Alumni

Lourdes M. Rosado is a YC alumna who helped start the organization in 1980. Ms. Rosado is currently the inaugural program director at the New York Civil Liberties Union (NYCLU) and is a long-standing youth and social justice advocate. Prior to joining NYCLU, Ms. Rosado was chief of the Civil Rights Bureau in the New York State Office of the Attorney General. As bureau chief, Ms. Rosado supervised enforcement actions and litigation in federal and state courts. Ms. Rosado was the associate director of the Juvenile Law Center in Philadelphia for 17 years, pioneering juvenile justice and child welfare work. She is a graduate of Swarthmore College, holds a M.A. from Columbia University’s School of International and Public Affairs, a J.D. from New York University School of Law, and a LL.M. from Georgetown University Law Center. Ms. Rosado is currently vice president of YC’s Board of Directors.

Edwidge, ’86, is an acclaimed writer of novels, nonfiction, and books for young adults. Her second book, Krik? Krak!, was a finalist for a National Book Award, as was her investigation into the death of her uncle in Miami’s immigration jail, Brother, I’m Dying. Her first book, Breath, Eyes, Memory, was an Oprah’s Book Club selection. In an interview in Essence, Edwidge said, “At 14 I was asked by a New York City-based newspaper, New Youth Connections (now called YCteen), to write about my experience as a new immigrant…my public writing career began.” She also credits one of her Youth Communication stories as being the nucleus for her first book. She is a graduate of Barnard College and holds an MFA from Brown University. Edwidge wrote the forewords to two Youth Communication anthologies, Starting With I, and Haiti on My Mind.

David, ’93, is a senior staff attorney at the Urban Justice Center, Peter Cicchino Youth Project. He has also worked as a staff attorney at Bronx Defenders and associate at Troutman Sanders in New York City. He studied at Antioch and Sarah Lawrence, where he got a BA in international relations. He has a law degree from the University of Pennsylvania.

Ferentz, ’94, is Saybrook College Dean at Yale University. He has worked as the Director of the Center for Cultural Engagement at the Catholic University of America (CUA), Director of the Davis Center at Williams College, and as a professor in the Literary Studies Program at Eugene Lang College, The New School for Liberal Arts.  He has also served as a faculty member in the History and Social Sciences Department at Georgetown Day School. He earned a BA in English literature from Queens College and a PhD in African-American studies from Yale. He received a Mellon Fellowship and a Leadership Alliance Fellowship. He published a memoir, Songs in the Key of My Life, in 2007.

Rachel L. Swarns ’84 served as managing editor of Youth Communication’s YCteen magazine, where she published more than a dozen stories while she was a high school student. Rachel has been a reporter for The New York Times since 1995. Her articles about Georgetown University’s roots in slavery touched off a national conversation about American universities and their ties to this painful period of history.  She has reported from Russia, Cuba, Guatemala and southern Africa, where she served as the Times’ Johannesburg bureau chief. She has also served as a Metro columnist in New York City.  She is the author of American Tapestry: The Story of the Black, White, and Multiracial Ancestors of Michelle Obama, which was named one of the 100 Notable Books of 2012 by The New York Times Book Review and one of the “year’s outstanding books for public library collections” by Booklist. Rachel joined New York University’s Arthur L. Carter Journalism Institute as an associate professor in 2017.

Lisa, ’88, was a New York City Teaching Fellow and is a high school teacher in the city. She has also worked at various film, broadcast, and print media jobs, and as a quilter. She received a BS degree in broadcast communications from Long Island University C.W. Post Campus and a master’s degree in English education from The City College of New York.

Shawn, ’80, wrote for the very first Youth Communication publication in March of 1980. He has a degree in English from Wesleyan University and received a graduate degree in education administration from Teachers College at Columbia University. He has been co-director of the Countee Cullen Community Center at the Rheedlen Foundation (which became the Harlem Children’s Zone), where he founded Harlem Overheard, a teen-written community newspaper. He is the director of the Campaign for Black Male Achievement at the Open Society Institute.

Veronica Chambers, ’89, is the author of over a dozen books and is best known for her critically acclaimed memoir, Mama’s Girl which has been adopted by courses in hundreds of high schools and colleges throughout the country. She has been a senior editor at the New York Times Magazine, Newsweek, and Glamour.

Sheila, ’91, is the author of one-bedroom solo (Fly by Night Press, 2011), her debut poetry collection.Her poems have appeared in Rattapallax, Callaloo and Me No Habla with Acento: Contemporary Latino Poetry. She teaches creative writing for The City University of New York and Teachers & Writers Collaborative. She holds degrees in English from Brown University and poetry from The City College of New York.

Danny, ’98, teaches American Sign Language in Japan. He has a BA in dramatic writing from SUNY Purchase and a certificate in American Sign Language from LaGuardia Community College. Watch him signing at www.youtube.com and learn more about his work at www.deafjapan.com.

Orubba, ’09, was named salutatorian of her class at the City College of New York-CUNY, where she earned double BA degrees in English and history.  At her graduation ceremony, Orubba delivered a speech expressing her gratitude for her father’s encouragement to pursue an education and to break free from the “girls don’t go to college” tradition in her Yemeni family. She so impressed fellow graduates and guests– including First Lady Michelle Obama– that she received an invitation to the White House’s United State of Women Summit. Orubba is now an advocate for other young women in her culture to stand up for their rights to an education.  She plans to earn a master’s degree in near eastern studies at New York University and pursue her PhD at the University of Michigan.

Melvin, ’14, graduated from and received a two-year scholarship to attend Stella Adler Studio of Acting. His story, Tough Guise, was chosen for Teaching Tolerance its anti-bias curriculum. Melvin was one of three YCteen writers who were guests on The Brian Lehrer Show to discuss the 250th issue of YCteen, which was on the topic of gender.

Gina, ’93, is the founder of the hugely popular lifehacker.com. Gina is the also the founder and creator of Makerbase, an IMDb for web sites and apps and ThinkUp, an app that gives users insights into their social networks. She is the author of Lifehacker: Upgrade Your Life, a book about how simple technology tweaks can make life easier and more rewarding. She has a degree in English from Marist College.

Pauline, ’06, received her masters degree in social work from Fordham University. She has worked as an advocate for youth in foster care in organizations such as the Mental Health Association of New York, YOUTHPower, and Lawyers for Children. Pauline was a grand prize winner in the 10th Annual Awards for Youth in Foster Care.

Sharon, ’02, is the Chief Digital Officer of Rachael Ray’s parent company Watch Entertainment and was the publisher of www.mashable.com.  She works as advisor to The Muse, Mashable, FitBark and #GivingTuesday. Sharon has a degree in journalism from SUNY New Paltz.

Victoria, ’95, She is the author of Resistance Behind Bars: The Struggles of Incarcerated Women, which won the 2009 PASS (Prevention for a Safer Society) award. She frequently writes and speaks about the intersections between mass incarceration, gender and resistance. Since 2003, she has edited Tenacious: Art and Writings by Women in Prison. In addition, she has worked with incarcerated women to develop their writings for other publications. Victoria has also worked with writers outside of prison. She is the co-editor of Don’t Leave Your Friends Behind: Concrete Ways to Support Families in Social Justice Movements and Communities (PM Press 2012). She has a degree in English from Brooklyn College.