Jerylen Daniels, often described as
“Encourager”, “Supporter”, and “Dream Chaser”, exhausts every
opportunity to use her God-given talents, giftings, and abilities to
edify and rejuvenate the dormant dreams and desires of our children. She
has been given the keys to unlock the doors of destiny that await the
next generation of entrepreneurs, teachers, doctors, lawyers,
entertainers, athletes, scientists and the like.
As an Educator, Jerylen encountered
student after student who lacked real world experiences that motivate
and facilitate classroom teaching; experiences such as museum outings,
attending plays, ordering from a restaurant menu, the development of
hobbies, and interactive activities that focused on real life science
and math application, entrepreneurship, self marketing, college prep,
etc. She was aware that without these types of experiences, classroom
lessons all too often seemed irrelevant and uninteresting to kids.
Therefore, in 2003
she established Great
Explorations Educational Foundation, a 501 (c) (3) nonprofit
organization with the National Heritage Foundation. Originally, Great Explorations was
established as an experienced-based field trip organization that would
target school-aged children who were socially and/or economically
at-risk, as Jerylen realized that exposing children to another side of
life could awaken a desire for higher education. Knowing the strain that
the raising costs of college puts on most families, and because lack of
financing is the number one cause of students dropping out of college,
Choice Scholars, an educational scholarship
program, was birthed. Life 101, now seen as the anchor of
this Foundation, is a mentoring program established to help high school
students plan for and succeed in college and life. The Foundation’s
field trip program, Explorer Adventures, serves as the
catalyst that allows kids to see what exists beyond their communities.
Life 101, Choice Scholars, and Explorer Adventures
all thrive with the common goal to help young people achieve their full
potential in life.
Jerylen is a graduate Alabama A&M
University (Huntsville) where she acquired a B.S. Degree in Elementary
Education and Early Childhood Education in 1990. She has also obtain
holds a M.Ed in Educational Leadership from George Mason University.
Before leading Great Explorations full-time, Jerylen served six years as
a classroom teacher and four year as an assistant principal.
After being an Educator, Administrator,
and now a Founder/Director of a powerful youth program, you would think
Jerylen’s involvements would stop there. However, she wears many hats in
her home as well as the community. Currently, Mrs. Daniels resides in
Northern, Virginia with her husband/best friend, and their three
beautiful children. Also, the family is extremely active in their
membership with Victory Christian Ministries International (VCMI,
Clinton, MD) where both husband and wife serve as deacons. There,
Jerylen also works with Changing Lives Ministry, an in-reach and
outreach program.
Jerylen Daniels
