberton, Chief Diversity Officer and Vice President of Diversity an Inclusion at Monster, as our keynote speaker.

Eileen Brown, Chancellor and Founder of Cambridge College, was presented with Year Up's Urban Empowerment Award. This award recognizes individuals who have made an incredible impact on their community by empowering urban young adults to reach their potential.

As with each celebration, Year Up's graduates inspired the audience by sharing their personal experiences and defining their vision of true success. Sao Bockarie, reflected on the importance of the opportunities provided to him. "Opportunities are rare and not to be taken for granted. I have been fortunate to have been given two great opportunities in my life to continue education and achieve my goals. For that, I will forever be grateful."

Graduate Onassis Matos provided some advice to his fellow graduates on being able to make changes in one's life. "The future is full of opportunities and surprises. My advice to you is to not allow them to slip by and be prepared to make changes in your life because change is the only constant. I disliked change, but thanks to Year Up, I understood that it is an essential part of life."

Year Up is honored to announce the Class of January 2007 awards and scholarships:

The Dave Retik Award for Excellence: Mia Olivero, Orion Almonte, Willmarie Narvaez

The Chris Mello Award for Leadership: Richard Gaul, Carlos Hernandez, and Nicole Hobbs

SIM Leadership Award: Gregory Walton

Harvard Extension School Scholarships: Stephanie Jobson, Sumaira Tabassum, and Humaira Tabassum