We are all encouraged to dare to dream. And there is no excuse. Young as you are, you may have envisioned a dream of being able to speak of words that enlighten the minds and motivate individuals to become a better version of themselves. A dream of making this world a better place and a dream of building better communities. Thus, looking forward to a brighter future. That dream is the same as what we have in Dare 2 Dream Leaders, Inc.D2DL Youth Advisory Board

 

The future is always inevitable, nothing ever is. But we have the power to create the future we want. Our hope lies in the hands of the young people who, in their innocence, have already seen the struggles of the real world.  Struggles such as gun violence or endless judgments because of color indifference. Sometimes even, little kids are unfortunately unable to experience learning because of unfair chances. These troubles may discourage our youth but that is why we exist. Dare 2 Dream Leaders Inc. has paved its way into the picture to heed to the cries of our young individuals.

What is Dare 2 Dream Leaders Inc.? 

Dare 2 Dream Leaders Inc. (D2DL) is a nonprofit organization which aims to empower at risk middle school and high school youth by providing education, skills and resources to help build them into future dynamic leaders. It has been established in the year 2010 by founder, Ijana Nathaniel.

Ijana is a mother to two beautiful Kids. She wants to extend her deeds as an ever supportive Mom to Nia and a Basketball Mom to Jeremiah, to a mother who helps in turning into reality whatever dreams and passions are longed for by young individuals.

bowling event D2DL

Our Five Pillars

The organization provides mentoring and educational programs to aid the youth in developing their financial, career and entrepreneurial skills. Though there is no one way we can shape the youth into well-rounded individuals at once, we understand the need to come up with a formula that will most likely help meet the needs of the young people and this is depicted in the five pillars of success we have determined.

Entrepreneurship. We aim to encourage the youth in learning how to own your own business by using your gifts and talents.

Financial Literacy. We seek to guide the youth in handling financial responsibilities. That means, we help you in learning how to build wealth, save, budget and even invest your money.

Career Etiquette. Passion and attitude are two key essentials which bring in success to anyone’s career. Aside from implying this knowledge to the youth, our organization provides tips in creating your resume and cover letters.

Creative Arts. Each young individual has a gift of talent, Others are lucky enough to discover their gift at a very young age, while others are still on the process of discovering it. Whichever stage you are, D2DL inc., would be very glad to help you hone these gifts through our creative arts pillar. We develop your talent through creative expressions such as acting, monologues, hands on video production, creative writing and more.

Community Service. What does a leader have? The heart willing to serve. Our organization strives hard in unleashing the leader in you by giving you the opportunity to serve the community through working on various projects including food and clothing drives, park beautification, and planning charity events.

What are the Programs of Dare 2 Dream Leaders Inc.?

Some of the programs or events that Dare 2 Dream Leaders Inc. have prepared for the youth are the entrepreneurship series and the annual youth summit. The summit offers a full day of fun, education, live performances and relevant workshops. The organization also offers speaking programs and Lunch and Learn sessions to which Ijana sits in together with a circle of young people to provide them helpful input. The organization also has an online community in Facebook, Dare 2 Dream Leadership Academy. This serves as a venue for sharing resources which inspires and motivates the youth to strive harder and reach their maximum potential.

Ijana continues to provide young girls and boys with skills that will prepare them for life beyond high school and college together with two other members in the team namely Frances Clifford and Tyieast Lloyd. They want to achieve the kind of life that brings them a purpose in life. That said, they strive to hone the leaders within these young people through the programs of Dare 2 Dream Leaders Inc.