East of the River Initiative

In 2006, the Community Outreach Program launched a new three-year capacity building program known as the East of the River Initiative. Working in partnership with the Nonprofit Roundtable of Greater Washington, the Urban Institute, local funders and Georgetown University's School of Continuing Studies, the Initiative aims at building the capacity of nonprofit organizations working in the education and youth sectors east of the Anacostia River in Wards 6, 7 and 8 in Washington.

Year One Review of East of the River Initiative (PPT) 

Component One: Organizational Capacity Building

The components of this three year initiative are: 1) Data Collection on Regional Best Practices and Effectiveness Indicators, 2) Evaluation Design and Data Collection for Selected Nonprofits, 3) Help in Communicating the Selected Nonprofit’s Effectiveness, 4) Dissemination of Good Practices Related to the Use of Monitoring and Evaluation to Improve the Selected Nonprofit’s Effectiveness and 5) Capacity Building that will add One Full Time Employee to the Staff of the Selected Nonprofits for the entire length of this initiative.

In February 2007, the selection process was finalized. Facilitating Leadership in Youth, Metro Teen AIDS, Urban Alliance Foundation, and The Youth Power Center (formerly known as the Good Samaritan Foundation) were chosen to move on to the next phase of the three year initiative. Those organizations not selected were encouraged to participate in the East of the River Working Group as well as the East of the River High School Resource Center Initiative with DC Public Schools, Catholic University and the World Bank General Services Department (GSD).

Component Two: Youth

In collaboration with DCPS, Catholic University and the assistance of World Bank staff volunteers, the Community Outreach Program is turning unused school space into "information centers". These centers will focus on coordinating integrated after school student support services for students attending Anacostia, Ballou, H D Woodson and Eastern Senior High Schools and will be managed by school guidance counselors and local nonprofit staff.

The first renovation was completed April, 2007, at Eastern High School in Washington DC. GSD contractors and IFC volunteers worked together for two days converting unused space into a newly painted room with furniture donations from GSD and computer-equipment donations from ISG.  The renovations at Ballou, H.D. Woodson, Eastern and Anacostia high schools were completed by the end of July 2007.

        Photos of Renovation at Ballou HS 

        Photos of Renovation at Eastern HS 

        Photos of Renovation at Anacostia HS