Washington, D.C. – Before Khalil became involved in Youth Advocate Programs (YAP®), Inc., he said he was around, “bad friends” and found himself in “bad situations.”
“I decided to hustle because I felt like I needed certain things,” Khalil said. “I wanted certain things, but they were only temporary.” I didn’t have the type of guidance that I have now. I needed time to be a better person because things could have been a lot worse.”
Eventually Khalil’s actions led to his incarceration, and his probation officer referred him to YAP® where he was paired with neighborhood-based Advocate Ray Askins for six months. YAP® is a 51-year-old national nonprofit that partners with youth justice, child welfare, and other systems in communities to deliver family-centered, accountability-focused services as an alternative to correctional and residential care facilities.
“My probation officer told me about YAP, and I was connected to people like Mr. Ray,” Khalil said. “I wanted to learn something new, and I wanted to be a different person.”
Khalil shared his story as a “Reimagining the Next Chapter of the American Youth Justice Story,” panelist during the 2026 one-day Georgetown University McCourt School of Public Policy Center for Youth Justice Janet Reno Summit. Sponsored by YAP, “America’s Youth Justice Story: Unearthing the Past and Reimagining the Next Chapter,” explored the U.S. youth justice system’s past, present and future.
The Summit began with a discussion led by Center for Youth Justice Research Professor and Senior Fellow Marc Schindler, who leads the Forgotten Children Initiative, which recognizes and honors incarcerated youth buried in abandoned burial grounds at youth justice facilities throughout the United States. Panelists included author Erin Kimmerle, poet Dorothy Givens, Commission on the House of Reformation and Instruction for Colored Children member Phyllis Hammond, and Director of Reentry Services at the Prisons and Justice Initiative at Georgetown University Tyrone Walker.
In addition to Khalil and Askins, the Reimagining the Next Chapter panel included Sonnja Brown, Family Support Partner with Child and Family Behavioral Health Services for the City of Alexandria, Va., and President and CEO of the Credible Messenger Mentoring Movement (CM3), Clinton Lacey. YAP® Chief of Marketing and Communications Officer Kelly D. Williams served as moderator.
Khalil said YAP® helped him create a 5 year-plan for his future. The YAP® Baltimore Youth Justice program matches program participants with Advocates who help them see their strengths and connect with economic, emotional and educational tools to achieve their goals.
“There was a time when YAP provided me with things that I couldn’t get, and they worked with my family,” the 19-year-old said. “My Ray did a lot of things he didn’t have to do. I was able to get a job, get paid, and get off probation.”
Through YAP® Supported Work, which is backed by donors and business partners, YAP® links youth to paid vocational training and employment, which is critical to long-term positive outcomes.
“YAP Supported Work teaches [program participants] about job readiness, technology, dress attire, work interviews, public speaking and more,” Askins said. “When I feel that [program participants] are ready, I leverage the community to help them find employment. We try to match them with their interests. In Khalil’s case, he was paired with a rec center…and he also worked with the Ravens in the concession stands.”
Williams emphasized that YAP®’s model is centered on teamwork, adding “it makes the community stronger when we work together.”
Askins, who has been a YAP® Advocate for seven years and a former youth coach, said wanting to be grounded in the community is what brought him to YAP®.
“Being present, transparent, letting them know all my mistakes and not judging, are all ways I connect with youth,” he said. “I never ask them what their charge is. I never do. I always lead with empathy and understanding.”
Askins said he cares for the youth he works for and tries to lead by example.
“I am hopeful that we have the right people still wanting to do the right things,” Askins added. “Khalil is not in the YAP® program anymore, but I cannot leave him because we still have work to do.”
Today Khalil is probation free and working. His ultimate passion is in some capacity to work with cars.
“Before I got locked up, I didn’t have a future and I wasn’t going to school,” Khalil said. “Now I want to go to trade school and start a car business. I just like working.”
During the Summit’s opening remarks, YAP® CEO and President Gary Ivory said the organization adheres to guiding principles, including a “no-eject, no-reject,” policy, meaning no young person is turned away no matter their offenses.
“What makes YAP unique is that we work with the youth and the families,” Ivory said. “We’re proud of Khalil and his accomplishments. Additionally, we’re thankful to the Center for Youth Justice for partnering with us to offer this insightful and educational Summit.”
The Summit also included the panel “American Youth Justice Narratives: Perspectives of the Media, Policy-Makers, and Communities,” moderated by Georgetown University Center for Youth Justice Director Michael Umpierre with panelists Michel Martin, Emmy-winning journalist and host of NPR’s Morning Edition; Ramon Ramos, founder and president of The Exception; Liz Ryan, Stanley S. Nelson Distinguished Practitioner for Justice Reporting & Communications at Louisiana State University and former Office of Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention Administrator; and Vincent Schiraldi, The Doris Duke Distinguished Visiting Fellow at Georgetown University’s McCourt School of Public Policy and former Maryland Secretary of Juvenile Services.
For more information on YAP®, visit yapinc.org.