NVEEE

Jowharah Sanders was born on April 9th in Jackson, Mississippi. At an early age, Sanders’ family relocated to Miami, Florida where her mother, Dr. Janet Sanders, studied Chinese medicine which lead to her career as an Acupuncturist. Her father, Isaiah Sumner Sanders, remains a service connected, highly decorated, Vietnam War Veteran.

Sanders spent her formative years in a boarding school, which she recalls being complicated, full of restrictions, and steeped in religious tradition.  As a young teen, Sanders survived a life-altering, brutal kidnapping followed by assaults from multiple assailants. After this assault, Sanders vowed to devote her life to helping kids who were victimized.

Although her love of kids, poetry, and English Literature drove her desires of becoming a secondary school teacher, Sanders ultimately realized that the fight for victim’s rights was not in the classroom – rather within the community, within the schools and within youths themselves.

Jowharah Sanders considers it an honor, yet a challenge, to continue in the footsteps of great family members who have shown bravery in the face of many obstacles, which in turn gave light and inspiration to those in their communities.  Her fraternal grandfather, Charles Johnson, was an instrumental activist during the underground civil rights movement in Jackson, Mississippi and Chicago, Illinois.  Her paternal grandfather, Reverend John Sanders, was the founder of the Rescue Mission at Christ Holiness in Mississippi.  Ms. Sanders’ great uncle, Isaiah S. Sanders, founded the Mississippi divisions of the United Negro College Fund, the Urban League, the YMCA, and the YWCA.

His son, Isaiah Sanders, Jr., a renowned and honorable keyboardist, composer, producer and arranger, played with Michael Jackson for seven years and on several world tours.  Sanders was the opening act for Earth Wind and Fire, and also played with Stevie Wonder, who in fact eulogized and sang at his father’s funeral, The Emotions, Al Green, and Bob Dylan.

Other notable family members include, Aretha Johnson, founder of Liberty Island, which is the largest assisted-living facility in Houston Texas, and Arthur Johnson Jr., a highly decorated executive Chef in the White House to name a few.  Sanders considers it an honor to be amongst a lineage of this nature, and is bound to follow in her ancestors’ paths to greatness, – changing the world, one community and one child at a time.

As an undergrad student at the University of Miami, Ms. Sanders received “Apple Shining Awards” for academic achievement.  It was here that her life was impacted tremendously again by the many teachers and counselors who crossed her path and the sisters of Sigma Delta Tau.  Sanders recalls and is grateful for the sisterhood teaching her the art of building awareness, providing education, and preventing the abuse and neglect of children, which provided a major source of fulfillment for her.  As the philanthropy chair of Sigma Delta Tau, she eagerly organized fundraisers and activities for their chosen beneficiary, Prevent Child Abuse America.  In addition to studying and working full-time, Sanders continued to volunteer with the Miami Dade Public School System and other youth driven non-profits, such as Big Brother Big Sister.

As the filmmaker and creative director behind a documentary about teens who were kicked out of schools and disowned by their families based on their sexuality, Sanders heard horrible tales.  Many of the students confided and shared with her their accounts of being bullied, victims of hate crimes, and being unable to focus during their studies because of being taunted by classmates and teachers, which resulted in lower grades and higher dropouts rates for many of them.  She recognized their cries for help as her own inner 15 year-old’s cry for survival.

She knew these kids, along with many others, needed a voice to speak for them, at that moment she knew the fight had reached another level. This was her call to action! This action became realized in 2009, when Sanders founded the non-profit organization, National Voices for Equality Education and Enlightenment, (NVEEE), of which she serves as Executive Director.

Sanders personal mission in life is to help those who have been affected by bullying, violence, victimization, and have suffered abuse in their lives, to prevent it from happening to as many children and families as she can, and to show them that they are not alone – even when they feel the most disempowered. Sanders challenged friends and colleagues to join the struggle for peace and equality, and ultimately to be the change they want to see in the world – a challenge many of them gladly accepted.

This has been a therapeutic venture as well for Sanders.  With the amount of recognition and devotion NVEEE has received, this has provided her an opportunity to exhale, to heal and even to forgive. Perhaps this has been the biggest accomplishment of all in her life thus far.

As a remarkable leader, Sanders will change lives for years to come.