Presidential Precinct to Host Young Leaders of the Americas Initiative This Fall

Charlottesville, VA- The Presidential Precinct is pleased to announce that it will host participants from the U.S. Department of State’s Young Leaders of the Americas Initiative (YLAI) Professional Fellows Program in October and November 2016. As part of the program, ten young business and social entrepreneurs from Latin America and the Caribbean will come to the Presidential Precinct as a part of a larger YLAI Network. The YLAI program comes out of a commitment to cultivating entrepreneurship and expanding opportunities for emerging entrepreneurs and innovative civil society leaders in the Americas, sharing the Precinct’s global focus on empowering next generation leaders through education, collaboration, and digital networking.

The five-week YLAI Professional Fellows Program will place business and social entrepreneurs in relevant businesses and start-ups, non-governmental organizations, and similar entities throughout Charlottesville, VA. The participants will arrive on October 8 and will further develop their business or social venture plans by engaging in skills-building workshops.  They will also have the opportunity to learn from U.S. counterparts by job-shadowing and participating in day-to-day operations at their U.S. host organizations.  YLAI Professional Fellows will develop stronger ties with other participants from Latin America and the Caribbean, as well as with their U.S. fellowship hosts.

To complement this fall’s U.S.-based program, 45 fellowship hosts from 21 cities around the U.S. will travel to the region in spring 2017 to learn about the fellows’ businesses, share best practices, and support the progress of the fellows’ action plans. Additionally, U.S. fellowship hosts will participate in speaking events and small-scale trainings.

The Presidential Precinct is seeking Charlottesville area businesses, for-profit, and nonprofit organizations to serve as hosts for the duration of the four-week fellowship. For information on becoming a host organization, please contact Nancy Hopkins, Director of Programs, at nhopkins@presidentialprecinct.org.

For further information on the YLAI Professional Fellows Program, visit  ylai.state.gov.

Press Contact:
Drew Precious, Marketing & Communications Manager
dprecious@presidentialprecinct.org

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