About us - Jaydot

Our mission

Our mission is to create innovative, quality housing solutions that address the needs of those impacted by social inequity. We believe that housing is a human right, homelessness is a solvable problem, and that we can create an equitable, human-centered system where housing solutions are readily adapted to fit the needs of those we serve.

Our background

Jaydot was started in 2010 to fill a gap in housing solutions for people exiting homelessness in DC. Our work is based on the fundamental idea that the solution to homelessness is housing. Although Jaydot has grown in size and scope, we maintain our human-centered approach. Our focus remains on seeking innovation and excellence at the intersection of affordable housing, supportive services, and creating vibrant communities.

In both our Permanent Supportive Housing (PSH) and Resident Services programs, we focus on providing voluntary, wraparound on-site services at residences. Our Principal, Chapman Todd, was inspired to focus on this model based on his 20+ years of work in homeless services in DC. During that time, Chapman spent a decade working as part of the two-person management team in the early days of the DC Central Kitchen, and then spent a decade as the Director of Housing Programs and Housing Development with Catholic Charities.

Jaydot is deliberately designed as a mission-based social enterprise, structured as an LLC. We chose to be an LLC rather than a nonprofit because of structural and legal differences that allow us to work more efficiently and with greater allegiance to our mission. Our team can be nimble and responsive to changing needs and circumstances in a way that can be complicated within more rigid, top-down governance structures.

Like most of our nonprofit peers, the bulk of our revenue comes from DC government-funded service contracts. We supplement that with contract work providing resident services in affordable housing buildings and consulting on the development of new housing opportunities. This diversity of revenue sources means we can dedicate our time to providing excellent services, in large part because we don't have the overhead that comes with staffing and sustaining extensive fundraising efforts. Ultimately, we have found that our structure lets us focus on the heart of our work: ensuring that housing solutions are available and adapted to fit the needs of those we serve.

And about our name... "Jaydot" was suggested to Chapman by his then 9-year-old child, who he asked for ideas. Chapman thought the name hit the mark—confident, concise, unlimited in scope, and a little playful. As in so much of our work, the real meaning is in the relationship.

Our values

We strive to embody these core values in our daily work:

Dignity

We value the inherent dignity, humanity, self-determination, and worth of all people.

Justice

Many of the challenges we seek to address are a direct result of intersecting systems of oppression, in particular anti-Black racism. We are committed to honoring people’s unique histories, perspectives, and ways of being, and working towards a system in which all people are free.

Humility

We are always learning and thus making mistakes. We are committed to reflecting on, owning, and learning from our collective experiences.

Innovation

We work to identify the gaps and possibilities in the systems within which we operate and work with our partners to craft innovative solutions. We are not bound by what is—we adapt to changing circumstances and focus on what can be.

Power sharing

We strive to build the capacity of our team and the communities we work with by transferring our collective knowledge, credibility, and power.

Holistic thinking

We are involved in all aspects of our field, from macro policy to the ground level, and believe that they are deeply connected. We are dedicated to establishing connections to ensure that systems are responsive to the needs of the communities with which we work.

Our approach

We approach our mission through these practices:

Build relationships

Relationships are the cornerstone of our work (and lives), and we value them above all else. We build trust and authentic connections with people at every level of our work, especially across lines of power and difference.

Collaborate

We relish opportunities to collaborate with and learn from one another—both our team and those with whom we work. We aim to keep everyone in the loop and reach out when we’re not sure about something, knowing that in doing so we are building our collective knowledge and impact.

Be accountable

Put simply, we do what we say we’re going to do. And when we occasionally fall short, we own that, take corrective action, and do better next time. For us, accountability runs up, down, and sideways.

Focus on the person

At the center of all systems are people, and we strive to never lose sight of that. Whether it’s going off the agenda when a colleague seems like they’re not okay, or making sure someone’s basic needs are met even when it’s a little outside of our scope, we adapt to the needs of the person at the center of it all and offer each other empathy and grace.

Engage in direct service

Every Jaydot team member spends valuable time on the ground. We work hard to witness and understand the realities that our clients—and staff—face every day so we can most effectively address them.

Thanks to Robert Benson and Gus Powell for the photos on this page. The people featured are residents Jaydot has worked with at the John and Jill Ker Conway Residence in Washington, DC. In order from top left to bottom, the residents featured are: the late Walter M., Patrick A., Michael G., and Richard (Rico) W.