The Vermont Slauson Economic Development Corp. named a new chief executive following the September discovery of alleged financial mismanagement from its former chief executive, Quentin Strode.

Jazz Keyes will now lead the 45-year-old nonprofit community development financial institution which drives the economic empowerment of underserved local communities with a focus on South L.A. Keyes, who jokes about being “the Olivia Pope of economic development,” began with VSEDC last year as a program director but during her time, she began taking on more projects and initiatives. As she was getting ready to step into the role of vice president of strategic operations, the need for a new chief executive emerged, and the VSEDC board appointed Keyes.

A closer look into VSEDC’s finances came after the organization in June terminated its former director of finance, Federico Castillo, upon discovering evidence of embezzlement, Keyes told the Business Journal. Upon his termination, the VSEDC board formed a special committee and hired outside legal counsel and a forensic auditor. In looking further into the organization, they reported alleged “financial mismanagement” from Strode which involved the loss of two contracts with the city of L.A., Keyes added.

Due to the ongoing investigation, VSEDC was unable to disclose more specifics at this time.

Stabilization

While her move to chief executive was born from unusual circumstances, Keyes said she is ready to move VSEDC forward both from this
disruption but also in general.

First comes the “stabilization of the organization… (including) a legal and accounting review, new internal controls, making sure that there are segregated financial duties and strengthening reporting (which) are absolutely essential to preserve and protect the organization,” she said.

Rebuilding trust among employees and the community at large is another priority. On the employee side of things, Keyes has been pleasantly surprised at the willingness for everyone to come together with the understanding that VSEDC’s legacy is bigger than the current investigation.

“While I am in front of this as the president and CEO, I am not alone on these front lines,” she said. “There is a small but mighty team that is here fighting alongside me, doing the work to make sure that we all are grounded and rooted in the fact that we believe in this organization, this mission, and we are in the fight, locked arms together.”

Next steps

Keyes finds that the organization’s work is especially important at a time when the nation is seeing division and a growing wealth gap.

Several priorities Keyes has for VSEDC right now involve supporting local street vendors impacted ICE raids, enhancing digital literacy for youth with limited device access and increasing foot traffic in their brick and mortar so the community views them as a safe and supportive space.

“Without the support that we provide, there is no way for people to fight for themselves. And so, we fight along with them,” she said. “We fight in rooms that they’re not even able to access, and then we teach them how to fight for themselves.”

With degrees spanning corporate communication, clinical psychology and most recently a doctorate in business administration, Keyes knows the importance of creating opportunities. She shared that she herself grew up in a low socio-economic community.

“The reason why I show up and serve these communities is because … I grew up in an environment very reflective of what we see (in) a lot of impoverished communities not accessing the resources that we need,” she said. “All the barriers that we are actively working through to serve our clients were conditions in which I grew up in, and so I take this work very personally.”