1. 2008 ANNUAL REPORT
Facilitating Leadership in Youth
Supporting youth East of the Anacostia River in Washington DC

2. Lead. Learn. Inspire.
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.

3. FLY prepares youth for college
Off to 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

4. FLY prepares youth for college
Supporting successful transitions to higher
education
 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!

5. FLY youth find funds for college
 With the help of FLY‟sDollars
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) Young Men in FLY meet with David
 One FLY youth won the Williams and Polemarch of the Mu
Horatio Alger scholarship Mu Chapter of Kappa Alpha Psi
($20,000) Fraternity after an info session at
 Three FLY youth won the George Mason University
“Hoop Dreams” scholarship
($10,000)

6. 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)
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

7. FLY summer camp
Located at American
University, 2008 Classes (ages 8-12)
Art Culture
five days a week for seven Swimming Shock
weeks Fashion Design Spoken
Word
Dance

8. Young leaders emerge
FLY teens receive leadership development &
training
 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

9. Young leaders emerge
FLY teens then reach out to their peers & their
community
 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

10. “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

11. FLY‟s funds at work

12. FLY Financials

13. 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.

14. Organizational
Accomplishments
So many compassionate people fundraising for FLY in 2008.
Thank you!
 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.

15. 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,

17. 2007-2008 Institutional
Support
Foundation Support Other Support
Morris & Gwendolyn CafritzFoundation Cleveland Park Congregational
Church
Columbus Foundation DC Commission on the
Arts&Humanities
Commonweal Foundation Metro TeenAids
Community Foundation of the National Capitol Region Anacostia Smithsonian
Museum
Lois and Richard England Family Foundation Urban Institute, East of River
Initiative
Hazen Foundation Workers of St. Albans
Herb Block Foundation
Hill-SnowdonFoundation
Kimsey Foundation, East of River Initiative
Jacob and Charlotte Lehrman Foundation
Levy Family Foundation Corporate Support
Richard E. & Nancy P. Marriott Foundation Anacostia Coordinating
Council, Inc.
Meyer Foundation Booz, Allen, Hamilton Inc.
MoriahFoundation Friedman, Billings, Ramsey, East of
River
Rockefeller Philanthropy Advisors King & Spaulding, LLP
United Jewish Endowment Fund Linowes and Blocher, LLP
Washington Area Women‟s Foundation Pepco
Washington Nationals Dream Foundation PNC Bank

18. 2007-2008 Institutional Support (Cont’d)
In-kind Support April 2008 Benefit
Committee
American University Co-Chair: David Shiffrin
Chadbourne& Parke, LLP Co-Chair: Susan Taylor
DC Central Kitchen
ONE DC Judy Bacon
Derry Noyes Craig
Additional thanks to our organizational Mindy Detzler
collaborators. Mary Jane Glass
Without you, FLY wouldn’t be as fly! Rhonda Henderson
Barry Farm Community Coalition Heidi Maloni
Barry Farm Recreation Center MilicaMitrovich
Barry Farm Resident Council Jan Ross
BLOC (Building Leaders, Organizing Communities) Peggy Shiffrin
DCAYA (DC Alliance of Youth Advocates) Sue Spock
YEA (Youth Education Alliance) Barry Spodak
Washington College of Law Economic Development Barbara
Tannenbaum
Legal Clinic at American University (Susan Bennett) MannieTobie
Karen Tompkins
Sylvia Travaglione
ChariseVan Liew

19. Another special thank you to the 60 American
University tutors and mentors who
volunteered in 2008!

20. Build community. Invest in
youth
FLY Board of Directors May-December 2008
Iman Tyson, President
FLY Board of Directors Associate, Booz Allen Hamilton
Jan-April 2008
David Shiffrin, Vice President
Rhonda Henderson, President Board member at: WETA, Cultural Development Corporation,
Arena Stage
David Shiffrin, Vice President Karen Gerlach, PhD, Secretary
Mindy Detzler, Secretary Director, Student Activities, American University
Adam Weers, CPA, Treasurer
Daphne Edwin, Treasurer Manager of Development, Trammell Crow Company
Martin Jenkins Rhonda Henderson
Center Director, Kaplan Inc
Milica Mitrovich
Martin Jenkins
Michelle Tafel FLY Youth Council Representative, Freshman at Alleghany College
Iman Tyson Amit Mehta
Counsel, Zuckerman Spaeder LLP
Zack Schwartz
MilicaMitrovich
Keagoe Stith
Zack Schwartz
Anne Wiseman FLY Club President, Sophomore at American University
KeagoeStith
FLY Youth Council Representative, Senior at Duke Ellington High
School