Title:Sparking change place by place

Darius Baxter (C’16) found his calling as president and chief engagement officer of GOODProjects, a nonprofit dedicated to bringing effective change to communities experiencing cycles of poverty.

In 2016, GOODProjects began providing educational support to students. However, the organization realized that by expanding to meet a whole community’s needs— like housing, financial planning, food, and education— they could empower both youth and their families. Today, GOODProjects supports a public housing community in southwest Washington, DC, with the goal of bringing 500 families to sustainable incomes at or above $80,000 per year by 2030.

Recently, GOODProjects launched Baxter Family Kids Center in Nairobi, Kenya to address their need for quality education. The international expansion demonstrates that with their place-based model, they can customize their offerings to individual communities.

“At any given day, I’m supporting team members moving towards our larger mission, but I’m also listening to community members’ thoughts on programs or issues we might look to solve,” says Baxter.

By leveraging partnerships with local government agencies, as well as private partnerships with companies like New Balance, the NFL Players Association, and local businesses, GOODProjects meets the community’s specific needs.

“These place-based strategies allow for effective resource use because solutions become targeted and easier to measure and monitor as well,” says Baxter.

In addition to health care, food, and tutoring programs, they support young people with the GOODLearning Hub—a space offering personal tutoring, fun activities, and psychiatric and medical services—and GOODCamp, a six-week summer camp program.

“There’s no greater reward than seeing a young person developing confidence,” says Baxter.

His enthusiasm for life as an educator started at Georgetown, where he was a football player and one of the only men in his Women’s and Gender Studies Program.

“Along the way, I found myself tutoring a class in a public housing community,” he shares. “I fell in love with my true calling: helping young people achieve their fullest potential.”

“At GOODProjects, I wanted to create an environment for young people where they never felt judged and had freedom to just be kids,” adds Baxter. “I could create a safe container around them to propel them forward.”

“I’m proud of where things stand. I didn’t set out to create a business model, but to create that environment, and I’ve done that on not just one continent, but two at this point,” he says. “To be able to say that at 30 years old is a blessing.”