TISHAUNA Mullings is a woman on a mission to bridge the education gap in rural Jamaica. As the founder of NexxStepp Lifelong Educational Services, she has turned her passion for learning and community development into a dynamic movement — one that champions second chances, skills training, and lifelong growth. From crafting national policy to mentoring young minds in Lyssons, St Thomas, her work is a bold reminder that leadership begins with service.

A native of Lyssons, Mullings is part of a growing generation of Jamaican women leading change with innovation and grit. Her brand of leadership is rooted not in hierarchy, but in access — ensuring that underserved youth and adults are equipped with the tools to build brighter futures.

“I’m not interested in quick fixes,” she says. “I’m building something that lasts — something that creates real transformation for the long haul.”

Through NexxStepp, she has developed a robust platform offering career coaching, skills training, entrepreneurship boot camps, and mentorship. The goal? To help those left behind by the formal education system find their way back into meaningful opportunities. In a world that’s rapidly digitising, NexxStepp also focuses on personal development and career readiness for the modern age.

Mullings’s journey hasn’t been easy. Raised in a parish often overlooked in national development plans, she saw first-hand how many talented young people were falling through the cracks — not for lack of ambition, but for lack of opportunity. That experience became her mission: to bridge the resource gap and advocate for lasting systemic change.

Her work has gained national attention, with Mullings now serving on Jamaica’s Social Enterprises Policy Development Working Group, helping to shape legislation that could expand her model across the island. As a woman at the policy table, she’s unapologetic about bringing grass-roots experience into top-level discussions.

“Women in leadership must be bold enough to speak from their truth — and that includes the lived reality of rural Jamaica,” she explains. “We can’t afford to be silent when we have so much to contribute.”

This year, Mullings was named one of the Supreme Ventures Foundation’s 2024 Supreme Heroes, joining a cohort of Jamaicans recognised for impactful, community-driven work. The honour comes with tailored support — training, funding, and national visibility – that will help her expand her reach and mentor even more young people.

“Young girls from places like Lyssons need to see that you can be a policymaker, an entrepreneur, a community leader and still be fully, powerfully yourself,” she says.

In a world hungry for authentic leadership, Tishauna Mullings is exactly what the future of education looks like: purpose-driven, fearless, and female.

Supreme Ventures Foundation Supreme Hero and NexxStepp Lifelong Educational Services Founder, Tishauna Mullings (back row, centre), shares a moment with members of the Windward Road Primary School community at the launch of the Eco-Warriors project.

Supreme Ventures Foundation Supreme Hero and NexxStepp Lifelong Educational Services Founder, Tishauna Mullings (back row, centre), beams with pride as she shares a light-hearted moment with participants from her LittleGenius Debate Competition.