Recently named by as one of the most admired CEOs by the San Diego Business Journal and as one of San Diego’s new civic power brokers by San Diego Magazine, Christopher Yanov raised and awarded over $1,000,000 in scholarships to inner-city students before turning 30 years old.
Mr. Yanov earned four college degrees in 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. Mr. Yanov also completed two Master’s programs at the University of San Diego with degrees in Peace & Justice and International Relations.
Previously, Mr. Yanov worked with gang members for five years before starting Reality Changers in May 2001 with just $300, yet now the program’s 1,000 students have earned over $40,000,000 in scholarships from all sources. He credits his appearance on Wheel of Fortune in late 2001 for providing the initial financial support for Reality Changers to truly become a bona fide program.
Most recently, Mr. Yanov was selected as an inaugural commissioner of the San Diego Commission on Gang Prevention and Intervention, served as 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, “The Tightrope Theory: Why Prevention Programs May Do More Harm Than Good.”
For his books, Yanov uses the pen name of Chris Tougher. He’s not sure whether to be more embarrassed by the name itself or that it took him 33 years to figure out the pun within his own first name.
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