CREATING INTERGENERATIONAL WEALTH: ACHIEVING RESULTS THAT TRANSCEND TIME
CFUF's work is driven by the belief that dismantling poverty begins with sowing legacies for the future. We continue to focus on job training and responsible fatherhood, understanding the importance of this role in the whole family’s success—but we know the work doesn’t stop there. Creating and maintaining financially secure and socially and economically prosperous communities of color is a long-term commitment. One that requires CFUF to sustain lasting relationships with our members to help them create intergenerational wealth that transfers from generation to generation.
As we look to the future, including Intergenerational Wealth Transfer in our core competencies and comprehensive approach is critical to building upon what we have started: dismantling poverty by infusing families with opportunities to create transcendent results. Accumulating 25 years of work, impact, and experience proves we are made for this moment. We remain ALL In, ALWAYS.
I can see a thriving Baltimore City that has multimillion dollar investments on neighborhood street corners—and homeowners, entrepreneurs, and healthy families on every block. The promise and potential of West and East Baltimore would match the grandeur of the high rises in Harbor East and the capital that’s concentrated downtown.
To realize that vision, we must show up for dads, moms, and kids—the city’s precious human capital—so they can achieve stability and create intergenerational wealth. The Center for Urban Families has an incredible record of doing just that in the lives of tens of thousands of Baltimore families across 25 years.
Our supporters invest in us to reverse decades of disinvestment, infuse our members with a dose of hope, and replicate their vertical success with stackable skills that start as small victories and grow over years into unshakeable legacies. CFUF members are assets to the city. They’re taxpayers, homeowners, and advocates for their neighbors and themselves. They show up for PTA meetings and civic engagement. The alumni association, that is co-led by two phenomenal alumni leaders, who happen to be returning citizens, allows our members to amplify their experiences, growing the chorus of voices and sharing their strength with one another as they rise higher on the economic ladder of success.
CFUF’s strategic plan is taking us deeper with our members, through mobility coaching and dynamic partnerships, and it’s guiding broadscale change using sophisticated data collection with ongoing analysis, as well as grassroot innovations through our Practitioners Leadership Institute.
In a unique partnership with the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health, Dr. Amanda Smith recently joined the CFUF team as director of research and evaluation. With her expertise in public health, Dr. Smith will help us to better understand and utilize the quantitative and qualitative data generated by members’ success, so, that we can tell their stories and our story to those in public office and philanthropic circles in order to inspire them to continue supporting this work.
Our strong relationships with community leaders from our PLI cohorts—including Tiaira Robinson of I AM MENtality and Bobby Tunmise Holmes of Son of a Dream—build up Baltimore’s culture of support for families.
Over the last year, we launched our Legacy Wealth Creation initiative that has strengthened our members’ financial acumen. I was in awe hearing the members of our inaugural cohort conversing among themselves about things like banking, insurance products, and estate planning.
The change is profound. So many people come through our front doors on North Monroe Street with a look in their eyes that tells you in an instant that they feel defeated. They feel the pressure of strained relationships with their children and the weight of back child support debt. A record of incarceration and past mistakes locks them out of economic opportunities. They desperately want to do the right thing, but life has beat them down.
We ask them to show up today and come back a second and a third day. We show them love, support, structure, and discipline. Our graduations are Kleenex moments that serve as a catalyst for connections to new careers, education, and occupational skills training.
CFUF is blessed with strong governance from a board of directors second to none in this entire country, including CFUF alum Barry Lancaster and the indefatigable Letitia Logan Passarella, research director of at the University of Maryland School of Social Work. Our stellar team of professionals includes experts in their field like Director of Finance and Administration Zachary “Bryant” Jeffers and a growing roster of CFUF graduates with wisdom you only get from life experience. This is how we continue our mission long after my tenure expires—and no, this isn’t a retirement announcement!
We’re going ALL In for another 25 years.
Joseph T. Jones, Jr. Founder, President, and CEO
PASSIONATE. PRAGMATIC. PIONEERING.
WE ARE THE CENTER FOR URBAN FAMILIES
A leading voice in the national conversation on responsible fatherhood.
A support network for Baltimore’s most vulnerable citizens.
A staunch advocate for child support reform in Maryland.
A provider of experiences, skills, and information to practitioners who seek to strengthen families with low incomes.
Our mission is to strengthen urban communities by helping fathers and families achieve stability and economic success.
CELEBRATING 25 YEARS OF IMPACT AND MILESTONE MOMENTS
1999
Articles of Incorporation filed on January 26th, at 4:19 pm
Center for Fathers, Families and Workforce Development (CFWD) founded with STRIVE® Baltimore and Fatherhood programs supported by the Abell Foundation and Ford Foundation
2002
Launched Career Path Initiative
Developed partnership with Maryland Department of Human Resources' Child Support Administration
2005
Launched five-year “Building Strong Families” Project funded by U.S. Department of Health and Human Services
Launched Couples Advancing Together (CAT) Program
Lion King cast dedicated benefit performance of The Raising Of The Son at Baltimore Center Stage to CFUF
U.S. Senators Evan Bayh and Barack Obama visited CFWD
1999
2000
Partnered with Maryland Department of Human Resources' Child Support Administration on the design of StateOwed Debt Leveraging Program
Partnered with National Alliance to End Homelessness on threeyear jobs initiative
2001
Launched JumpStart electrical training pilot
Started partnership with the The Harry and Jeanette Weinberg Foundation
Began Women Supporting Fatherhood Initiative
2003
STRIVE® Baltimore named Best in Baltimore by Baltimore Magazine
Curriculum developed for Exploring Relationships and Marriage with Fragile Families
CFWD Board of Directors elected David Warnock as Chair
2004
Hosted Healthy Relationship and Marriage forum at National Great Blacks in Wax Museum
Received The Annie E. Casey Foundation's Families Count Award
Honored with Bank of America's Neighborhood Builders® Award
2006
STRIVE® Baltimore’s 100th cycle graduated
Awarded $1M contract by Macro International to provide technical assistance to federally funded fatherhood grantees
Conducted first Wage Records Analysis with The Jacob France Institute at the University of Baltimore
2007
Office of Family Assistance funded CFUF to provide training and technical assistance to more than 96 organizations, from across the nation, with Healthy Marriage and Responsible Fatherhood grants
CFWD acquired old Baltimore Coliseum to build new center and launched $8M capital campaign
Center for Fathers, Families and Workforce Development (CFWD) changed its name to Center for Urban Families (CFUF)
2011
Bill passed and signed into law authorizing the Maryland Department of Human Resources to establish a Couples Advancing Together (CAT) pilot, as a result of a presentation Joe Jones made at Johns Hopkins University
Launched the Practitioners Leadership Institute
2013
President Barack Obama visited CFUF
2008
Held groundbreaking ceremony for new building
Launched Men’s Warehouse Suit Drive providing business attire for STRIVE® Baltimore participants
2009
32,000 square foot facility at 2201 North Monroe Street completed
2017
TouchPoint Mondawmin opened with CFUF as a partner organization
Selected by the Kresge Foundation to participate in its national Next Generation Initiative
2018
Training partnership with The Foundery began
2019
Launched ALL In strategy
2021
CFUF Board approved Five-Year Strategic Plan
2022
Launched Five-Year Strategic Plan
2023
25th Anniversary Season begins
2024
Unique research and evaluation partnership with Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health launched
Legacy Wealth Creation pilot launched
CFUF engaged Cornerstone Government Affairs to establish CFUF’s advocacy program
Partnership with Project JumpStart to offer quality pre-apprenticeship training established
Building intergenerational wealth is the central theme that’s found in all of CFUF’s workshops, trainings, coaching sessions, and advocacy work. It starts with our trained staff guiding members as they stabilize their lives, and then helping them understand the steps they can take to secure the future for their children. Along the way, our job is really about making sure they internalize all that is possible for their families.
In philanthropy circles, we call it a 2Gen approach to programming—the principle that everything the father or mother does affects the child. Our work bridges two generations to break the cycles of poverty, incarceration, and hopelessness.
We didn’t use the same language or take the same approach in 1999 when CFUF was founded. Yes, our mission was the same, to strengthen urban communities by helping fathers and families achieve stability and economic success. But along the way, we’ve served more than 33,000 men and women and their 70,000 children, and we’ve learned a lot.
We are guided by the lessons we’ve learned, data we’ve tracked, and outcomes our members and staff have generated. That’s to say, we haven’t maintained the same course of action across these decades. We are proactive and continually modifying our approach, developing new programs, improving our core programs, and growing the power of our advocacy to change policies—and hearts and minds.
Now in our 26th year, we are conscious of the changes in the world, and we try to get in front of them as much as possible. What’s the next big breakthrough that speaks to our members and how do we communicate that to funders and policymakers?
We’re in the next phase of this work, and here is what that looks like. Take the concept of intergenerational wealth and the certainty that as parents do better, their children do better. Traditional case management has shifted to mobility coaching that is customized for each member. Are they a parent or a returning citizen? Do they need remedial training or a springboard for entrepreneurship? Do they want to stay in Baltimore or settle in another place?
Step one might be, “Let’s get you a job that you enjoy and pays you well.” Once our member is comfortable with that job, we encourage them to get out of debt, start saving, and budget effectively. Eventually, we consider things like homeownership, estate planning, and banking products. We talk about educational opportunities for their children and how they can use their voice to promote the wellbeing of their families and neighbors.
We ask them what success looks like for them and provide a lot of avenues for their consideration. Small victories turn into sustainable outcomes. The goal is to build confidence alongside material assets.
Our job is to steer members toward stability regardless of how the economy is doing. With intergenerational wealth, incarceration decreases, quality of life improves, cities grow larger tax bases, and society at large benefits.
When CFUF gets it right, and our history and the promise of our future shows we do, then we unlock the aspirations of the whole family and ignite the potential of underserved communities.
Kenneth M. Jones II CFUF Board Chairman
Senior Vice President, Chief Operating Officer, and Chief Equity Officer for the John D. and Catherine T. MacArthur Foundation
INFUSING FAMILIES WITH OPPORTUNITIES TO CREATE TRANSCENDENT RESULTS
33,317
MEN’S AND WOMEN’S LIVES TRANSFORMED
Our primary strengths at CFUF are closely linked to promoting racial justice and equity. Our focus on empowering families, offering pathways to financial stability, and creating intergenerational wealth is aimed at fostering a more equitable and just society, enabling individuals to overcome systemic obstacles and access opportunities for success. With 25 years of experience and demonstrated results, we are well-positioned to concentrate on establishing enduring wealth within our communities and making an even greater impact.
72,441 CHILDREN’S LIVES TOUCHED
5,676 FULL-TIME JOBS SECURED
190
JOB PLACEMENTS IN 2023
MEMBERS’ HOURLY WAGES HAVE INCREASED TO: $17.28 AVERAGE WAGE $19.98 IN CALL CENTER SUPPORT $17.60 IN HEALTHCARE $17.38 IN SECURITY
$19.21 IN CONSTRUCTION
Data represents: 1/1/2023–12/31/2023
HONORING WAYNE LAMONT COOPER
February 3, 1947–August 27, 2024
Little notes scribbled in the pages of Wayne Lamont Cooper’s calendar keep the record of the conversations and meetings he had with thousands of members year after year.
The calendar—photographed and put on display in the lobby at the Center for Urban Families—memorializes a truth that members and staff carry in their hearts: Coop changed lives.
2010: Visit Cortez Green at Baltimore Pre-Release Unit
2011: Sign Nathan Johnson up as a member
2012: Meet Ira McCray at halfway house
2021: Attend Deshawn Cooper’s college graduation
Coop turned the last page on August 27, 2024 when he entered eternal rest at age 77. He’d spent much of the last two decades working for CFUF as a re-entry
specialist, workforce development manager, intake and retention specialist, and outreach coordinator.
While longtime friend and colleague Moses Hammett said Coop held a lot of positions at CFUF, his role always came down to one—his natural ability as a salesman.
“He sold hope to the hopeless,” Mr. Hammett said. “He sold change to those whose lives had been shattered by substance abuse. He sold the promise of the future to those who could not see any success for themselves.”
“For those who had low self esteem and thought they were just worthless, Coop gave them a sense of worth again.”
Being a part of the CFUF family since the early days, Coop’s influence helped shape the organization’s ethos. The results he delivered for members represent the transformative impact of an organization that is driven by a committed and compassionate team, many of whom bring lived experience involving incarceration, poverty, and addiction.
His tough love approach drove accountability in members. His deep belief in second chances inspired them to demand better for themselves. His authenticity disarmed those hardened by life.
“Coop was the person everyone wanted wisdom from,” said Catherine Pitchford, director of programs. “When you did something wrong, he told you. When you did it right, he congratulated you right away.”
“If you look at the pages of those calendars, you see the love and care he had for people every day.”
Growing up in Cambridge, Maryland, Coop’s exposure to civil rights leaders helped him define himself as
an advocate for the disadvantaged and underserved, according to his family and friends. He moved to Baltimore as a teenager and went on to marry Paula A. McCoy. They spent 44 years together and raised three boys, Ami McCoy, Tyvrain Young, and Deshawn Wayne Cooper.
Coop worked as an insurance salesman before starting his career in community development. He provided outreach and intervention for several organizations, including the residential drug treatment center X-Cell, Inc.
While working for X-Cell, Coop counseled Joe Jones, who entered the facility in 1986 to recover from a dangerous addiction and make a desperate attempt to avoid a prison sentence.
Mr. Jones, of course, went on to become the founder, president, and CEO of CFUF. He recalled experiencing Coop’s “tough love” approach. Coop said he wouldn’t allow him to use the facility as a way to duck jail. So one day, he took Mr. Jones to a tree on the property and told him to fill up a five-gallon bucket and empty it into a hole in the trunk—using a teaspoon.
“Wayne said, ‘You are going to think about all the stuff you’ve done. All the people you hurt. The time you wasted,’” Mr. Jones said. “He found out that I was trying to slip through, but he was really clear that he was going to help me figure out how I would get clean and sober.”
“He saw the greatness in everybody and pulled the greatness out of everybody.”
At CFUF, the members Coop worked with came to be known as “Coopties.” Among them are Ira McCray and Cortez Green.
Mr. McCray said he was living in a halfway house in 2012 when he met Coop.
“He was someone who could relate to me,” said Mr. McCray, who now works as a plumber for Johns Hopkins. “He didn’t lie to me or anyone else to get you into the seat.”
Cortez Green had a similar experience with Coop.
Mr. Green was in the Baltimore Pre-Release Unit on Greenmount Avenue in 2010 after a decade behind the walls.
“He became more than a friend and mentor to me, he became a father,” Mr. Green said. “He helped me become a better father and a rational thinker. He changed my life.”
Mr. Green went on to become a technician for Baltimore City’s speed camera system and he stayed in touch with Coop and the CFUF team over the last 14 years. Earlier this year, Mr. Green decided to advance his career by getting his commercial driver’s license with aspirations to become a short-haul driver. The Center helped pay for his exam and permit.
Nathan Johnson said Coop helped him become a better father. When Mr. Johnson met Coop in 2011, he had been incarcerated for almost all of his daughter’s life up to that point.
“What he taught me is, fatherhood doesn't ever stop,”
Mr. Johnson said. “It doesn't matter if you are happy or sad or if you have money or not. Coop told me, ‘You don’t need money to be a father. Being a father means being present.’”
Mr. Johnson said he has tried to live those words. His daughter is now 22 years old with a daughter of her own, and Mr. Johnson now has two other little girls, who are 2 and 4 years old.
“Coop taught me about being a man,” Mr. Johnson said.
Mr. Hammett said everyone around CFUF called Coop’s office “Coop’s Corner” or “the truth zone,” given his unabashed and unvarnished manner of connecting with members. So many people lingered in his doorway to talk, the paint rubbed off the jamb.
As Coop’s health declined and his mobility became more limited, members would caringly push his manual wheelchair through the hallways in a show of respect.
Coop believed his reputation helped him take on some of the toughest cases at CFUF. By 2017, he was working
almost exclusively with returning citizens, saying at the time, they were “guys who’d rather cuss and storm out than risk trusting another human being.”
Coop said then, “I make a deal with them. I say, ‘Before you walk out that door and give up a real opportunity, come see me.’ Usually they do. I went to prison early in life, so I understand where their anger, frustration, and lack of focus comes from. I can talk to them about their aspirations and fears—how they’re putting up a front, when they really want to be somebody else.”
Besides his drive to help his community, Mr. Hammett said he was motivated by his family, including his son, Deshawn. He said, “‘I just want to see my son graduate middle school.’… Eventually, it was, ‘I just got to be here for him to graduate college.’”
Deshawn Cooper did graduate college in 2021. Now 25 and working as a substitute teacher, he said, “My Dad was my everything.”
Coop’s work on North Monroe Street was his calling— the fulfillment of his mission and his ticket to heaven.
“He always saw the good in people even when others did not,” his son said. “He didn’t care what their past was, he only cared what he could do to help them.
CFUF MEMBER SUCCESS STORIES
Members are the driving force behind CFUF. Their will to secure economic stability, and their perseverance to ascend in society, motivate us every day. They become change agents able to transform their lives, families, and communities. Their success is our greatest reward.
CFUF MEMBER
STANASIA MCNAIR
Stanasia McNair was working as a behavioral aide with young people in foster care when one of the teenagers she supported brought home a binder from CFUF. Filled with graphics and information to write a resume, land a new job, and get in the right frame of mind for success, the materials piqued Ms. McNair’s curiosity.
Ms. McNair had graduated from Baltimore Polytechnic Institute and attended Coppin State University, but she said she lacked confidence and needed to find structure and focus to reach her goals.
She went to CFUF in March, enrolled in STRIVE® , and found an experience that awakened new possibilities for her life. She participated in the 3-week workshop from 9:00 am to 3:30 pm and then went to work her shift at the residential home from 4:00 pm to midnight.
“When I did my intake, I felt like CFUF was something different than what I had come across ever before,” Ms. McNair said. “The Center allowed me to realize the stuff I am capable of, and that is something I struggled with for a very long time.”
“When I did my intake, I felt like CFUF was something different.”
CFUF wasn’t a temporary solution, she said, it was a solid foundation for her future.
Catherine Pitchford, director of programs for CFUF, lined up mock interviews for her with employers who talked to Ms. McNair about positions she never considered for herself. They said she had the aptitude to become a district manager or a senior executive.
Ms. McNair said she found herself sharing space with CFUF’s high achieving board members and networking with the organization’s inspiring alumni. One of those alumnus was a grant writer for the Mayor’s Office of Employment Development who recommended Ms. McNair for a position as a career coach for Baltimore City Public Schools students.
“Because they believed I could get a position like that, I couldn’t take no for an answer,” Ms. McNair said.
She landed the job in August.
As a career coach, she combines her passion for working with young people and draws on her own experience working in various jobs, including cosmetology, office administration, and project management. Ms. McNair said she lends advice and support to the students so they stay on track to work in the trades, attend college, join the military, or become entrepreneurs.
CFUF has put her on a path, not only for career success and economic stability, Ms. McNair said, but toward her true purpose and fulfillment.
Since graduating from STRIVE®, she’s been back to North Monroe Street to speak to new members, participate in ongoing training and enrichment activities, and join the growing advocacy efforts of the organization to push for policy changes to create more equitable conditions for all Baltimore families.
“It is like a family and feels like home,” Ms. McNair said.
CFUF MEMBER
KEVIN HALL
For more than three years, Kevin Hall searched for an opportunity to break out of the cycle of working odd jobs and barely getting by. He looked for workforce training in many places but found program after program had to turn him away because he didn’t fit their admission criteria. He was never incarcerated and didn’t suffer from the disease of addiction, so he said organizations repeatedly told him they weren’t able to help.
Mr. Hall finally heard about the Center for Urban Families when his wife, Shannell, told a coworker how much he was struggling to find a job. It was 2014, and Mr. Hall, then in his 30s, was a father of four. He’d earned a GED, but even that didn’t help to get him unstuck.
“I was skeptical whether or not it would pan out, because I was trying so hard but nothing was working,” Mr. Hall said.
CFUF encouraged him to participate, and he immediately enrolled in Project Jumpstart to learn the basics of the building trades in plumbing, electric, and carpentry. CFUF helped him refresh his math skills, gave him his first suit, and lined him up with job interviews.
“I had a job before I graduated from the program at the top of my class.”
“I had a job before I graduated from the program at the top of my class,” said Mr. Hall, who was hired by Mechanical Engineering & Construction Corporation (MEC²), where he has worked ever since.
He is a sheet metal mechanic and one of a couple dozen other CFUF graduates who have joined the MEC² payroll over the years. The mechanical design and construction firm works on hospitals, schools, offices, and industrial complexes throughout the Mid-Atlantic.
One of Mr. Hall’s coworkers is Derek Liggins, a CFUF member and HVAC foreman for MEC2 who runs multimillion dollar projects. Mr. Liggins joined CFUF in 2008 and has become a mentor to many over the years. He is now co-chair of the CFUF alumni association.
“Derek took me under his wing, and we’ve been real close,” Mr. Hall said. “He’s been a big brother. He showed me a lot and tried to keep me on the straight and narrow.”
The relationships Mr. Hall said he built at CFUF matter as much to his success as the lessons he learned there.
“CFUF is not only a workforce development program, they offer so much more,” Mr. Hall said. “They generally invest in your future. You are forever a member. If you need help or resources, they are always there for you.”
Over the last decade, Mr. Hall said he and his wife bought a home in Northeast Baltimore off Perring Parkway. Mr. Hall said his salary at MEC2 helps him to provide a good life for his family, including his two sons, daughter, and grandchild; his middle son passed away about three years ago.
“I want more people to know: CFUF can actually get you the help that you need,” Mr. Hall said. “They will never give up on you and push you to be successful. They want nothing more than to see you prosper.”
FIVE-YEAR STRATEGIC PLAN IMPLEMENTATION AND PROGRESS
In September 2021, the CFUF Board approved our five-year strategic plan, which we immediately put into action. As we continue to implement the tactics and strategies set forth, we will evolve from case management to mobility coaching, draw on partnerships for powerful wraparound support, effect broadscale change through advocacy, and achieve greater innovation and effectiveness through robust data analysis. This roadmap for our future success is infused with insights from our members whose knowledge and lived experience help guide our work. We’re excited to share progress highlights and accomplishments to date.
EMPATH MOBILITY COACHING MODEL IMPLEMENTATION
The EMPath Mobility Coaching Model, an evidencebased approach to mentoring, remains our primary intervention for helping members achieve family stability and economic success. EMPath’s essential elements include one-on-one coaching, the Bridge to Self-Sufficiency (the Bridge), goal setting, and rewarding progress, with a focus on workforce development.
Our mobility coaches assess the real-life situations and barriers our members face that often get in the way of their success. During one-on-one coaching sessions with members to review the Bridge, mobility coaches help them to identify where they are on their journey to self-sufficiency and support them to develop a goal plan to ensure continual progress. From the time of intake to job placement and beyond, we remind members of the pathway laid out by the Bridge, and how, by focusing on their goals, they’ll be able to successfully traverse the Bridge.
Based on our Bridge data, we know that members have shown greatest improvement in education, earnings/ income, and employment quality. There was a range of improvement with savings, debts, housing, advocacy, and social connectedness. The lowest scores for improvements were related to physical and mental health and family obligations. This data makes clear the alignment between members’ goals and progress, our core emphasis on workforce development, and the need for additional services around financial literacy, advocacy, and health.
We are also piloting more frequent Bridge assessments (from semi-annual to quarterly), which will provide greater touchpoints for our mobility coaches to gauge members’ progress on their action steps. Mobility coaches will be able to support members on shortterm goals that provide for stabilization, and long-term goals that create positive habit development.
CAREFIRST’S BLUECROSS BLUESHIELD NEW HIRE TRAINING PROGRAM
During the past several months, we have worked with CareFirst’s Learning and Development team to develop a training to enhance CareFirst managers’ skills and competencies to effectively engage with direct reports with high barriers to workforce attachment, who were recruited for CareFirst’s West Baltimore Workforce Development Initiative. We have been a leading voice in how to support these individuals to be successful in the workplace. We also know that individuals new to the workforce often need time and training to develop skills to be successful on the job; similarly, managers who supervise, coach, and mentor them may also need guidance on how to effectively support their retention.
Through this initiative, CFUF facilitates training for CareFirst managers on how to use, social-emotional strategies to effectively coach new employees. One strategy that managers will learn to engage (model, coach, and mentor) new employees is LACE™ (Listen to understand, Ask powerful questions, Challenge and support, and Establish next steps and accountability). Upon completing the training, managers will be able to coach new employees by providing clear expectations; providing training tools and resources to develop organization, time management, and problem-solving skills; setting realistic goals; providing feedback and guidance; encouraging self-awareness and selfreflection; and leading by example.
ADVOCACY
In 2024, CFUF formally launched its advocacy program by hiring a Director of Advocacy and Strategic Initiatives. The program’s goals are: (a) equipping CFUF members to advocate for themselves and their communities through quarterly citizen advocacy training and connecting them with legislators and partners who support their policy interests; and (b) conduct issue advocacy in which CFUF identifies systemic barriers to economic and racial justice and collaborates with members, partners, and legislators to create and advance solutions.
During this year, we finalized our long-term advocacy strategy, which includes becoming leaders in crafting and advancing legislation that addresses four critical policy issues that impact our members: Child Support, Workforce Development, Legacy Wealth Creation, and Poverty Eradication. Understanding that affordable housing, childcare, transportation, and re-entry policies have a direct impact on these four issues, we will also seek to advance legislation related to these policy areas. Our long-term goal is to become leaders in crafting and advancing bills and providing testimony that most impact CFUF members, in partnership with other organizations and legislators.
To prepare members to participate in policymaking, CFUF conducts four citizen advocacy trainings for them. These four sessions teach how laws are made, the power of strategic organizing to amplify individual impact, and the art of sharing personal stories effectively in various advocacy settings. During the 2024 Maryland Legislative Session, CFUF members testified before the House of Delegates and Senate judicial committees and submitted written testimony supporting the bills included on CFUF’s policy agenda. In late February, five CFUF members and four staff held private meetings with more than 20 state legislators for our inaugural Center for Urban Families Advocacy Day.
CFUF experienced significant success in its first year of formal advocacy work. A notable example is our participation in coalition calls with the team crafting the mass marijuana pardon Governor Wes Moore issued in July. Consequently, we were well positioned to be the first organization contacted by the Governor’s office when looking for impacted Marylanders to participate in the ceremony where the Governor signed the executive order pardoning 175,000 Maryland cannabis convictions. Our Outreach Coordinator, and trained citizen advocate, Shiloh Jordan was chosen by the Governor’s office to be highlighted in the ceremony as the representative of more than 100,000 Marylanders being pardoned.
RESEARCH AND EVALUATION
In August, CFUF was thrilled to welcome Dr. Amanda Smith to our team. CFUF and Dr. Smith were first introduced when she co-led an assessment of CFUF’s data and its readiness to expand its research and evaluation department. Through a unique partnership with the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health (BSPH), Dr. Smith now serves as CFUF’s director of research and evaluation and as a faculty member at BSPH.
She brings previous experience serving in such a capacity, having done so with BSPH and the Baltimore City Health Department as an epidemiologist focused on data analysis and program evaluation. As a faculty member, Dr. Smith will provide CFUF access to the vast network of expertise and resources at BSPH. Through this innovative partnership with BSPH, Dr. Smith will provide BSPH with a model for future academic and community-based organization partnerships.
In her role as director, Dr. Smith will lead our Research, Evaluation & Innovation department, where she will:
conduct rigorous evaluations of CFUF’s core and emerging programs;
work with department leaders to utilize data to identify and evaluate changes to our programs that will allow them to further meet their objectives;
identify key findings and lessons from CFUF evaluations to promote to the broader field;
champion evidence-based practices to support and improve program and participant outcomes based on trends and best practices in the field; and
promote a culture of using data and information to learn, improve, innovate, and consistently engage in data-informed decision-making throughout all programs, departments, and across all levels of the organization.
Dr. Smith’s priorities in 2024 included:
establishing data cleaning methodologies and quality control processes that will serve as the foundation for all future evaluation work, such as implementing semi-automated processes and standardized systems that ensure data integrity; and
developing comprehensive evaluation plans for key programs, beginning a process and outcome evaluation of the DADMAP curriculum that will demonstrate its effectiveness and support its monetization.
THE PRACTITIONERS LEADERSHIP INSTITUTE
Empowering, Educating, and Strengthening
Practitioners who are bringing new ideas and fresh solutions in the areas of responsible fatherhood, workforce development, and family strengthening.
Since its launch in 2011, CFUF’s Practitioners Leadership Institute (PLI) has been providing practitioners working in the focus fields of Responsible Fatherhood, Family Strengthening, Workforce Development, and/or Boys & Men of Color (BMOC), with experiences, skills, and information that will strengthen their ability to improve outcomes for low-income fathers and families.
In June 2021, CFUF began conversations with the Ballmer Group concerning fatherhood engagement strategies that could be adopted by various
organizations, including early childhood programs, across the country. Subsequently, in August 2021
CFUF began discussions with leadership at Baltimore City Head Start (BCHS), which had expressed a strong desire to increase fatherhood engagement, particularly in light of the recent mandate issued by the Office of Head Start to incorporate fatherhood programming more centrally in Head Start services. Head Start has historically struggled to meaningfully engage fathers, a reality exacerbated during the COVID-19 pandemic.
BCHS reported that even fewer fathers/father figures participated in Head Start activities during this period, including the Family Assessment and Family Goal Setting process and parent education workshops.
In response, CFUF brought together a highly dedicated team of experienced individuals from CFUF, MEF Associates (Evaluation Experts), and BCHS to brainstorm ideas. From the beginning, the team focused on building a strong relationship by codesigning the project together. This facilitated buy-in from BCHS leadership and BCHS staff and families, which was essential to gathering accurate data to identify and address the major barriers to fatherhood engagement. This work leveraged the extensive experience of CFUF in engaging fathers, the dedicated
staff of BCHS, and the research and evaluation expertise of MEF Associates in supporting the design, implementation, and evaluation of innovative models in both Head Start and fatherhood settings.
As a result, in January 2022, the Ballmer Group awarded CFUF a planning grant for PLI to develop a model for promoting active fatherhood engagement at BCHS sites with the goal of developing a prototype for replication in Head Start programs nationwide, and eventually the broader field of early-childhood and family support agencies and organizations. After a successful planning period, PLI began implementing its plan with BCHS to serve as a place-based proof of concept, culminating in an evidence-based replication plan and early dissemination throughout the field.
BCHS & CFUF
PRACTITIONERS LEADERSHIP INSTITUTE FELLOW
TIAIRA ROBINSON
Tiaira Robinson was transitioning from her job as a Baltimore City public school teacher to nonprofit management when she joined CFUF’s Practitioners Leadership Institute back in 2019. The timing was perfect to launch her new career, providing her wisdom and guidance for the challenges she’d likely encounter, and connecting her with partners and mentors for the journey.
Her cohort was packed with others working in the same space serving boys and young men of color in Baltimore. As director of programs for I AM MENtality Youth Male Empowerment Project, she wanted to learn strategies for the role and expand her skills.
“We want them to become upstanding citizens and come back to Baltimore and do the same thing for someone else. Each one, teach one.”
“The PLI was instrumental in my growth,” Ms. Robinson said. “I made connections with influential leaders that I am still in communication with.”
I AM MENtality serves boys and young men of color, ages 7 to 18. Ms. Robinson said they provide mentoring, mental health support, financial literacy, and leadership development. Their goal is to serve the whole child, developing their confidence and eliminating whatever barriers get in the way of their success.
“The results drive me,” Ms. Robinson said. “Some of the boys and young men who come into our program say, ‘What is this? I didn’t ask for this.’ But they grow to understand, they are part of a brotherhood and know they have so many people who care about them.”
“It is hard work, but I stay grounded—and I pray a lot.”
When Ms. Robinson participated in the PLI, she was still working part time at I AM MENtality. The organization was working with one city school back then. Now, she said the nonprofit works with as many as 10 schools at a time and their roster of boys and young men has grown significantly alongside their partnerships.
A graduate of Coppin State University and the Baltimore County magnet high school, George Washington Carver Center for Arts and Technology, Ms. Robinson said PLI filled in the gaps her formal education didn’t offer. They covered topics such as community impact and board governance.
Like other nonprofits in Baltimore’s community development ecosystem, I AM MENtality collaborates with other organizations serving city families. Ms. Robinson said she continues to work closely with CFUF, serving the children of their members and referring young men from their program to CFUF for services such as responsible fatherhood and workforce development.
Together, she said, these alliances form the sort of wraparound supports that are necessary to counter forces at work in underserved communities.
“We want them to become upstanding citizens and come back to Baltimore and do the same thing for someone else,” Ms. Robinson said. “Each one, teach one.”
PRACTITIONERS LEADERSHIP INSTITUTE FELLOW
DR. CHARLES DANIELS, JR.
At the Practitioners Leadership Institute, Dr. Charles Daniels, Jr. found exactly what he needed: a village. The signature Center for Urban Families program brought Dr. Daniels together with others leaders who devote heart and soul to strengthening fathers and families.
Dr. Daniels—cofounder and CEO of Fathers' UpLift—said the PLI provided space for the fellows to exchange ideas, imagine new solutions, find inspiration, and build their endurance.
“Some of the people I met [at PLI] left an indelible mark on my life during our time together,” said Dr. Daniels, who reflected on the experience from years ago.
“The work can be isolating. The work is draining. We need to create a village.”
Based in the Dorchester neighborhood of Boston, Fathers' UpLift is a resource for fathers across the country to become more engaged in the lives of their children through mental health counseling, coaching, and advocacy. Their work is focused on lifting up men and families to overcome barriers caused by racism,
trauma, and addiction. It is the first mental health and substance abuse treatment facility for fathers and families in the United States, according to Dr. Daniels.
Dr. Daniels and his wife, Samantha Fils-Daniels, founded the organization in 2011. They previously worked as clinicians after earning advanced degrees in social work with specialized certifications. Therapy and mental health interventions are woven into every aspect of their work with fathers. Fathers’ UpLift offers individualized support to ensure fathers can focus on their mental health by providing necessary resources, such as food assistance and legal advocacy. They also stand in the gap for children whose fathers are absent.
Fathers’ UpLift was several years old when Dr. Daniels traveled to Baltimore for the PLI. Dr. Daniels was familiar with the work at CFUF but eager to learn more and network with other leaders in the field. He said Wendy Blackwell Fortune, who leads the PLI for CFUF, has become a personal mentor.
“She was the heartbeat of the institute,” Dr. Daniels said. “I thank her so much for her support. Wendy was transformative in my life. She is a constant source of inspiration.”
CFUF created the institute in 2011 as a way to empower, educate, and invigorate people and organizations that foster stronger family bonds by promoting self-efficacy, responsible fatherhood, and intergenerational wealth. Most recently, the PLI established seven-month cohorts for grassroots leaders in the Baltimore area who impact positive outcomes for boys and men of color.
Dr. Daniels said especially helpful during his time at the PLI was the exchange of ideas with direct insights from other people doing similar work.
“More resources need to be invested in opportunities like this to sustain those of us working in these fields,” Dr. Daniels said. “We need each other more than we ever did.”
“The people I met [at PLI] left an indelible mark on my life”
PRACTITIONERS LEADERSHIP INSTITUTE FELLOW
BOBBY HOLMES
When Bobby Tunmise Holmes was a fellow with the Practitioners Leadership Institute, he was actively shaping and developing his plans as a social entrepreneur to drive better mental health and wellbeing for Black men and boys.
It was nearly seven years ago, and the experience at CFUF connected him with thought partners and collaborators and helped propel the trajectory of Son of a Dream Services & Multimedia Resources—a multifaceted agency Mr. Holmes founded to provide mental health and psychotherapy for men, youth, and families; out-of-school time programming and workshops; and professional development training.
“If we are serious about addressing the social conditions of our communities, we need to be serious about supporting the professional development of folks to create institutions,” Mr. Holmes said. “That is the only way to transform the conditions of communities. You have to put the right people in positions to make that happen.”
At the time Mr. Holmes applied for the PLI, he was completing his graduate work at Morgan State University to become a licensed clinical social worker. He was looking for an opportunity to further his skills and the reach of Son of a Dream.
Mr. Holmes and others in his cohort were inspired by a PLI workshop offered by Trabian Shorters, founder and CEO of BMe, entitled, “Black Men are Assets.” A focus of the session was to find ways to collectively amplify one another’s efforts.
“It was such a powerful topic,” Mr. Holmes said. “The Black men in my PLI cohort are doing the work to contribute
“I contribute to the greatness of Black boys and their families so they can be the best they can be.”
to our families and communities. This is Kujichagulia, self determination, to ask what we want our communities to look like and then to do the work. We are assets.”
Almost immediately, he collaborated with PLI fellow Ras Tre Subira to create “Reflection of Kings,” a youth development and media program for Black boys that is now called “Reflections Of Us” for boys and girls.
Along with another fellow, Alphonso Mayo, he offered a workshop based on his second book, “100! Real Talk for Our Boys,” a collection of personal essays and poems centered on culturally relevant youth development.
“As I evolved as a professional, so did Son of a Dream,” Mr. Holmes said. “We have to take the healthy development of Black men and boys seriously. We have to promote it and create safe spaces.
Son of a Dream started as a publishing production company in 2008. Mr. Holmes started offering workshops a few years later—and with his advanced degree and the PLI fellowship at CFUF, Son of a Dream has taken flight.
Mr. Holmes has published several books, runs a private practice and, in late 2024, he will facilitate a series of workshops at CFUF to teach members to focus on selfawareness and find healthy ways to express anger and process trauma and loss.
“I contribute to the greatness of Black boys and their families so they can be the best they can be,” Mr. Holmes said. “Like a lot of men who come through the doors of CFUF, they dream of a better life.”
For self. For family. For future.
ALL IN ALWAYS
ALL In is CFUF’s comprehensive strategy to tackle the cycles of inequity, accelerate social and economic opportunity, and advocate for policies that promote an inclusive and equitable economy for all. As we make critical adjustments to our services and processes, ALL In remains our long-term attitude to ensure our members' success in achieving economic and social stability.
ALL In leverages two decades of applied learnings to:
Target key critical areas of chronic underemployment and family instability AND
Link individual accountability, person-centered case management, and supportive networks with workforce development training, education, and civic engagement.
TRAILBLAZERS FOR TOMORROW
At CFUF, change isn’t just a concept; it’s a powerful revolution ignited by our remarkable visionaries, advocates, and champions who are committed to forging a brighter, more equitable future for all. Join us in celebrating the fearless architects of transformation who make our organization a beacon of hope and progress. Their relentless dedication and innovative spirit exemplify everything CFUF stands for, driving us boldly into the future and inspiring the change we need to see in the world. Together, we can catalyze extraordinary progress and amplify the impact of our collective mission.
CFUF BOARD MEMBER
LETITIA LOGAN PASSARELLA
RESEARCH DIRECTOR, UNIVERSITY OF MARYLAND SCHOOL OF SOCIAL WORK
from drafting a resume, landing a job, and developing skills to budgeting money, buying a house, and filling out documents for a will.
“CFUF is here for the entire lifecycle in dismantling poverty,” she said.
Throughout her professional life, Letitia Logan Passarella has studied the numbers and examined the cause and effect of social welfare policies.
As research director for the University of Maryland School of Social Work, she has earned the designation as one of the state’s foremost experts on TANF, SNAP, and child support, offering insight and advising government agencies alongside Joe Jones and others trying to make conditions better for parents and children.
Now, Mrs. Passarella has stepped into the role of board member at CFUF, and she sees the opportunity to tie her knowledge and expertise to direct outcomes for families and help fulfill the organization’s greatest aspiration.
“A mission of ‘dismantling poverty’ makes a strong statement,” she said. “CFUF isn’t talking about taking one individual out of poverty, helping them get a job and better wages. They’re talking about entire families creating legacies for themselves.”
Their approach makes sense, Mrs. Passarella said. CFUF shows up for members across time and experiences
“CFUF isn’t talking about taking one individual out of poverty, helping them get a job and better wages. They’re talking about entire families creating legacies for themselves.”
Mrs. Passarella said CFUF’s new partnership with Amanda Smith and the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health will take the work to a new level. Dr. Smith will be able to provide the reliable data that researchers depend on to connect outcomes to evidence.
“When you talk to graduates who have completed CFUF programs, you know something has happened here,” Mrs. Passarella said. “You hear the hope in their voices. There is this renewed sense of what they can accomplish when they know who has their back.”
“There is some kind of magic happening at CFUF.”
For Mrs. Passarella, she understands on a personal level what it means when families can invest in one another’s success.
She looks at the ripple effect in her own life because of a decision her grandmother made in Northeast Philadelphia a generation ago. When white flight took hold in the family’s neighborhood and real estate values fell, her grandmother bought houses, paid them off, and held on to them for her grandchildren. Mrs. Passarella’s grandmother transferred the real estate and the earned wealth to her and her cousins. The inheritance offered a launching pad for the family’s next generation.
Mrs. Passarella said she is inspired by CFUF’s vision to ensure a similar transfer of wealth from members to their children and grandchildren.
“I’m so proud and honored to be even a small part of the success stories at CFUF,” she said.
“It’s the push from the team at CFUF for our members to aim really high.”
The Center for Urban Families isn’t the same organization it was when Patrick Sissman started his board service six years ago.
“Someone who comes to CFUF today versus 2018 has a whole host of broader, deeper support available to them,” said Mr. Sissman, a Partner at Redwood Holdings.
“It’s the push from the team at CFUF for our members to aim really high. If you go through STRIVE® and find success, where else can we push you? Are you saving and paying off debt? The team pushes members to think bigger and achieve greater things for themselves and their families.”
Mr. Sissman said “CFUF is defined by a growth mindset. By any objective measure, the organization has maintained a strong track record throughout the years,” he said. But just like the members themselves, CFUF strives for continual self-improvement. Sissman said “the team reaches for the next goal, takes stock of priorities, and evaluates the latest benchmarks of success.”
On the heels of the COVID-19 pandemic, CFUF embraced a new vision for itself. The board approved a five-year strategic plan, in the fall of 2021, that shifts the approach from case management to mobility coaching, adopts a more sophisticated approach to research and evaluation, cultivates a stronger 2Gen ecosystem with community-based partners, and seeks to create broadscale change through advocacy.
“It wasn’t enough for someone to graduate from one of our programs and get a job,” Sissman said. “We are making sure the jobs they are getting are the right jobs that launch their careers, and we make sure they’re able to move up the ladder.”
More than ever before, the organization’s focus is developing programs and outcomes that translate into intergenerational wealth for CFUF families.
“The bar has gotten higher for what we hope the members can accomplish—from buying homes to
planning their estates,” Sissman said. “We want them to pass resources down to their children and set up their families to reach higher and go further.”
Mr. Sissman said the drive for CFUF and the members to think bigger and embrace loftier goals, comes with a need to equip a growing team with enough resources to manage the ongoing engagement with members.
CFUF board members, like Mr. Sissman, are there to help. Each is well respected in their fields and brings relationships and deep expertise—from wealth management and nonprofit leadership to academia and lived experience. He said they are devoted to the mission and helping the organization’s continuous evolution.
“I really admire CFUF, and that’s why I think it is a very worthy place to allocate time and dollars,” Mr. Sissman said. “We are working with some of the hardest to reach, most underserved people in Baltimore. The challenge before us is great, but the results are worth every investment.”
CFUF BOARD MEMBER
PATRICK
SISSMAN
PARTNER, REDWOOD HOLDINGS
Along North Monroe Street, not far from Coppin State University and Mondawmin Mall, sit three institutions that offer healing to Baltimore families—each distinguished in its own right and standing in service of the city.
The Center for Urban Families and its neighbors New Shiloh Baptist Church and Joseph H. Brown, Jr. Funeral Home, anchor the community, offering investment, advocacy, and support.
Joseph H. Brown III said he sees the CFUF members coming and going, often dressed up and wearing looks of hopefulness and determination. He runs his family’s funeral home and onsite crematorium on 2.6 acres adjacent to the Center.
“We almost create a little village,” Mr. Brown said. “Joseph H. Brown is a one-of-a-kind funeral home, the largest in Baltimore, and the only one with a crematorium on site. New Shiloh provides spiritual support in a distinguished setting, and Center for Urban Families improves the lives of people by strengthening their wherewithal.
Mr. Brown said the institutions work with one another and community associations to champion causes, such as zoning improvements and policies that create conditions to draw more businesses, including banks and grocery stores. “We talk about what we can do to make the community better and keep it from getting worse.”
Mr. Brown is a fourth-generation mortician and a firstgeneration cremationist. At Joseph H. Brown, Jr. Funeral
CFUF COMMUNITY PARTNER
JOSEPH H. BROWN III
PRESIDENT, JOSEPH H.
BROWN,
JR. FUNERAL HOME
“We are neighbors, and we look out for each other.”
Home, families design personalized funerals, processions, and tribute ceremonies for their lost loved ones. They can choose burial or cremation by fire or water—and know when, where, and how their loved one was returned to the Earth—ashes to ashes and dust to dust.
Given the rates of homicide and overdose in the city, Mr. Brown said his family sees too many who must endure the light of their loved ones being extinguished far too soon. He said CFUF’s programs work directly to counteract those forces of destruction.
“What we see with CFUF is, they take care of people who are disenfranchised and show them there is another way,” Mr. Brown said. “It’s a noble endeavor, and the work is absolutely essential.”
The funeral home has even hired CFUF members to join the staff. One, in particular, made a lasting impact, Mr. Brown said. Theresa Mills started in 2016 and worked at the funeral home until her death in 2021. She worked as administrator, receptionist, and insurance coordinator.
“Theresa ended up being one of our best employees, although she started from rough and tough beginnings,” Mr. Brown said. “Everyone who knew Theresa loved her. She loved to help out with the funerals, doing anything she could for the families.”
“Ms. Mills and the other CFUF members the funeral home has hired are a testament to the training and opportunities that the organization provides,” Mr. Brown said.
“Baltimore is going to make a comeback,” Mr. Brown said. “I can see a light ahead, and I think it is only going to get better, especially when you have organizations like CFUF that are helping people to rebuild their lives.”
CFUF STAFF
RACHEL KASSMAN
GRANTS MANAGER
When Rachel Kassman is researching and writing proposals to submit grant applications to foundations and government agencies, she thinks of herself as a bridge from the breakthroughs happening for CFUF members to their big dreams and future opportunities.
She mines the data for patterns and outcomes, tells the stories of the lives transformed, and spots opportunities where the work on North Monroe Street aligns with innovations funders are eager to support.
“To be really effective means turning what is the big picture of the mission into very specific things for the funders—connecting lofty goals with what our work means for the individual families,” Ms. Kassman said. “What does ‘dismantling poverty’ mean for one family?”
Ms. Kassman’s training in library and information science and experience in fundraising and marketing are an ideal fit for her role as CFUF’s grants manager, a position she started in 2021.
On the desk in her office are stacks of reports. She pores over them to discover the facts she needs to craft powerful sentences that condense the granular details of small victories members achieve alongside her CFUF colleagues, and she ties them to the promise of broad outcomes for fathers, families, and an entire city.
“To be really effective means turning what is the big picture of the mission into very specific things for the funders— connecting lofty goals with what our work means for the individual families.”
Baltimore is her adopted hometown of 17 years. Working for CFUF allows her to use her time, energy, and expertise to support the values she holds close to her heart and the dreams each member has in theirs.
“We’re about helping people make their own choices and achieve the future they want to have—not the future we imagine for them,” Ms. Kassman said.
Ms. Kassman said she likes to stay in a supporting role for her colleagues at CFUF who are the ones on the frontline, doing the work to build intergenerational wealth for tens of thousands of fathers, mothers, and children. The grants she secures bring in dollars for services, resources, equipment, facilities, and salaries. Her colleagues, in turn, translate those investments into supporting our members.
“CFUF upholds the same values it does for the members as for the staff,” Ms. Kassman said. That is to say, CFUF draws such a devoted and talented staff—many with lived experience—because Joe Jones created that by design when he founded the organization more than a quarter-century ago.
“We operate the same internally as we do externally,” Ms. Kassman said. “We believe people should be able to access not just a job, but to achieve a career that supports their family and recognizes their inherent value.”
“Our foundation is built not only on the way we support our members, but also how we treat our employees.”
CFUF STAFF
BRYANT JEFFERS
DIRECTOR OF FINANCE AND ADMINISTRATION
Most days Zachary “Bryant” Jeffers is the resident “finance guy” at the Center for Urban Families, but on a recent day, he became the “I.T. guy.” It was after hours, and a member was in need of help dealing with a tech issue to manage an application that was due.
“Helping the man didn’t take much effort, but in that simple and meaningful exchange, relief and encouragement washed over his face,” Mr. Jeffers said.
“We don’t just walk past people,” he said. “We see them and we act. To have a profound impact, you don’t need to be a mobility coach or be Joe Jones. You need to be a human being who loves and cares about other human beings.”
“Along the journey, [fathers] find a renewed sense of hope, a stronger relationship with their sons and daughters—and a chance to see themselves in a different light.”
Mr. Jeffers started at CFUF in 2015 and serves as Director of Finance and Administration. His job is to safeguard and manage the financial and physical assets that provide fuel to keep the mission moving forward— and create an environment where people engage, work, and begin the journey of realizing their dreams. Working in conjunction with the Development and Programs teams, under the pillars of the strategic plan, Mr. Jeffers said, “CFUF has a fiduciary responsibility to be good stewards of the resources provided and to achieve outcomes to earn the trust of donors and to make the case for the future.”
Over 25 years, his career has taken him from financial reporting in global investment management
to commercial real estate accounting and, now, to nonprofit leadership. A graduate of Baltimore Polytechnic Institute, Mr. Jeffers earned a degree in Economics from University of Maryland, Baltimore County, and is a Certified Public Accountant.
He said joining the team on North Monroe Street felt like coming home. His father was a Baptist minister, who pastored a church on McCulloh Street about two miles from CFUF, and his grandparents’ home was located nearby on Dukeland Street. He gets nostalgic driving to work and feels like he is continuing the tradition of service to Baltimore that is his family’s legacy.
“My passion is what drives me to be part of people’s positive trajectory in life,” Mr. Jeffers said. “I am a coach at heart, and I listen to people. I ask how I can help to support them and challenge them to be accountable.”
Evidence of the success of the CFUF programs is found in research and analysis as well as graduation rates, job placements, and hourly earnings. However, as a happily married and proud father of two young adults, Mr. Jeffers said it is never more apparent than it is in the family interactions.
“Dads often turn to CFUF out of frustration with their circumstances, challenges dealing with the system or the limited access they have to their children,” he said. “Along the journey, they find a renewed sense of hope, a stronger relationship with their sons and daughters— and a chance to see themselves in a different light.”
DR. AMANDA SMITH
DIRECTOR OF RESEARCH AND EVALUATION
Awaiting Amanda Smith’s arrival as the new director of research and evaluation is over a decade worth of data that details successes and hardships that mark the journey for thousands of CFUF members. Her discoveries in this role promise to bring insights and breakthroughs to an organization known for transforming lives.
As a faculty member at the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health, Dr. Smith will divide her time between her academic role at Hopkins and the CFUF position. This innovative arrangement aims to further research into the person-by-person effects of CFUF’s interventions.
“The result of policies and practices, over many years, create the challenging conditions Baltimore residents live in and with today,” Dr. Smith said. “Public health makes a good effort to address disparities, but some of these aspects are so deeply rooted that public health, at the population level, is sometimes not enough.”
Dr. Smith was recently embedded as an epidemiologist with the Baltimore City Health Department. Her job there was to understand the prevalence of chronic diseases, flu, and COVID-19 vaccination trends, and how sociodemographics predict wellbeing for groups of people.
“CFUF is confronting challenges that are difficult to solve.”
She was invited to evaluate whether CFUF was ready for a researcher and define how one would fit in the context of public health in Baltimore City. The evaluation was made at the request of Joseph T. Jones Jr., CFUF founder and president, and Dr. Joshua M. Sharfstein, the Bloomberg School’s vice dean for public health practice and community engagement.
With support from the Bloomberg American Health Initiative for the assessment, Dr. Smith reviewed records and conducted focus groups and interviews.
“I instantly saw they are addressing upstream factors like dismantling poverty and ensuring children grow up in supportive environments,” Dr. Smith said. “In public health, we know these factors impact the overall wellbeing of people’s lives.”
“CFUF is confronting challenges that are difficult to solve. A lot of people shy away from this work because it is complicated. We intend to embrace and address the challenges with more data and a scientific approach to health policy.”
Dr. Smith said she is eager to understand the unique needs and situations CFUF members face. A picture will emerge as she helps to craft precise questions to ask members and determine what information to document from their experiences. She will also develop statistical coding and GIS mapping processes to automate and expand analyses and improve data quality.
Taken together, she will use data and analyses to assist CFUF with evaluating past and current services to shape the future of its programming.
“Success might not be immediate or 100 percent, but over time, we will break down these barriers,” Dr. Smith said. “This work requires one-on-one interventions so we can tackle public health issues that seem insurmountable.”
For self. For family. For future.
OUR WORK IN ACTION
As part of our Five-Year Strategic Plan we continue to enhance our programming, both in-house and in collaboration with partners, so that available programs and services align with a clearly-defined set of mobility outcomes: workforce development, family strengthening, adult education, financial management, housing, health, social support, and social change.
Economic Success Programs to Achieve Workplace Success:
STRIVE ® BALTIMORE
An intensive three-week workshop that combines tangible skills, such as resume writing and interviewing, with attitudinal training that prepares individuals to obtain and retain employment.
BACK TO BUSINESS
A three-day job readiness training that focuses on refreshing the soft skills and job search skills of individuals with prior work experience who are seeking employment.
BALTIMORE BOOST (BOOSTING OPPORTUNITIES FOR SOCIAL AND ECONOMIC MOBILITY FOR FAMILIES)
A partnership between CFUF and Baltimore City Community College (BCCC) that provides individuals, with low-incomes, access to work and life skills training, BCCC occupational skills training certification programs, job placement and retention support, and other supportive services to accelerate social and economic mobility.
TRAIN UP
Supported by the Mayor’s Office of Employment Development, Train Up is a partnership program with Baltimore City Community College (BCCC) that focuses on providing people with low incomes supports and educational pathways to advance social and economic mobility. Train Up provides occupational skills training, credential attainment, and job-placement assistance to Baltimore residents, focusing on highdemand sectors that offer wage earnings of $15+/hour, including career pathways in healthcare, transportation & logistics, construction, and information technology.
Family Stability Programs that Strengthen Relationships:
BALTIMORE RESPONSIBLE FATHERHOOD SERVICES
A four-week program, that utilizes CFUF's Developing All Dads for Manhood and Parenting (DADMAP) curriculum to assist non-custodial fathers, with low incomes, to increase and build their fatherhood knowledge and skills.
BALTIMORE 2GEN ECOSYSTEM INITIATIVE
The Baltimore 2Gen Ecosystem is a two-generation approach that builds on the existing work of CFUF, promoting the importance of programming that is inclusive of fathers, providing services to both caregivers and children, to strengthen a family's ability to achieve long-term economic stability. Through our partnerships with Union Baptist Head Start, Healthy Start, the Judy Center, and other local community partners, families have access to a streamlined referral process and collaborative case management services, to support parents’ employment goals and economic stability, while simultaneously supporting and prioritizing children’s health and their educational trajectories.
Place-Based Initiatives that Build Resident and Community Capacity:
BCAAN (BALTIMORE COMMUNITIES ASSISTING AND ADVANCING NEIGHBORS)
The Baltimore Communities Assisting and Advancing Neighbors (BCAAN) initiative utilizes partnerships with community-based organizations to implement resident-led solutions to help Baltimore’s most vulnerable neighborhoods in the Greater Penn North area of Baltimore City to address the current state of poverty. We consistently engage with 20 communitybased organizations that provide services in the areas of workforce development, financial education, health and wellness, family stability, and educational enrichment.
HOMEBUYING ASSISTANCE PROGRAM
The CFUF Homebuying Assistance program provides CFUF members up to $10,000, each, to assist with the down payment and closing costs. In addition, CFUF provides pre-mortgage readiness support including financial literacy training, credit building, and repair training, and case management support to prepare members to successfully complete a HUD-approved homebuying counseling program and receive a certificate of completion.
PRACTITIONERS LEADERSHIP INSTITUTE (PLI)
PLI is CFUF’s nationally-focused initiative that seeks to promote excellence in the human services industry by providing customized technical assistance and training for new, emerging, and established programs and their leaders, in order for them to better serve low-income fathers and families.
FINANCIAL SNAPSHOT
The Center for Urban Families is proud to report another year of strong support from our amazing donors. As we look ahead toward growth and deeper involvement in our communities, we remain committed to fiscal prudence to ensure sustainability and high-quality programming for every individual and family we serve.
STATEMENT OF FINANCIAL POSITION
LIABILITIES AND NET ASSETS
STATEMENT OF ACTIVITIES AND CHANGES IN NET ASSETS
THE POWER OF PARTNERSHIP
We extend our heartfelt gratitude to our partners for being ALL In. Your unwavering support is the cornerstone of our efforts, making our work not only possible but truly impactful. Thank you for standing alongside us. Together, we can achieve remarkable things and create lasting change.
KEY EMPLOYER PARTNERS
KEY COMMUNITY, AGENCY, AND GOVERNMENT PARTNERS
KEY CORPORATE PARTNERS
Foundation
Charitable
Oprah W infrey
Charitable Foundation
Oprah W infrey
CFUF BOARD OF DIRECTORS 2024
OFFICERS
Kenneth M. Jones II Board Chairman
Senior Vice President, Chief Operating Officer, and Chief Equity Officer, John D. and Catherine T. MacArthur Foundation
Joseph T. Jones, Jr. Founder, President, and CEO
Daman C. Blakeney Chair, Governance Committee
Managing Director and Senior Portfolio Manager, Brown Capital Management
John G. McLean, Jr.
Chair, Finance and Audit Committee
Senior Vice President and Chief Financial Officer, Baltimore Symphony Orchestra
Christopher (Chris) Rockey Chair, Development Committee
Senior Vice President, Northeast Territory Executive, Community Development Banking, PNC Bank
Ben Seigel Chair, Program Quality Committee
Deputy Comptroller for Policy, Public Works, and Investment, Comptroller of Maryland
DIRECTORS
Brian Andrews, Sr. Director of Strategic Initiatives, Baltimore Gas & Electric (BGE)
Peter Bowe
Founder, The Peter Bowe and Barbara Stewart Foundation
Naysha Conway-Hart Senior Workforce Development Specialist, Constellation
Lester Davis
Vice President, Chief of Staff, CareFirst
Henry D. Kahn Partner, Hogan Lovells
Barry Lancaster
Senior Asset Manager, Fannie Mae
Vernā Myers
Founder and Principal, The Vernā Myers Company
Bill Norris Director, Technical Accounting Consulting, RSM US LLP
Letitia Logan Passarella Research Director, University of Maryland School of Social Work
Patrick Sissman Partner, Redwood Holdings
Scott Soffen, CFA, CAIA Senior Investment Officer, American Trading & Production Corporation (ATAPCO)
David L. Warnock Partner, Camden Partners
William (Chip) F. Wendler, II
Retired, Vice President, Strategic Distribution Initiatives, T. Rowe Price Associates, Inc.
EMERITUS
Dr. James R. Calvin, Ph.D.
Professor of Practice and Associate Dean for Diversity, Equity, Inclusion, and Belonging, The Johns Hopkins Carey Business School
Guy E. Flynn
Retired, Partner, DLA Piper
Jamie McDonald
Managing Partner, Jamie McDonald Advisory
Terry Owens Vice President, Owens Media Group LLC
Brandon Scott Mayor, Baltimore City
Scott Sherman
Managing Partner, Rockwell Associates, LLC
Alicia Wilson
Managing Director and Global Head of Philanthropy for the North America Region, JPMorgan Chase & Co.
Robin Williams Wood Community Leader
CFUF TEAM
EXECUTIVE LEADERSHIP
Joseph T. Jones, Jr. Founder, President, and CEO
Brian S. Lyght Chief Operating Officer
Nicole Jordan Manager of Special Projects and Executive Support
SENIOR LEADERSHIP
Marilyn Aklin, D.P.A. Director of Development
Zachary Alberts Director of Advocacy and Strategic Initiatives
Wendy Blackwell Fortune Director of Practitioners Leadership Institute (PLI)
Brittny Herring-DeVore, Ph.D. Director of Family Strengthening and Community Engagement
Bryant Jeffers Director of Finance and Administration
Catherine Pitchford Director of Programs
Amanda Smith, Ph.D., MPH Director of Research and Evaluation
FAMILY STABILITY & ECONOMIC SUCCESS
Shakira Barnes ALL In Case Manager
Ninah Bell Senior Manager of Member Support and Engagement
Anthony Brown ALL In Mobility Coach
Marcus Brown Outreach Coordinator
Kellie Carrington Employment Specialist
Deneen Colson SNAP Coordinator
Jayson Gordneer ALL In Senior Mobility Coach
Bessie Griffith ALL In Case Manager (Clean Corps)
Ayana Jackson ALL In Mobility Coach
Shiloh Jordan Outreach Coordinator (2GEN/BCAAN)
Fatima Lewis ALL In Case Manager
Shevell Rudolph ALL In Support Manager
Mark Smith STRIVE® Trainer
Monique Speight Intake and Retention Specialist
LaShero Terry ALL In Senior Mobility Coach
Timothy Tillman ALL In Case Manager and Fatherhood Facilitator
Eddie White ALL In Case Manager and Fatherhood Facilitator
DeAndre Wiggins Employment Specialist
Caroline Willemin Senior Manager of Workforce and Education
Michael Williams Project Manager/Trainer (Clean Corps)
Tyler Yutzy
Intake and Retention Specialist and ALL In Case Manager
FAMILY STRENGTHENING AND COMMUNITY ENGAGEMENT
Moses Hammett BCAAN Partnership Coordinator
DEVELOPMENT
Cecilia Helmstetter
Senior Major Gifts Officer
Rachel Kassman Grants Manager
Kalie Pearson Grants Compliance Manager
Michael Tucker Contracts Specialist
FINANCE
Ayana Burrus Finance Assistant
Richard Konwea Associate Accountant
Bobbi Lewis-Collick Senior Grants Accountant
Andrea Shorter Interim Finance Manager
OPERATIONS
Arielle Forrest Senior Operations Manager
Wanda Liggins Senior Operations Specialist
Sidney Smith Facilities Assistant
Helena Wise First Impressions Specialist
Lloyd Wright Facilities Manager
PEOPLE AND CULTURE
Bridget Gallagher People and Culture Coordinator
PRACTITIONERS LEADERSHIP INSTITUTE (PLI)
Shawn Burnett PLI Academy Program Specialist
Vernon Wallace PLI Father Engagement Coordinator
2024 URBAN VISIONARY AWARDS
The Urban Visionary Awards recognize the accomplishments of champions dedicated to strengthening urban communities by promoting economic success and stability for Baltimore’s and our Nation’s fathers and families.
This year’s UVA is particularly special, marking the return of this beloved event post-pandemic and our 25th Anniversary! We are celebrating 25 Years of Seeding Legacies for the Future while honoring Congressman Kweisi Mfume and Danielle Torain-Victor for their activism, advocacy, and outsized impact on Baltimore and beyond. Each celebrates and supports the value of change across generations and the deep work necessary for creating healthy, thriving communities.
We are honored to have as our event host committee Jamar Brown, Lisa Hamilton, Brian Pieninck, Barbara Shapiro, Shelonda Stokes, and Alicia Wilson who are extraordinary individuals dedicated to supporting individuals on their journey to creating intergenerational wealth.
WHEN: NOVEMBER 21, 2024, 6–10PM
WHERE: AMERICAN VISIONARY ART MUSEUM 800
2024 UVA HONOREES
CONGRESSMAN KWEISI MFUME
DANIELLE TORAIN-VICTOR
2024 UVA CO-HOSTS
JAMAR BROWN
BARBARA SHAPIRO
LISA HAMILTON
SHELONDA STOKES
BRIAN PIENINCK
ALICIA WILSON
COLLECTIVE POWER, COLLECTIVE PROGRESS
At the heart of our mission lies a powerful truth: the root of dismantling poverty is seeding legacies for the future. What we do today matters tomorrow. Join us in cultivating lasting change and building a foundation for generations to come.
VISIT US.
Stop by our state-of-the-art facility to see our programs, members, and teammates in action.
VOLUNTEER.
We’re always looking for inspiring mentors to work directly with our members and make a lasting impact on their lives.
CONTRIBUTE.
Your support and invested resources help increase the impact of our work for our shared community.
BECOME A CORPORATE PARTNER.
We’ll work with you to figure out the best opportunity for your group.
FOLLOW US. @centerforurbanfamilies
For more ways to get involved, email maklin@cfuf.org or call 410.246.1415