Jak Beula
| Jak Beula Dodd | |
|---|---|
 |
|
| Born | Johnny Alexander Bubeula Dodd 4 July 1963 Paddington, London |
| Nationality | British |
| Known for | Entrepreneur |
| Notable work | Nubian Jak; On Track 4 Gold; educational workshops; Nubian Jak Community Trust Blue plaque schemes |
| Awards | Black Arts Sports Enterprise (BASE) award, (March 1995), MACE Award (December 2003), African Caribbean Enterprise’ (March 2005), Organisation Achievement Award’ BEEAM (July 2007) |
| Website | www.nubianjak.com |
Jak Beula Dodd (born Johnny Alexander Bubeula Dodd on 4 July 1963) is a British entrepreneur best known for inventing the board game Nubian Jak.
Jak Beula was born in Paddington, west London, one of four children. He was born to parents Gladys Jessithiah Dodd and Daniel Smikle but from the age of 10 days old was brought up by his grandmother, Roslyn Dodd. His grandmother was of Jamaican descent and was a Pentecostal evangelist who raised Jak with a strict Christian upbringing.
It was while working in his capacity as a social worker that Beula began to notice what he described as society’s neglect, particularly of young black and white working-class youth in the social care system. Not only did it appear as if care staff were ill-equipped to deal with demands of the young people, some of the young people were adopting sub-cultural stereotypical behaviour. Beula put this down to, in part, their educational experiences, as well as a lack of positive role models in both the media and their immediate environment. He noticed there were hardly any multi-cultural resources available within their homes.
"They were hungry for role models, because we all need a sense of identification, a sense of self and of self-esteem. Most of the role models they were being given in the media were negative and were stereotypes, it was very disappointing. So I decided to give the young people some new information, whether they wanted the information or not, I was going to give it to them."
He began to devise an educational programme that would try to address these points, out of which came the board game Nubian Jak. It immediately became a bestseller in London, prompting Beula to give up work as a social worker. By the ending of 1996 educational magnates such as Time-Life were commenting on its innovation. In 1998 Beula self-published the first edition of Nubian Jak’s Book of World Facts. Dubbed "the truth with proof", it was subtitled "The Ultimate Reference Guide to Global Black Achievement". In 2001 Beula signed a publishing deal with Harper Collins in New York to reissue the book.
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