New Town honor student encourages grace and poise among peers

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Delanee-Alexis Coley, a student at New Town High School, is already an accomplished young woman. She’s hosting a three-part series for young women in February focusing on having poise and grace, serves as president of a college and career readiness organization, has had an internship at the Washington Post, and is writing her second book. All that and she’s only 16 years old.

Delanee-Alexis Coley is a member of New Town’s National Honor Society, Student Government Association, and Future Business Leaders of America.

(Courtesy Photo)

Delanee-Alexis Coley is a member of New Town’s National Honor Society, Student Government Association, and Future Business Leaders of America.

“I want to inspire young women to carry themselves with confidence,” said Coley. “We have to do our best today, in order to pave success for tomorrow. My family has instilled in me a drive to be better than I was the day before. I really strive to push myself to my greatest potential. I attribute that to my faith in God and my upbringing.”

Delanee-Alexis is an active member of New Town’s National Honor Society, Student Government Association, Future Business Leaders of America, and is a member of the Parents Teachers Students Association. She is also the president of Le’ Pearlz, a college and career readiness organization, in which she presents workshops for middle and high students on how to be successful in their academic career.

In June, she was among a group of students honored by the Maryland Commission for Women (MCW) during their 2014 Women of Tomorrow Awards Ceremony. The Women of Tomorrow Awards was established in 1997 to honor and acknowledge extraordinary young women that have demonstrated a commitment to leadership, community service and academic excellence.

Delanee-Alexis and the other honorees, were selected through a process that began with an annual statewide call for nominations. According to Delanee-Alexis, she was nominated by Margie McLean, CEO and President of the NU Genesis Youth and Professional Development Services.

“I spoke at a young women’s event, and Ms. McLean really liked my message and the influence I had on the young women,” recalled Delanee-Alexis. “When I found out I had won first place for my division, I was honored and very excited.”

She is currently penning her second book entitled, “Simply A Young Lady with No Apologies”, a guide to help teenagers take a bold and confident stance on being a young lady in the challenging 21st century.

Her many awards include being named “Outstanding Junior Debutante,” but Delanee-Alexis said her proudest achievement is her global project entitled “Pure Thirst 4 Life”, a water effort aimed at raising $20,000 to buy a water well in Africa. She is also a dancer and model with Studio A Modeling Etiquette & Dance Academy.

The talented student said she plans to major in broadcast journalism with a minor in Spanish with the professional goal of becoming a media mogul and philanthropist.

Delanee-Alexis credits her parents Kirby and Phyllis Coley for her drive to encourage youngsters. Mrs. Coley is founder of Pure Potential Enterprises, a nonprofit organization that assists students in the college admissions process.

“It is an honor for us to be her parents,” said Mrs. Coley. “She has helped many students and is a very unique young lady. She really pushes them to do their work, and also does workshops for young people on how to be successful in high school. She is a young lady of substance and quality, and demonstrates Christian principals in all that she does.”

Delanee-Alexis’ “Simply a Young Lady’s Three Part Series Young Lady’s Conference” will kick-off February 8, 2015, with a tea entitled “The Greatest Love of All (Loving Yourself First)”. The conference, which seeks to cultivate class, style, and grace, is geared towards girls and young women ages 10-18.

For more information about Delanee-Alexis’ upcoming conference, email: simplyayounglady@gmail.com