2008 ANNUAL REPORT

Facilitating Leadership in YouthSupporting youth East of the Anacostia River in Washington DC

FLY’s first graduating high school senior (pictured here) successfully completed her freshman year of college at Virginia Stage University. She returned to FLY over summer break as a camp counselor to teach a dance class to the younger youth.

Lead. Learn. Inspire.

FLY prepares youth for college

FLY’s six seniors graduated in June 2008! In fall 2008, they left home to attend Virginia

Commonwealth University, University of Maryland Eastern Shore, Allegany College, and Virginia State University

FLY brought youth to visit local colleges as well as out-of-town institutions including Harvard, MIT and George Mason University

Off to College!

FLY prepares youth for college

FLY’s Educational Advocacy Program was expanded to serve FLY youth that have graduated from high school and had applied to and been accepted for admission to 2 or 4 year colleges and universities

This was an unplanned development for this program, but it quickly became apparent that FLY youth would continue to need educational advocacy to succeed in college

FLY provided a wide range of advocacy services from assisting students in managing their financial aid awards and student loans, housing assignments, communicating with college administration and professors, to identifying and accessing services at their schools

FLY college youth received many hours of coaching about administrative requirements and higher education protocol to help them succeed in their new endeavors!

Supporting successful transitions to higher education

FLY youth find funds for college With the help of FLY’s Dollars

for Scholars program, Two FLY youth were awarded the

2007 Gates Foundation DC Achiever’s Award and each received a $50,000 college scholarship

Three more FLY youth were awarded the 2008 Gates Foundation DC Achiever’s Award for the 2008-2009 academic year

Two FLY youth won the “Beat the Odds” scholarship ($20,000)

One FLY youth won the Horatio Alger scholarship ($20,000)

Three FLY youth won the “Hoop Dreams” scholarship ($10,000)

Young Men in FLY meet with David Williams and Polemarch of the Mu Mu Chapter of Kappa Alpha Psi Fraternity after an info

session at George Mason University

Learning outside the classroom for success inside the classroom

Grade Advancements for the

2007-2008 School Year

Grades 3-6: 100% Grades 7-8: 100% Grades 9-12: 90%

(18 of 20)

2008 Summer Camp Class

at American University

Several youth struggled academically the previous year, but progressed to receive greatly improved first semester Fall ‘08 report cards, including ten youth who made honor roll

FLY summer camp

Located at American University,five days a week for seven weeks

2008 Classes (ages 8-12)Art SwimmingFashion Design

Culture Shock Spoken Word Dance

Young leaders emerge

Youth members of FLY attended the weeklong National Youth Organizing Training Institute in Detroit in March 2008

Three FLY teens, chaperoned by a FLY AU student leader, attended the weeklong FBR (Friedman, Billings, Ramsey) leadership development program held at GWU

Other training topics ranged from public speaking, to conducting effective door-to-door outreach, to how to draft an action plan

All 30 teens were placed at successful eight week paid summer internships. Teens also worked on college prep work in small groups with their mentors

FLY teens receive leadership development & training

Young leaders emerge

Spent over 40 hours participating in District-led community meetings about the impending redevelopment of Barry Farm and spent an additional 20 hours participating in resident coalition-led meetings

Conducted 3 youth-led Know-Your-Rights workshops for over 65 DC teens

Interviewed and evaluated prospective summer camp staff

Led youth development and communications trainings for our summer staff and volunteers

FLY teens then reach out to their peers & their community

“I would like to take this opportunity to express my heartfelt thanks to you for your continued support for my grandchildren, Keagoe and Kristopher Stith. They have been involved since elementary school and now they are [a few months] away from college. You have been instrumental in giving them a safe place to stay with your afterschool programs, and in your tutoring programs by having American University students take them under their wings. Thanks to this they have excelled in academics and are…receiving scholarships. You have kept them busy with positive involvements and have truly nurtured their minds. I am very impressed with your organization because everyone is so caring and dedicated. There are just no words to express just how grateful we are to you.”

“Please accept our sincere gratitude, for you have played an important part in preparing my young men for their future.” -Christine Stith, Grandmother of Kris and Keagoe (pictured)

FLY’s funds at work

FLY Financials

Organizational Accomplishments

2008: Diversification of Revenue & Decreased Reliance on Foundation Funding 242% increase in the number of individual donors

from 2007 (77) to 2008 (186) 146% increase in the amount of individual and

small business donations from 2007 ($52,143)

to 2008 ($76,461)

Thank you to each of our individual donors. Every gift of every size helps our youth succeed.

Organizational Accomplishments

FLY’s board of directors and 12 committee members successfully executed a benefit at the Harman Center to celebrate our 5th anniversary in April.

The event netted over $60,000! A very special thanks from FLY to the Benefit Committee Members

FLY’s Board of Directors instituted

a “give or get” policy. All members

contributed to fundraising and 80%

of the board also personally

donated.

So many compassionate people fundraising for FLY in 2008. Thank you!

FLY’s 5th Anniversary Benefit

Five years of FLY: a successful anniversary celebration and fundraiser held at the Harman Center for the Arts in April 2009 raised over $60,000! Special guests included President Cornelius Kerwin, honored for continuing American University’s close partnership with FLY, as well as Kojo Nnamdi, guest speaker.

Foundation SupportOther Support

Morris & Gwendolyn Cafritz FoundationCleveland Park Congregational ChurchColumbus Foundation

DC Commission on the Arts & HumanitiesCommonweal Foundation

Metro TeenAidsCommunity Foundation of the National Capitol Region Anacostia Smithsonian MuseumLois and Richard England Family Foundation Urban Institute, East of River InitiativeHazen Foundation

Workers of St. AlbansHerb Block Foundation

Hill-Snowdon Foundation

Kimsey Foundation, East of River Initiative Jacob and Charlotte Lehrman Foundation

Levy Family FoundationCorporate Support

Richard E. & Nancy P. Marriott FoundationAnacostia Coordinating Council, Inc.Meyer Foundation

Booz, Allen, Hamilton Inc.Moriah Foundation

Friedman, Billings, Ramsey, East of River Rockefeller Philanthropy Advisors

King & Spaulding, LLP United Jewish Endowment Fund

Linowes and Blocher, LLPWashington Area Women’s Foundation

PepcoWashington Nationals Dream Foundation PNC BankWorld Bank, East of River InitiativeZuckerman Spaeder, LLP

2007-2008 Institutional Support

2007-2008 Institutional Support (Cont’d)

In-kind SupportApril 2008 Benefit Committee

American UniversityCo-Chair: David Shiffrin

Chadbourne & Parke, LLPCo-Chair: Susan Taylor

DC Central Kitchen

ONE DCJudy Bacon

Derry Noyes CraigAdditional thanks to our organizational

Mindy Detzler collaborators.

Mary Jane Glass Without you, FLY wouldn’t be as fly!

Rhonda HendersonBarry Farm Community Coalition

Heidi MaloniBarry Farm Recreation Center

Milica MitrovichBarry Farm Resident Council

Jan RossBLOC (Building Leaders, Organizing Communities) Peggy ShiffrinDCAYA (DC Alliance of Youth Advocates)

Sue SpockYEA (Youth Education Alliance)

Barry SpodakWashington College of Law Economic DevelopmentBarbara Tannenbaum Legal Clinic at American University (Susan Bennett)Mannie Tobie

Karen Tompkins

Sylvia Travaglione

Charise Van Liew

Kathy Wenger

Robert Wilkins

Another special thank you to the 60 American University tutors and mentors who

volunteered in 2008!

Build community. Invest in youth

FLY Board of Directors Jan-April 2008

Rhonda Henderson, President

David Shiffrin, Vice President

Mindy Detzler, Secretary

Daphne Edwin, Treasurer

Martin Jenkins

Milica Mitrovich

Michelle Tafel

Iman Tyson

Zack Schwartz

Keagoe Stith

Anne Wiseman

FLY Board of Directors May-December 2008Iman Tyson, President

Associate, Booz Allen Hamilton

David Shiffrin, Vice President Board member at: WETA, Cultural Development

Corporation, Arena Stage

Karen Gerlach, PhD, SecretaryDirector, Student Activities, American University

Adam Weers, CPA, TreasurerManager of Development, Trammell Crow Company

Rhonda HendersonCenter Director, Kaplan Inc

Martin JenkinsFLY Youth Council Representative, Freshman at Alleghany

College

Amit MehtaCounsel, Zuckerman Spaeder LLP

Milica Mitrovich

Zack SchwartzFLY Club President, Sophomore at American University

Keagoe StithFLY Youth Council Representative, Senior at Duke Ellington

High School

Charise Van Liew, ex officio