Five years ago, Ellie Hall was homeless. Today, she builds and automates onboarding programs at the world's most innovative company. Her life has completely transformed. How does someone go from living on the streets to living their #dreamjob at salesforce.com? The answer: Year Up Bay Area.

Year Up connects companies that need talent with young adults who need opportunities—and the results are incredible. Established in 2008 with help from the Salesforce Foundation and our integrated philanthropy model, the non-profit takes young adults aged 18 to 24 from low-income backgrounds and spends five months teaching them the technical and professional skills needed to succeed in the business world. The young adults then spend six months in a corporate internship to apply what they’ve learned.

The best part? Companies and interns both come out ahead. “Companies are struggling to find intangible qualities like grit, perseverance, and determination,” said Jay Banfield, Year Up Bay Area Founding Executive Director. “The young adults that come to us have those in abundance. If we give them technical skills, that makes for great interns and great employees.” Interns gain advanced training, real-world experience, and often land full-time positions. “As interns learn and grow, they change in leaps and bounds and their confidence levels skyrocket,” said Ebony Frelix, who runs the Year Up program at salesforce.com. “This opportunity is changing their lives…there’s nothing like it!”

As you can imagine, Ellie isn’t the only one whose world has been changed completely. Here, a few more inspiring Year Up salesforce.com success stories:

Christian Cayton

Then: Holding down jobs at a children’s clothing store and a fish and chips restaurant

Now: A technical project manager on the engineering team

Biggest change: “Before, I didn’t know what my potential was or what I was capable of. Year Up sees the person inside you that you might not be able to see, and pushes you to reach beyond your highest expectations.”

Karen Morales

Then: Working long hours at Nordstrom to support her mother and younger siblings

Now: A member of the TechOps team; admitted to Berkeley City College

Why salesforce.com: “People here are really open, willing to talk about their experiences and share everything they know so that we can all learn from each other. 

Dominique Jones

Then: A college dropout on the verge of losing the house she shared with her mother

Now: An IT Associate Support Analyst and newly published author

The Year Up difference: “As interns, we come in as clay and are molded by the people around us, but at the same time, we are also helping to mold the company.”

Hassan Anjum

Then: Selling vacuum cleaners door-to-door with no college or career plans

Now: Building out the IT Cloud Application Services team at our new Portland-area office

What’s next: “I’m definitely going to stay at salesforce.com. My goal is to learn as much as possible and keep taking on more responsibility…maybe one day I’ll be a VP, who knows!” 

It’s not every day that young adults from underprivileged communities are given the opportunity and expertise to work at the world’s #1 cloud computing company—and to excel. Salesforce.com has welcomed over 80 Year Up interns through our doors since 2008, and we are poised to reach 100 next session. That’s 100 interns giving salesforce.com everything they’ve got. 100 ways the company has been touched. 100 young lives changed forever. Looks like dreams—and #dreamjobs—really do come true. 

Ready to find your #dreamjob at salesforce.com? Visit salesforce.com/careers or click the button below.