This is David Vance (they/them), The Center’s Director of Advocacy and Civic Engagement, and I’m excited to invite you to our Young Professionals Council (YPC) Academy graduation, taking place on Wednesday, June 25!
The Center’s YPC Academy, founded in 2012, empowers young LGBTQ+ individuals and allies (ages 21-40) by enhancing their skills, networks, and connections with community leaders. The 2025 YPC Academy offered a wide array of presentations, skill-building exercises, and trainings. The class get to meet with elected officials like Assemblymember Chris Ward, Supervisor Monica Montgomery-Steppe, Congresswoman Sara Jacobs who was an honoree at this year’s LGBTQ+ Luminaries Lunch!
Our 2025 class represents a diverse range of professions and interests, from therapists to union organizers to drag entertainers. This is also the third time in the history of Young Professionals Council that all participants identify as members of the LGBTQ+ community!
I was a member of the 2016 YPC Academy class, and I’m forever grateful to the program for the doors it opened for me. Knowing the dedication and passion it takes firsthand, it’s been a joy to spend the past few months with our 2025 YPC class and watch this inspiring group of LGBTQ+ young people connect, build transformative relationships, and learn directly from local leaders. Every year we hear from our participants that the greatest value of YPC is the connections our participants form with each other, which they will carry forward in their mission to advance LGBTQ+ equity and justice.
In this current moment where our community is facing incessant attacks from the federal government on our identities, our fundamental rights, and the critical services that support us, now is the time to invest in the next generation of LGBTQ+ leaders in San Diego. These young leaders will be shepherding our movement into tomorrow, and they deserve our investment.
We are so excited to see the culmination of their hard work at the graduation ceremony, where we will honor their accomplishments and raise the necessary funds for next year’s YPC Academy. This year’s YPC class plans the ceremony, giving them an opportunity to practice what they’ve learned and celebrate their progress, while also paying it forward to future YPC leaders.
The 2025 YPC Academy graduation will be held on Wednesday, June 25 at the Centro Cultural de la Raza from 6-8pm. Tickets start at $25 and sponsorship levels start at $250. Buy your tickets or make a gift to the YPC Academy today. All proceeds support the YPC Academy.
Whether you are a YPC alumni, have a personal connection to one of our class members, would like to learn more about the YPC program, or care about empowering emerging LGBTQ+ leaders, there’s no better time than National Pride Month to support the next generation of LGBTQ+ leaders.
We can’t wait to see the transformative impact our 2025 YPC class will make, and we hope you will join us in honoring them at their graduation!
In community,
David Vance (they/them)
Director of Advocacy and Civic Engagement