CERRA Announces Lindsay Yearta as New Executive Director (07/10/25)

HIGHLIGHTS

• LindsayYearta comes back to the Winthrop campus from York Technical College where she served for one year as the director of the Academic Coaching & Tutoring Center.
• Her leadership in educational policy, research and program development, paired with her ability to effectively manage and motivate cross-functional teams, makes her exceptionally well-positioned to lead CERRA into its next chapter.

ROCK HILL, SOUTH CAROLINA - The Center for Educator Recruitment, Retention, and Advancement (CERRA), which is housed at Winthrop University, welcomed Lindsay Yearta '05, '07, as its new executive director, as of July 1.

Yearta brings a wealth of experience and a deep commitment to education to her new role. With experience across K-12 education, higher education, and state-level agencies, she brings a well-rounded and informed perspective on the challenges and opportunities impacting today's educator workforce. Her leadership in educational policy, research and program development, paired with her ability to effectively manage and motivate cross-functional teams, makes her exceptionally well-positioned to lead CERRA into its next chapter.

Beth Costner, CERRA board chair and dean of the Richard W. Riley College of Education, Sport and Human Sciences, said Yearta's vision and leadership will play a vital role in building upon CERRA's legacy and propelling its work forward.

Yearta is honored to join CERRA to build upon its strong legacy of supporting South Carolina's educators. "I look forward to collaborating with partners across the state to strengthen the educator pipeline and ensure that every student has access to excellent teaching and learning opportunities," she said.

In the coming months, CERRA will provide opportunities for stakeholders and partners to engage with Yearta as she transitions into her new role.

Yearta comes back to the Winthrop campus from York Technical College where she served for one year as the director of the Academic Coaching & Tutoring Center. In addition to working at Winthrop for nearly six years, from 2015-2021, in the education core department, she also worked for the S.C. Department of Education as an education associate and as an assistant professor at the University of South Carolina Upstate. She also has more than nine years of experience as a teacher in local public schools.

Yearta earned a Bachelor of Science in elementary education and teaching and a Master of Education in literacy, both from Winthrop, and holds a Ph.D. in curriculum and instruction from the University of North Carolina at Charlotte. She is married to Winthrop Police Chief Charles Yearta.

For more information about CERRA and its programs, contact Tisha Simmons at tisha@cerra.org.