LaVar Young
Managing DirectorLaVar Young is a Managing Director at Mercury New Jersey. A highly regarded leader, he has over 20 years of proven success supporting local municipalities, government agencies, non-profit organizations and political campaigns in the areas of human services, education, coalition building and advocacy.
Former Director of the Office of Civic and Social Engagement for the New Jersey Department of Education
Experience working with state and local political campaigns, religious organizations and community-based organizations
Past New Jersey State Director for the Black Alliance for Educational Options
Recipient of the “Martin Luther King Visionary of the Future” award from the New Jersey Performing Arts Center
B.A. in communications from Edinboro University in Pennsylvania
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see expertsLaVar Young is a Managing Director at Mercury New Jersey. A highly regarded leader, he has nearly 20 years of proven success supporting local municipalities, government agencies, non-profit organizations and political campaigns in the areas of human services, education, coalition building and advocacy.
Prior to joining Mercury, LaVar was the Director of the Office of Civic and Social Engagement for the New Jersey Department of Education. In this role, he served on the Executive Leadership team and was responsible for supporting the Governor and Education Commissioner by executing their operational blueprint and serving as a liaison between the NJDOE and New Jersey’s 661 school districts. LaVar’s primary responsibilities included organizing and facilitating community events and developing internal and external communications strategies to support department and community needs. Along with his prominent presence within the educational landscape, he has worked with a variety of stakeholders including state and local political campaigns, religious organizations and community-based organizations.
Additionally, LaVar served as the New Jersey State Director for the Black Alliance for Educational Options (NJBAEO). Under his leadership, NJBAEO was successful in recruiting and mobilizing New Jersey parents to actively support parental choice to empower families and increase quality educational options for working-class families. LaVar was also influential in creating the “Unity Slate,” a slate of traditional public school board and charter school candidates who have successfully won school board elections in Newark since 2016.
LaVar’s many achievements have received recognition from The Star-Ledger, USA Today, UPTOWN Social and Leaders magazine, CNN’s Building Up America and Man Up, a documentary on a fatherless nation, to highlight a few. He is also a past contributor to the Huffington Post blog. In 2010, LaVar received the “Martin Luther King Visionary of the Future” award from the New Jersey Performing Arts Center.
LaVar received his B.A. in communications from Edinboro University in Pennsylvania and holds several certifications in various disciplines.