Bertram L. Lawson II serves as the President & CEO of the YMCA of Greater Brandywine (YGBW), impacting more than 50,000 residents of Chester County through services offered at nine branches and program centers. Prior to joining YGBW in July 2023, Bertram served as the President & CEO of the YMCA of Central New York – and has been devoted to the YMCA mission for nearly 25 years.

Bertram has served in leadership positions with the YMCA of Central Maryland, as well as the YMCA of Greater Philadelphia where he streamlined operations and improved member and staff experience through his visionary leadership, operational excellence, fiscal responsibility and philanthropic expertise – combined with his passion for education; youth development; diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI) and community service.

Bertram’s passion for education and youth development extends beyond his career with the YMCA as he served as the Chief Operating Officer for Mastery Charter Schools Network. In this role, he led all aspects of school operations – financial planning, facilities, real estate, athletics, extra-curricular programming, health and safety, food service and enrollment – for twenty-four campuses across Philadelphia, PA and Camden, NJ.

Bertram serves on numerous boards including Community Rec Magazine-National Advisory Board, Core Health & Fitness-National Advisory Board, YMCA of the USA-National Membership Standards Advisory Committee and Lincoln University (PA) Board of Trustees. Bertram is the Immediate Past National Chair for YMCA of the USA’s African American Employee Resource Network (AARN) and is an active member of the Omega Psi Phi Fraternity, Inc.

He earned a bachelor’s degree from Lincoln University (PA) and is currently working towards an MBA from Wilmington University. Bertram holds multiple Y-USA certifications, including Organizational Leader. Bertram is a graduate of Y-USA’s Multicultural Executive Development Institute, C-Suite Next Level Coaching Program and CEO Institute.

Bertram is the proud father of four and husband to Melissa.