About Us

Corporate Profile
Our Team
Case Studies
Client List

About the President/Founder

Corporate Profile

The Youth Development and Research Fund, Inc. is solely dedicated to improving the lives of at-risk youth, and the policies and programs that serve them through research, training and the power of youth cultural competence (YCC). Our innovative research, training, products and information help policy organizations, advocacy groups, foundations, community based organizations and educational institutions better meet the needs of today’s youth. Our unmatched services, reinforced by a comprehensive network, recognizable staff experts and strategic partnerships with hip-hop industry celebrities, sets the Youth Development and Research Fund, Inc. apart from any other entity seeking to effectively reach and impact today’s youth.

A private, minority-owned enterprise headquartered in Gaithersburg, Maryland, the Youth Development and Research Fund, Inc. is the leading authority on youth programming that utilizes effective practices and youth cultural competence to connect with young people and help them succeed in the world of work and school.

YDRF brings new excitement to youth service models through cutting-edge approaches for working with America’s youth and promoting the importance of workforce participation and education. Beyond training seminars and workshops, research studies and national polls, YDRF has mastered the art of developing programs that incorporate YCC to reach America’s youth. Signature programs like The Spot, Friends of Island Academy and Art Start are all examples of the power of YCC. YDRF activities and curriculum material have radical results in helping connect youth to the programs that serve them. Hot among today’s youth and programs that serve them are our own compilation CD of hip-hop music, program curriculum and booklists.

Our unique melding of skills as policy analysts, researchers, trainers and entrepreneurs coupled with more than 20 years experience in grassroots youth services provides unmatched insight and consultation to America's youth program network. Consultant to some of the nation's leading youth service organizations, YDRF researches best practices in serving the educational and vocational needs of today’s youth, and disseminates this information to a broad range of youth professionals, practitioners, administrators and educators nationwide. Credentialed by some of the nation's leading collegial and professional training courses, the YDRF staff provides comprehensive training to youth service staff and managers on the latest effective practices to increase youth participation in educational and vocational programs. We count some of the nation's most respected organizations, like the Annie E. Casey Foundation, the Mott Foundation, National Youth Employment Coalition, Women in Community Service, the National Urban League and the US Department of Labor, as key strategic allies.

Our Team

Edward DeJesus is YDRF’s President and Founder. With more than 20 years of experience in youth workforce and development programs, Ed has become one of the most sought after experts on issues affecting at-risk youth. With a great mix of policy and practice, Ed leads the YDRF team in improving programs and policies for youth and young adults.

Adrienne Holloway Jeff Zamoff is from Washington, DC, Ma.Ed, 2000 from Temple University, 12 years experience in education and youth development, last three years worked for The Work Group, a nationally recognized youth corps in New Jersey where he designed curriculum, created and managed a peer support program (PSW), and advised various organizations on ways to increase their level of
youth cultural competence (YCC). He is currently a consultant for YDRF, is married and lives with his wife in Philadelphia, PA.

Anthonie Jaracus Copes After receiving a Bachelor of Science in Chemistry from the University of Maryland Eastern Shore, Jaracus relocated to California to enter the workforce and attend graduate school to pursue a PhD. in Chemistry. The difficulties he experienced and saw others experience prompted him to find a solution to the educational and societal disparities minorities face. His first venture in this area was a ski weekend in Lake Tahoe to raise money to send African American males to college. In 2003, Jaracus left a successful career in the scientific field to pursue a more fulfilling career preparing youth to transition to the “real world.” He relocated to the Atlanta metro area and began to work with the youth in Coweta County. He would relocate once again to the Baltimore/Washington metro area, where he currently resides. In 2006 he incorporated New Destiny, LLC in the state of Maryland with the mission of “educating the whole person.”

In 2007 Jaracus received a Master’s of Science in Nonprofit Management from Eastern University.

Jaracus has received numerous awards and recognition for his philanthropic work. Most recently he was awarded the Harold C. Howard Servant-Leader Award by Eastern University.

Eugene Bell is YDRF’s mental health and substance abuse specialist. Eugene has been providing counseling services to at-risk youth and youth adults for the past six years he has been able to integrate various accepts of the YCC model into group counseling. Eugene has 20 years experience developing youth and adult programs in rural California. He is the current program director for Kings View Ready, Set, Go! in Madera California which provides youth and young adult services. Eugene has a Masters Degree in Marriage and Family Counseling and is a Certified Career and Vocational Counselor. He brings a bright innovative administrative approach along with creative management concepts to the YDRF team.

Cases Studies

For programs using the YDRF approach, the results are very encouraging. One program, for example, reported an increase in retention rate from 39% to 95% for young adult learners enrolled in a teen-only group and a GED pass rate nearly triple that of previous youth enrollees. Another program increased its retention rate from 40% to 75% after it incorporated YDRF principles. -as reported by the U.S. Department of Education's Education Resources Information Center (ERIC), Publication No 246.

The Work Group, Camden NJ

The Metropolitan Alliance for Adult Learning spent nearly $44,000 on its Youth Cultural Competence (YCC) professional development program, or $2,750 per participant for 18 months of intensive training and support services. This relatively small investment led to a sea change in youth-oriented teaching strategies among ABE practitioners and substantially improved outcomes for their young adult learners. Close to a quarter of the YCC budget involved training fees ($7,000) and travel costs ($3,000) to bring a YDRF trainer to Kansas City for three training or coaching sessions. Another $10,000+ was for professional consultation services, which included facilitating the breakthrough sessions and conducting focus groups and one-to-one interviews with young adults in ABE. Other costs included more than $2,600 for meals and refreshments served during training and breakthrough sessions (about $10 per person per meal); $20,000 for the mini-implementation grants to ABE programs; and $400 for brochures about the training.

The $44,000 YCC professional development budget does not include Alliance staff time (about 25 percent of the director’s time over an 18-month period) or the space and technical equipment required for the training presentations, breakthrough sessions, and video conferences. One of our funders — Ewing Marion Kauffman Foundation — provided free space and state-of-the-art equipment for most YCC-related activities.

Here are a few specific examples of positive outcomes experienced between July 2000 and December 2001:

North Kansas City Adult Education and Literacy: GED graduation rates among young adults seeking GEDs more than doubled from barely 10 percent to about 25 percent.
Kansas City, Kansas, Community College ABE: Retention rates among young adults grew from 40 percent to 75 percent.
Family Literacy Center: Attendance among teens and young adults increased 30 percent.
Genesis School: GED pass rates reached an unprecedented 90 percent among young adult learners in the school’s GED prep classes.
Kansas City ABE: Enrollment among young adult learners has climbed 68 percent due to a peer-to-peer recruitment effort implemented by enthusiastic young adult learners.

Ready Set Go, Madera California

Kings View Ready, Set, Go! Program established a working relationship with the YDRF in September 2003. In January of 2004, the program commenced preparing PSWs (Peer Support Workers) to assist with youth outreach and recruitment. PSWs conducted surveys on what attracts youth to programs, identified local youth hot spots and gathered information on the interests and dislikes of the target population. As a result of employing the YDRF model, Ready, Set, Go was able to increase out-of-school youth enrollments by 40%. The program attributes its continuing recruitment success to the YDRF YCC engagement model. Based in a rural area of Central California, RSG has been able to reach youth who most thought were unreachable and maintain above average program participation.