Mission: Our mission is to prevent bullying, violence, and suicide among youth, families, and communities through direct service, mentoring, and prevention education. We are dedicated to creating a safe and supportive environment for all.

Vision: We envision a world where youth are resilient, socially responsible leaders who advance human rights and strengthen communities. Our goal is to empower young individuals to make a positive impact in their surroundings.

Core Values: At NVEEE, our core values—leadership, community, integrity, compassion, service, and equity—guide everything we do.

1. Leadership empowers us to inspire and drive positive change.
2. Community highlights the strength of collective action and shared purpose.
3. Integrity ensures that we operate with honesty and transparency in all our actions.
4. Compassion motivates us to support and uplift others, fostering understanding and action.
5. Service drives us to selflessly contribute to the well-being of others and our community.
6. Equity commits us to ensuring fairness and justice for all, regardless of background or identity.

History
NVEEE was established in 2009 to address the high rates of bullying and suicide among youth. Founder Jowharah Sanders looked at the facts: millions of dollars were being poured into popular anti-bullying campaigns, and still high rates of bullying and violence persisted. She set out to find a way to create real, sustainable change to alleviate the suffering she witnessed.

Jowharah mobilized a team of educators, business leaders, and health professionals—and secured support from the University of Miami School of Education, Community, and Social Change—to develop an innovative school-wide bullying prevention program. She was guided by a key insight: “Bullying itself is not the problem. It is a symptom of unresolved challenges. Bullying prevention succeeds when we address the root causes of why we alienate others, and build a network of leaders in schools, communities, and workplaces to implement change.”

Thousands of students, educators, and parents throughout South Florida have since participated in NVEEE’s signature Be Upstanding™ Bullying and Harassment Prevention Program. Participants are now “upstanders” in their communities who take a direct role in safely and effectively intervening when bullying takes place. Schools nationwide can implement the Be Upstanding™ program with NVEEE’s support and partnership.

NVEEE seeks to engage all community stakeholders in prevention efforts. Since its inception, 45,000 students, parents, educators, medical providers, religious leaders, and social service providers have participated in NVEEE’s educational dialogues and leadership programs on mental health, social inequities, stereotypes, and community-based solutions.

Now a recognized leader in strengthening communities, NVEEE continues to innovate to expand its impact. Dynamic equity-based leadership programs, which consistently fill to capacity, prepare youth to be socially responsible leaders. Students in high school and college learn to think critically about relevant social issues, access resources, apply practical leadership skills, and ultimately turn their pain into purpose. Upon completing this comprehensive curriculum, many youth become NVEEE Peace Ambassadors, paving the way for them to be peer mentors and powerful advocates for change in their communities. 

NVEEE has been recognized locally and nationally as a youth safety and well-being champion and has been entered into the U.S. Congressional Record:

2011 • Congresswoman Frederica Wilson
2014 • Congressman and Chair of the Congressional Anti-Bullying Caucus Mike Honda
2014 • Congresswoman Lois Frankel
2016 • Congresswoman Debbie Wasserman-Schultz

In 2019, at the invitation of Congressman Alcee Hastings, NVEEE representatives joined legislators and mental health professionals at a Congressional Roundtable on youth mental health challenges and suicide in Florida. That same year, Commissioner Eileen Higgins declared November 16, 2019, as NVEEE Day in Miami-Dade County to acknowledge the organization’s first ten years of pioneering work on bullying and suicide prevention.