The Misunderstood Youth Development Center, Corporation (MYDC) is a youth prevention non-profit organization founded in 2005 by Terryl Ebony De Mendonca.
Vision Statement The Misunderstood Youth Development Center’s (MYDC) vision is to empower youth in communities throughout New York and neighboring states giving them the necessary tools to learn positive self-expression amongst their peers, families, and society while gaining independence and leadership qualities through positive decision-making.
Mission Statement MYDC’s mission is to create various peer-oriented programs that will allow self-expression while Helping to Understand, Develop and Stimulate the Minds of our Youth.
Core Purpose: MYDC’s core purpose is to open up the lines of communication for youth, helping them acquire a better understanding of life and people, therefore, being able to cope with the various trials and tribulations life often throws our way, positively and productively.
Population: MYDC serves youth ages 5-24, broken down into 4 sections of pre-adolescence (5-10), adolescence (11-13), teenagers (14-18) and young adults (19-24).
The MYDC Team
Founder/Executive Director, Terryl Ebony De Mendonca Terryl Ebony is a life coach, public speaker and youth and parent advocate. For the past 15 years, she has been a student of life, learning to understand human behavior and how it relates to achieving maximum potential in one's life. What she has learned is that EMPOWERMENT + COMMITMENT = ULTIMATE SUCCESS.
Born in Washington, DC but raised in New York City, Terryl came from a West Indian upbringing where it became ingrained in her that discipline is the core ingredient to redesigning ones life. She believes that through self-examination and re-evaluation people can reach a breaking point through which they will begin to achieve their goals and fulfill their lifelong dreams. She empowers and motivates her clients by assisting them in enhancing their personal growth; whether it be in their professional life (career or business) or in their interpersonal relationships with their families.
Terryl travels around the country teaching others the importance of reconnecting their traditional and non-traditional family values. Raising a child as a single parent, Terryl understands how vital family communication and support is and knows firsthand the consequences that occur if they are not present. Taking her experiences as a parent and youth advocate, in 2005, Terryl founded "The Misunderstood Youth Development Center (MYDC)", which is a non-profit organization whose mission is to help others understand, develop and stimulate the minds of our youth. The organization currently serves the Brooklyn and Queens population of New York City and is branching out to service other areas. Because of her efforts, the center has received a proclamation from Brooklyn Borough President, Marty Markowitz and has made headlines in several local Queens newspapers.
Terryl has made several appearances on the local New York television show “Another Chance in Life” discussing the challenges of being a single parent and the importance of youth community programs. Along with her commitment to MYDC, Terryl also gives back to her community by chairing on the board of The Underground Railroad to Success (URS). URS is a non-profit organization geared toward educating foster care youth about the options they have in life after they age out of the system. Terryl strongly believes that part of helping youth is helping their families, which is what led her to becoming a family centered life coach. In July 2009, Terryl launched an international radio show. “Living in Reality with Terryl Ebony” serves as a platform to bring awareness and solutions to problems that intimately affect families, parents and youth. As Terryl continues in her endeavors, she is currently penning her first book, “Losing Love, Having Faith & Finding Hope”. This book will touch you and make you think about the relationship you have with your children and/or the role you play in a child’s life, as well as offer solutions on what you can do to strengthen or develop these relationships going forward.
Terryl wishes to share all of her accomplishments with the world in hopes that from her experiences and her words she is able to touch someone’s heart and mind creating a positive transformation from within. It is her expectation that through these self-revelations a better quality of family life will result.
Board Chair, Ival Grant-Williams Ival Grant-Williams has extensive experience in nonprofit management, foundation and corporate philanthropy, and government grant making. Her professional experience includes managing project team responsibilities for state-level economic development grant programs that awarded up to $5 million to businesses, community organizations and nonprofit financial institutions. She also performed grant review consultancy for a federally funded financial and technical assistance grant program in community development lending. Ival successfully managed corporate and foundation support for a $1 million operating budget at one of the oldest community and housing development corporation in the South Bronx. She also played an integral role in the development of a technical assistance program for small to mid-size nonprofit organizations engaged in facility related projects. Today, she continues her commitment to community development by managing the reinvention of local government through the development of a single point of entry for health and human services for those who need it most. She also teaches community development as a lecturer at Pace University.
Ival serves as a board member and youth mentor for several grassroots organizations, including the Misunderstood Youth Development Center. She established the New York University Chapter of Women and Youth Supporting Each Other which trains and matches College Mentors with young girls. She also participates in the development of civic engagement activities for students.
Ms. Grant-Williams has a B.A. in Political Science and History, from Pace University, New York, N.Y., where she was the first female President of the Pace Model United Nations Team. Ival also holds a graduate degree in Public Finance and Administration from New York University, New York, N.Y.
Executive Board Member, Maurice A. Lacey, LMSW, M.S. ED., CASAC Mr. Lacey received his BS in Psychology from Mercy College, MS Ed. from St John’s University, is currently pursuing his Ph.D in social welfare at Adelphi University. He is a Licensed Master Social Worker and NYS Credentialed Alcoholism &Substance Abuse Counselor.
Maurice Lacey is the current the Executive Director of Faith Mission Crisis Center, Inc. (FMCC). FMCC is a faith-based, behavioral healthcare organization that provides residential crisis services for over 1500 men and women suffering from substance use disorders annually.
He is the President/CEO of 1 ALPHA CONSULTING & DEVELOPMENT CORP; which provides consulting, training, and technical assistance to small human service agencies. He is owner and Director of Dot’s Place, a half-way house for recovering men.
His role as a community organizer at the Peoples Institute for Survival and Beyond has bolstered his work with communities of color and revalidated his commitment to social justice and equity for all. As coordinator of the Men of Color Roundtable Discussion Group he is involved in facilitating dialogue around internalized racial oppression, healing, community organizing, and undoing structural racism.
Mr. Lacey serves on several boards of directors and committees dealing with homelessness, substance abuse, mental illness, youth services, criminal justice, education, and HIV/AIDS. He has been on the front line of addiction, mental health, and youth services for over 18 years. He is a highly regarded social worker, community organizer, educator, and administrator.
He’s an adjunct professor/faculty advisor at Hunter College School of Social Work and teaches advanced practice skills for professional counselors, nurses, and other professionals at other institutions. He utilizes the strengths-based approach to reach individual clients and groups, but is also interested in self-empowerment, holistic, and public health approaches.
Executive Board Member, Janet Srikishun-Garcia Mrs. Srikshun-Garcia has over ten years of managerial and administrative experience. Janet is currently an Accounts Payable Manager/Administrative Assistant to a multi-million dollar poultry wholesale trading and distribution company based in Bronx, New York. She manages over 2000 vendor accounts and expenses for a staff of 50 and divisions all over the continent. Janet also has experience working in the non profit sector as Office Manager for the Hunts Point Economic Development Corporation (HPEDC) located in Hunts Point Coop Market in Bronx, NY. HPEDC is an organization that is funded by state and city programs to revitalize the Industrial Park. Janet’s role at Hunt Point was not limited to Office Management. She was also responsible for audit control, funding distribution, payroll, etc.
Before entering non profit sector, Janet was a part time worker as a Board of Education certified Matron for a company that transported mentally challenged kids.
She currently has a BA in Psychology and Early Childhood Education from the College of New Rochelle.
