This episode takes a deep dive into the organization Year Up. Year Up United equips students with the skills they need for success through tuition-free job training. Through access to hands-on experience and skills-first training, they help young adults achieve the future they dream of, while impacting organizations from day one.

 When it comes to fundraising, Year Up stands out because they take the approach of a multi year unrestricted capital campaign every five years. Our guest Susan tells us why this has been successful for them. Their work seems quite applicable to education and there is a lot to learn from their strategy.  

Susan Murray leads Year Up’s revenue teams and servesas an officer of the company and a member of the executive team. She is responsible for creating and executing a strategy to fund Year Up’s operations, growth, and innovation, working closely with Fortune 500 companies and philanthropic investors. She joined Year Up in February 2011, first as Senior Philanthropic Advisor. She led the development team for 8 years and assumed leadership of Year Up corporate engagement team in 2023.Susan and the development team raised nearly $800 million in philanthropy 2011 – 2023, connecting more than 42,000 young adults to quality jobs and partnering with more than 200 major employers on their talent strategies. As the head of corporate engagement, Susan oversees a talent placement business that connects more than 4,500 young adults annually to employers in need of talent. Prior to Year Up, Susan raised capital for the University of Pennsylvania, served as a Director of the Columbia University College Fund, and was part of the NYC2012 team that led New York’s bid to host the 2012 Olympics. She co-founded a youth lacrosse program in Brooklyn and has served on the Domestic Violence Project board. Susan earned her BA from the University of Rochester and her MPA from Columbia University. She is a mom to 3 daughters and lives in Brooklyn with her family.