Yoni Gruskin, Founder and Executive Director

Yoni Gruskin is the founder of Concerned Youth of America and serves as its Executive Director. He is currently a junior at the University of Pennsylvania, where he is majoring in political science. He is a member of the Pennsylvania Zeta chapter of Phi Delta Theta.

Before attending Penn, he graduated from Phillips Academy in Andover, MA. During his time at Andover, Yoni served as the co-president of the Philomathean (debate) society, the vice president of the Model United Nations club and co-editor of the Commentary section of Andover’s student-run newspaper, The Phillipian. Yoni was also on the Varsity lacrosse team, where he started as a close defenseman for Andover’s competitive squad.

Yoni has been interested in politics and economics since a young age, and served as an intern for the successful campaigns of Ken Salazar for U.S. Senate in 2004 and Bill Ritter for Governor in 2006. During the summer of 2009, Yoni interned with the National Economic Council at the White House in Washington, DC. This summer, Yoni is serving as an intern with the Peter G. Peterson Foundation.

Martin Serna, Deputy Executive Director

Martin Serna is Deputy Executive Director and founding member of Concerned Youth of America. Currently, Martin is a junior at Yale University, where he is majoring in Economics. He is a member of Timothy Dwight College, Yale's finest residential college, and active in St. Thomas More Catholic Chapel at Yale.

Martin has interned with the House Ways & Means Committee at the Massachusetts State House, Yale University Office of Development, and the Boston Stock Exchange.

Martin graduated from Phillips Academy in Andover, Massachusetts in 2007. Martin played defensive tackle for the Varsity Football Team and threw shotput for the Varsity Track & Field Team. He was the President of the Catholic Student Fellowship, Publisher of the campus multicultural magazine, and Managing Director of the Andover Economics Society.

Caroline Matthews, Director of Operations

Caroline Matthews acts as Director of Operations for Concerned Youth of America and is a founding member. Currently, Caroline is a senior at the University of Pennsylvania where she is majoring in European History. On Penn’s campus, Caroline is Vice President of Delta Delta Delta sorority and is a writing tutor for local middle school students.

Before coming to Penn, Caroline studied at Georgetown Visitation Preparatory School for girls in Washington DC. In high school, she was senior class president, a staff writer for the alumnae magazine, and volunteered at Georgetown University Hospital. As a junior Caroline spent her winter term in Nairobi Kenya volunteering at a HIV AIDS orphanage. Upon returning from Nyumbani orphanage, Caroline wrote articles for Newsweek.com and Capitol File magazine describing her experience in Kenya. She also started an HIV/AIDS awareness and prevention group at her high school that fundraised for Nyumbani and for clinics in the DC area.

Caroline has spent the last two summers exploring the world of journalism. In the summer of 2008, Caroline lived in Paris where she worked as a features assistant for the International Herald Tribune. Last summer, Caroline worked as an editorial intern at The Atlantic. Currently, she is working for the Executive Office of the President as a policy research intern for the National Commission on Fiscal Responsibility and Reform.

Prateek Kumar, Director of Legislative Affairs

Prateek Kumar, who serves as the Director of Legislative Affairs for Concerned Youth of America, is a resident of Latham, NY and is currently a junior at Harvard University, where he is majoring in Economics and Government. Prateek is a Jack Kent Cooke Foundation College Scholar and is a graduate of Phillips Academy Andover, where he was named a President George H.W. Bush Scholar.

Prateek is President of Operations for the Harvard Financial Analysts Club, Harvard’s largest undergraduate investment organization, which manages nearly $135,000 in two investment funds. Additionally, he is Vice President of Business for Scoop Daily, an online political journal, and is also a member of the Scholar Advisory Board for the Elks National Foundation. An Eagle Scout, Prateek has been an active volunteer, and was recognized by the United States Congress for his hours of service. Prateek has participated in a number of internships in both the private and public sector, including a stint in the Revenue Forecasting Division of the New York State Division of Budget and studying constitutional law as an Apex Scholar under Professor Alan Morrison of Stanford Law School.

Michael Tully, Director of Finance

Michael Tully serves as the Director of Finance for Concerned Youth of America. He is currently a senior at the University of Pennsylvania where he plans to major in Philosophy, Politics, and Economics (PPE). Mike is a member of the Pennsylvania chapter of Big Brothers Big Sisters and plays open side flanker for the UPenn rugby team, for whom he also serves as recruitment chair.

Before attending Penn, Mike graduated from Phillips Academy in Andover, MA. While at Andover, Mike served as the president of Andover’s award winning Model U.N. team, executive committee member of the Andover Economic Society, and co-founder and Editor of Andover’s monthly satirical newsletter, the Ape. Mike also played fullback and linebacker for the Andover football team, guard on the basketball team, and was by far the least reliable member on their golf team.

Mike spent the summer of 2008 interning in corporate investment at Equity Group Investments, Sam Zell’s investment company, in Chicago.

Jake Bullock, Director of Compliance

Jake Bullock serves as Director of Compliance for Concerned Youth of America. He is a Denver resident and currently a junior at Duke University, where he will major in Economics and Political Science. As an executive board member for the Duke Conservative Union, Jake has worked on events to bring speakers, including Former Senator Rick Santorum and political pundit Bay Buchannan, to campus, as well as on events to raise awareness against islamofascism and the communist/marxist movement.

Jake engaged in his community through various service projects ranging from developing inner-city summer school programs to reaching out to the growing Hispanic community. He interned for Congressman Bob Beauprez’s 2006 gubernatorial campaign and for former Congressman Bob Schaffer’s hotly contested U.S. Senate race in 2008.

Mike Gwin, Director of Communications

Mike Gwin serves as the Director for Communications at Concerned Youth of America. A Cleveland resident, Mike graduated from Hawken School and is starting at Georgetown University in the fall where he plans on studying international politics.

At Hawken, Mike was involved in a number of extracurricular activities, serving as the Sports Editor at the school newspaper, a member of Hawken’s Model UN club as well a tutor in the school’s writing center. Beyond that, Mike was also an avid debater, arguing his way to titles of State Runner-up and State Champion in 2008 and 2010 respectively.

Outside of school Mike has been actively involved in Ohio politics. In 2008, he interned on a congressional campaign, working his way to a paid position by the fall and in 2009 he interned with Senator Sherrod Brown’s chief fundraiser. Currently, Mike is working to turn Ohio’s other Senate seat blue as an intern on Lt. Governor Lee Fisher’s campaign.

H. Shawn Xu, Director of Technology

H. Shawn Xu returned to Concerned Youth of America as its Director of Technology in the summer of 2008. Shawn, a graduate of Phillips Academy Andover, is currently a junior biomedical engineering and economics double major at The Johns Hopkins University in Baltimore, MD.

At Andover, Shawn won the National AP Scholar Award and Siemens Award for Advanced Placement. He also graduated as a member of the Cum Laude Society. Outside of class, Shawn was the manager of the Phillips Academy Subscription Service, the only student-operated business at Andover. He was also a contributing member to various other organizations, such as WPAA (Andover’s radio station).

In addition to his work for CYA, Shawn is a summer and part-time analyst at Steelpath Capital Advisors (previously Alerian Capital Management) in Dallas, TX. This fall, he will work as a part-time analyst at Camden Partners Private Equity in Baltimore, MD.