Leading the Inner City from Gangs to Prosperity

MSEL Presents: Christopher Yanov

Check in and breakfast begin at 7:15 a.m.
Event will be held from 8 a.m. – 9 a.m.

Please RSVP no later than March 21 by going to http://bit.ly/MSELChrisYanov.

A key challenge of leadership is to educate and inspire those around us to lead more effectively in their own lives. This challenge is of critical importance in communities of at-risk individuals and young adults who, too often, are presented with lifestyle alternatives that are damaging, dangerous and an economic drain on society, such as with young adults and gangs. Here are some facts:

• Gang violence affects everyone in the United States. About one in every 31 adults in this country, according to the Pew Center, is in prison, in jail or on supervised release. That means 30 other adults are sharing the cost of incarcerating every inmate.
• As the 21st century begins, nearly 25 percent of males incarcerated in the United States claim a gang affiliation. Finding and implementing ways to end gang violence can save taxpayers billions of dollars now spent fighting gang crime and imprisoning the perpetrators.  

Keeping people out of prison and living more productive lives, moreover, could add billions to the economy. Yet most efforts over the past few decades haven’t stopped gang violence. In fact, street gangs have become more violent and have spread to more American cities. Why? Because gang prevention programs don’t work. In fact, they may well have unintentionally fueled gang violence. 

How can this be so? And what can today's leaders do to transform inner-city neighborhoods plagued by gang violence? Come find out at the most eye-opening MSEL Executive Breakfast event of the year.

Speaker Biography
Christopher Yanov was named by San Diego Magazine as one of San Diego's new civic power brokers for raising and awarding over $1,000,000 in scholarships to inner-city students before turning 30 years old. Yanov earned four college degrees in a total of just five years. He graduated in two-and-a-half years from the University of California, San Diego with a Bachelor of Arts in Political Science and Spanish Literature. Yanov also completed two master’s programs at the University of San Diego with degrees in Peace and Justice, and International Relations.

Previously, Yanov worked with gang members for five years before starting Reality Changers in May 2001 with just $300. Now the program's 200 plus students have earned over $10,000,000 in scholarships from all sources. More recently, Yanov was also selected as an inaugural commissioner of the San Diego Commission on Gang Prevention and Intervention, is the chairman of the San Diego Regional Chamber of Commerce’s Education and Workforce Development Committee, and is putting the finishing touches on his book, How to End Gang Violence in America.