UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. — Charima Young, Penn State’s assistant vice president for local government and community relations, will be leaving Penn State in the coming weeks and moving to Maryland to pursue a new job opportunity.
"Charima’s remarkable dedication to community engagement has both reaffirmed and strengthened our University's bond with the local community on many levels,” said Zack Moore, Penn State vice president for Government and Community Relations. “Her active participation has encouraged others to engage with our direct community that will continue to thrive long after her departure.”
In her role, Young served as the University’s spokesperson and leading ambassador on local boards and at business and public meetings while advising senior University leadership on sensitive government and community-related issues.
“It has been an honor to help Penn State grow and enhance its commitment to town-gown relations. The relationships we have built and sustained with community leaders over the years have allowed us to be a part of making the Centre Region an even better place to live,” said Young. “These relationships allowed us to grow stronger together during challenging times like COVID. I’m happy I had the opportunity to be a part of that growth, and I expect it to continue.”
During her time at Penn State, Young represented the University on several local boards, including the Downtown State College Improvement District, Centre County United Way, and the Happy Valley Adventure Bureau.
“Charima played a central role in forging a strong and dynamic relationship between the Borough of State College and Penn State, and her positive impact will be enduring. It truly is hard to imagine our community without Charima's presence,” said State College Mayor Ezra Nanes. “She's been such a pleasure to work with and an inspiration to me. Charima's example and leadership have made the borough and the University better, more inclusive, equitable and collaborative institutions, and we are all better for it.”
Additionally, Young collaborated with other University offices to help coordinate and support ongoing initiatives, including activity in social justice and nonprofit work within the community.
Young’s social justice work included an appointment by former Gov. Tom Wolf to serve as a commissioner for the Pennsylvania State Law Enforcement Citizen Advisory Commission. She also was co-chair of the Advisory Committee on Policing and Communities of Color and was a member of the Community and Campus in Unity Leadership Team, where she co-founded the Centre Region Anti-Bias Coalition.
“Most administrators treat their university assignments as temporary waystations or ascending steps to a higher position at a "better" university. Charima is just the opposite,” said Charles Dumas, professor emeritus from Penn State’s School of Theatre. “While at Penn State and in State College, she committed herself to bettering the community and campus, particularly in areas of diversity, equity and inclusion. I have been in residence in State College for almost 30 years. In all that time, there has been no person that has had a more positive effect in this community than Charima. She has been a primary agent of progressive transformation. We shall miss her presence and her leadership.”
Her time as co-founder of the Centre Women’s Leadership Coalition of the Community Diversity Group resulted in awareness and workshops on how women and people of color can run for office and serve on various authorities, commissions and boards, including nonprofit leadership boards.
Through her membership and contributions to the International Town and Gown Association (ITGA), she helped organize the ITGA’s conference in State College and served on the association’s Racial Justice and Equity Committee, which developed the ITGA’s first diversity statement.
Among her accomplishments, Young, a 2019 Leadership Centre County alumna, served for several years on the Centre County United Way board, where she chaired the Centre County United Way funds distribution panel, which provided funds to local nonprofits across the Centre County region. She also chaired the Centre County United Way's DEI Working Group.
“As both a board member and a special adviser to the board, Charima has provided invaluable service to the Happy Valley Adventure Bureau and its work to grow Centre County’s tourism economy,” said Fritz Smith, Happy Valley Adventure Bureau president and CEO. “Her thoughtful, strategic guidance and advice have assisted our organization in successfully navigating multiple levels at the University on various high-profile projects. Most notably, this includes the two-year, multi-agency effort to secure a three-year commitment for hosting the IRONMAN 70.3 Pennsylvania Happy Valley triathlon. Charima’s tenure at Penn State has resulted in an overall strengthened town and gown relationship. She will be missed.”
Her consistent community engagement extended to working with the Clearwater Conservancy to lead the University in efforts to start the Musser Gap to Valleylands Project. She also served on the Greek Life Advisory Council as a conduit for neighborhood concerns.
During the challenges of the COVID-19 pandemic, Young provided leadership in a variety of roles throughout the community. She co-chaired the Penn State Census Complete Count committee, served on the COVID-19 Town and Gown Taskforce, and led community engagement efforts for the COVID-19 Data4Action Study that gave community members and students a voice and access to testing.
In 2020, Young was honored as one of the Bellefonte Art Museum’s Women of Achievement Exhibit, where the museum recognized local dignitaries for their contributions to the community.
Young has been with Penn State since arriving from Georgia in 2017, where she started as Penn State’s director of local government and community relations. Prior to her time with Penn State, Young served as associate state director of community outreach for AARP Georgia. She earned her bachelor’s degree from Spelman College and her master’s degree in public policy from the Georgia Institute of Technology. Charima also received a certificate in nonprofit management from Duke University and a project management certificate from Georgia State University.
The Office of Government and Community Relations will begin an immediate search for a replacement for the role of assistant vice president for local government and community relations.