In 2019, Tiffany M. Turner made the switch from being a special education teacher with a solid foundation in all grades to opening her own daycare and preschool in Houston, Texas. Turner created Aim High Prep because she believed there was a real need for strong, early education.

The mission of Aim High Prep is to empower parents in a partnership to develop their children. Turner worried about the emotional impact the news — the civil unrests in cities and murders of unarmed African Americans — were having on Black children on top of the COVID-19 pandemic.

Turner did not get one of the small business loans the government provided to help struggling businesses during the height of the pandemic. Turner said she really needed the funding. At one time, Aim High Prep had no power.

After hearing a radio commercial about singer Beyonce providing grants for Black-owned small businesses, Turner decided to apply never expecting to win.

"I never win anything," Turner said.

But her luck changed. Turner received the news that she was a recipient of the NAACP-BeyGOOD Small Business Grant. The BeyGOOD grant was created by singer Beyonce's foundation, BeyGOOD, in partnership with the NAACP to support struggling Black small business owners impacted by the 2020 pandemic and nationwide unrest.

Turner said the Beygood grant couldn't have come at a more perfect time. The funding helped with all the additional costs she incurred due to COVID-19, plus the ongoing expenses of running a small business. Turner said she is grateful for the BeyGOOD grant.

"No one could have predicted the sanitation efforts we would have to keep up with," Turner said. "The additional funding helped with that and we'll be updating our technology with broadband service and purchasing Chromebooks."

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