Meet Mine Jenkins, EdD, M.Ed., M.S. | Founder, Executive Director

We had the good fortune of connecting with Mine Jenkins, EdD, M.Ed., M.S. and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi Mine, can you talk to us a bit about the social impact of your business?
Accomplished Learning Services impacts our immediate communities by offering the one document that every person is encouraged to earn in their life, a high school diploma. From the time a person is able to speak clearly and later enter into a traditional classroom setting, parents and guardians are setting that child up to learn and grow in their academic journey. In many instances, life begins to take on a different look and some people are forced to quit school. As time goes by people learn that a high school diploma opens many doors to employment, post secondary education and breaking academic generational curses in the family. Our unique platform consist of serving only adults, individuals who are economically disadvantaged and pouring back into the community a sense of hope. We are a virtual adult high school that offers a range of services GED, HiSET, preparedness and credit recovery of high school credits, digital literacy, and basic ESL online classes. We also host in person graduations in varying states in order to promote family and community involvement.

Can you give our readers an introduction to your business? Maybe you can share a bit about what you do and what sets you apart from others?
Accomplished Learning Services is an Accredited Adult High School. We provide individuals with the opportunity to earn their high school equivalency diploma either by earning their GED, HiSET, ACT, or high school diploma by credit recovery. All our platforms are online and what mainly sets us apart from other services is our slogan, “We don’t count our students; We make our students count”. This slogan alone lets students know we provide a positive and personal touch. Many, if not all our students are parents, have been told they weren’t going to amount to anything and some even have learning disabilities. Instead of counting how many students we have we pour positivity into them and remind them they have purpose. We remind them that where they are today is not where they will be next year if they simply don’t quit. I’m most excited about all the hugs we get at graduation. When a small child can walk up to you and say, “thanks for helping my mommy or daddy”, that’s a paycheck and a reward all by itself. That small child will remember that someone extended the olive branch to their parents to continue in a much-prized endeavor. Being an entrepreneur is never easy, no matter how people dress it up, it requires grit and work. Accepting when things go wrong and searching for avenues on how to fix it is the key for me. Like most entrepreneurs I network with we learn to hire slowly and fire quickly. When you identify that some people just won’t work out, whether they are an employee or board member, own up to it and keep pushing. Being a non-profit also requires you to remember your mission and vision because you are promoting from within the community where you live, work and have your own family. The main lesson I learned came from my father reminding me as a teenager that if you chase a dollar, you’ll die broke. Being a business owner must be more than making money, you also need to care about the people you are serving. Sure, money is a factor and a motivator, but it can’t take the place of serving. I’ve learned to utilize the old rule of low -pay and no – pay when it comes to being frugal with company funds. I’ve learned that working with other small businesses is the key to building lasting relationships and furthering the mission of the company. I want the world to know that there is an organization that cares about your academic journey and wants to share with you on how to embrace advancing in your life.

Let’s say your best friend was visiting the area and you wanted to show them the best time ever. Where would you take them? Give us a little itinerary – say it was a week long trip, where would you eat, drink, visit, hang out, etc.
This is a hard question because Houston has so much to offer for a girl Louisiana, (smile). I would start off with a stroll down main street in Galveston and then some adult cocktails near the beach. Coming back towards 45, (smile) I would say we could do an art showing. We have some of the best art shows in the Houston area. Dinner would likely be at a seafood place so we can comment on how close it is to southern tasting (smile). Depending upon what day it is we can go check out a few festivals where there are a host of vendors. Me and my friends love variety to choose from when out and about shopping. There must be at least one day of worship in there – we are southerners, you know. I would choose either South Union Baptist Church or Silverlake Church. South Union has the best choir I’ve heard this side of heaven (shhh-secret). We would use another day to shop, of course more shopping. Instead of the Galleria we would utilize other local shopping vendors, mainly small boutiques so we can find special gifts. Boutiques in the Heights area are pretty cool. If there are any artists at the House of Blues that week, we would definitely check that out and or a professional sport since we all have played at some level college and semi-professional. That sounds like a full week with me and some friends from back home.

The Shoutout series is all about recognizing that our success and where we are in life is at least somewhat thanks to the efforts, support, mentorship, love and encouragement of others. So is there someone that you want to dedicate your shoutout to?
Credit towards my success and continued success has been and currently shaped by the influences of my aunts. Each one of them taught me so many valuable lessons and provided so much wisdom that I really didn’t have a choice but to be more than a conquer against all odds. My Aunt Bobbie reminded me as a young mother that God will always make a way. My Aunt Debbie reminds me to this day to stay focused and always pray about everything first before making any decisions. My Aunt Jewel reminds me that life doesn’t have to be easy, but you already possess what it takes to make it. My Aunt Sharon reminds me to live life to its fullest with joy and dignity. Sometimes family are those who are shaping you into being someone better than you currently are. My Aunt Velda (may her soul rest in power) reminded me that a lady always knows when to leave a room whether it’s business or personal. Sweet Aunt Sadie (may she rest in peace) instilled in me that family goes beyond just people who you share a vein with My Aunt Ethel to this day provides strength like no other with the best words of wisdom and hugs. In my latter my success comes from my children who remind me that I am a hard woman to follow, but everybody should have a Sis Jenkins in their life. My children tell me constantly how proud they are of me in the difference I make in the lives of others. Knowing that I have such love and support in my life is even more reason(s) to keep doing what I’m doing.

Website: https://accomplishedlearningservices.org

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/p/Accomplished-Learning-Services-100076381981458/

Image Credits
N/A – All individuals in the images have signed that they are fully aware that their images would be used for promoting ALS