Dana Maurice Jones

UPO's Chief Executive Officer

301 Rhode Island Avenue, NW, Washington, DC 20001-1826
(202) 238-4693 �" FAX (202) 588-1479 �" Email: djones@upo.org

Dana Maurice Jones is the seventh person to head the United Planning Organization (UPO), the designated Community Action Agency that has served residents of our Nation's Capital, Washington, DC since 1962.

Mr. Jones, who joined UPO in 2004 as a crisis manager, was subsequently named permanent Chief Executive Officer a year later and immediately began the process of fostering a new direction for the venerable District of Columbia organization.

A native of southern Maryland, Dana Jones has dedicated his adult life to bringing quality services to neighborhoods and citizens. He has served as president/CEO of the Southern Maryland Tri-County Community Action Committee located in Hughesville, an organization often consulted by similar organizations nationwide for guidance in quality management. Prior to his service to Southern Maryland, Mr. Jones was special assistant to the executive director for Shore Up, Inc., a community action group located in Salisbury, Maryland.

Mr. Jones, a graduate of the University of Maryland, Eastern Shore, has furthered his studies in graduate work at Salisbury State, Bowie State Universities and Howard University where he is currently studying for a Masters in Divinity.

Dana Jones has served as chair of the Governor's Commission to Study Poverty; President of the Calvert County Board of Education; Member of the Governor's Welfare Reform Commission; Member of the Governor's Workforce Investment Board; Chairman of the Calvert County Family Network. He served as President, National Association of Community Action Agencies; President, Maryland Association of Community Action Agencies; Member, Board of Directors, Mercantile Bank-Southern Maryland. He currently serves on the Washington, DC Mayor's Commission of Poverty.

Since becoming the Chief Executive Officer, UPO has made great strides in guaranteeing quality service to local citizens by providing enhanced and unique programs that emphasize self-sufficiency. Quality management is clearly Mr. Jones' forte, a point made clear when he oversaw an overall comprehensive agency reorganization that painlessly ushered-in a boost in efficiency. The United Planning Organization is now poised to be the great community action agency for which it is nationally known.

A longtime member of Plum Point United Methodist Church, Mr. Jones is married to the former Carolyn T. Short and is the father of three adult children and has one grandchild.

Andrea Thomas

Chief of Staff

Andrea Thomas currently serves as Chief of Staff for the United Planning Organization, community action agency for Washington, DC. Prior to her current position, Ms. Thomas served as the Director of UPO's Youth Services Division and was responsible for developing and growing the newly formed entity by providing dynamic activities and supportive services to DC youth.

Ms. Thomas' career in the field of youth work began in 1993 when she served as a teacher for Summerbridge in New Orleans, Louisiana while studying at the University of California, Davis. Upon graduating with a Bachelor of Science degree in Psychology, Ms. Thomas became the Teaching Coordinator for the Summerbridge in Sacramento, California.

Wishing to expand her knowledge to impact greater numbers of youth, she enrolled in the University of Maryland, College Park, earning a Masters of Arts Degree in Education Policy, Planning and Administration.

Pursing her passion for encouraging higher education for low-income and under-represented youth, Andrea worked as the Program Coordinator for Educational Talent Search through the Consortium of Universities, Education Director for the District of Columbia Community Prevention Partnership and the Associate Director for Partners4Education.

Additionally, Ms. Thomas has served as a trainer for the Advancing Youth Development BEST Practices for the Children and Youth Investment Trust Corporation in Washington, DC and as a national trainer on the ScholarShop curriculum for Scholarship America and has served as a board member for College and Career Connections in Ward 7.