About Us

A Nonprofit Organization

Smart Men In Leadership Excellence

Smart Men In Leadership Excellence (S.M.I.L E.) Foundation is a non profit organization founded in 2019 & to educate, empower, encourage inspire and mentor minority young men ages 8-18 to reach their fullest potential in life.S.M.I.L.E is working hard to eliminate deaths of our young men through a cop to mentoring program to eliminate fears and threats. We’ve consistently grown since then, all thanks to the helping hands of this amazing community!

S.M.I.L.E. Foundation, empowers young minority men as they work to break the cycles of incarceration and violence and step into roles as leaders striving to live healthy and prosperous lives.

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Youth Empowered

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Partners

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Years

Our vision is to be a leader in the state of Texas and the nation for working to lift up and empower young men through mentorship.

Problems Faced by Minority Men

Minority men in the United States today face more than a 1 in 4 chance of incarceration in their lifetime. That’s if they aren’t first killed by gun violence, the leading cause of death for African American males between the ages of 15 to 34. This is 10 times the risk faced by white males in the same age group.Meanwhile, a staggering one in three boys will grow up without any kind of male mentor in their lives. As young minority men strive to make their way into adulthood, they often do so by groping through the darkness, turning to their young peers for inspiration due to a lack of positive role models. Instead of turning to wise mentors to illuminate the way to success, the blind lead the blind, often to their own demise. S.M.I.L.E. Foundation initiative lifts up young minority men ages 8 to 18 through the power of mentorship. Our volunteer mentors are successful men leading purpose-driven lives and with a passion for providing hope, inspiration, and direction to today’s minority youth.

Our Core Values

Mentorship

Every human being requires strong mentors in their lives to show them the way. Connecting young men with successful mentors provides models for them to emulate while helping them envision positive routes to success by seeing what is possible in older men. Without this vision from experienced mentors, people perish.

Leadership

We believe in teaching our program participants to see themselves as leaders with the power to change their world. We do this by modeling excellent choices and seizing opportunities to do good. Our mission is to teach young men to embrace the leader within so they can create a new cycle of positive mentorship that carries through the generations.

Commitment

We maintain an unwavering commitment to advocating for the well-being of minority boys and young men as they come into their own as adults. We put their needs first and strive to always look for ways to go above and beyond for them. We will stop at nothing to blast through barriers as we empower them to thrive.

Empowerment

We believe the best way to help boys and men become their best selves is to empower them through mentorship, education, and training. Our purpose is to give them wings to fly on their own by helping them discover the power they have within and teaching them how to reach their full potential.

Respect

We believe in upholding the dignity of every young man, regardless of where he comes from and what he’s been through. We respect the potential every young man has to do good and work hard every day to unleash the possibilities.

Our Motto

Founder's Story

Founder Sonia White established the S.M.I.L.E. Foundation in 2019 inspired by both tragedy and triumph. The professional radiology professional lost her beloved brother to gun violence when he was just 19 years old. On the flip side, she saw the positive impact on her twin sons when they were mentored by a successful businessman. Out of these personal experiences, Sonia was inspired to help other young men by connecting them with long-term mentoring relationships with successful leaders and visionaries in the community.

Our Board Members

Founder

Dr. Sonia White

Board Member/Secretary

SAM TURNER

Board Member

Dr. Elizabeth Jackson Harris