EJS Project

The Emanuel Jackson Senior Project, also known as the "EJS Project," is a 501(c)(3) grassroots organization founded in 2014 by Emanuel "Dupree" Jackson, Jr. Our goal is to make sure teens in our community of Delray Beach, FL, receive the support they need to succeed in school and in life. Our mission is to provide a safe space for teens throughout PBC while creating and empowering tomorrow’s leaders. Our teens and community deserve equity of opportunity, and thanks to the EJS Project's strong local relationships, we are able to promote change in individuals, organizations, and systems. EQUITY STATEMENT: The EJS Project acknowledges systemic disadvantages and the barriers it has created in our community. EJS is dedicated to teaching truth, challenging systems, and fighting for its youth’s access to opportunities. NEIGHBORHOOD: The SET, home of the EJS Project, is positioned between Swinton Avenue and Congress, Lake Ida Road, and Linton and is considered Delray Beach’s “vulnerable footprint” (Community Commons, 2017). Rather than low-income… minority…underserved…unsafe--the EJS Project focuses on community history, talent, pride, and collective interest and concern for one another. EJS also focuses on systemic racism that causes these conditions and allows them to flourish. PARTICIPANTS: EJS participants and their families reflect neighborhood data. Students are between the ages of 12 and 19, low-income, and primarily African American and Haitian. They reside in the Set (with a few students traveling from Boca or Boynton) and attend local middle and high schools. Our teens may be excelling in school or struggling academically/behaviorally. However, all display a desire to grow, to evolve as young change agents, and to be future leaders. Because of the grassroots nature of our organization, the program receives referrals through walk-ins, emails, social media messages, and phone calls from parents, teachers, students, and partner agencies.