Meet the Founder & CEO
Shaniyah J. White
Shaniyah J. White (born May 13, 2002) is a youth entrepreneur, philanthropist, motivational speaker, certified figure skating coach and Learn To Skate USA instructor. Shaniyah is the founder and chief executive officer of Born To Rise Foundation, Inc., founded when she was a junior in high school. She is also the founder, chief executive officer and chairwoman of Shavonne LaBre, L.L.C., a hand-made jewelry company she founded when she was in the second grade. Shaniyah is passionate about community service. Shaniyah has served as a motivational speaker at various venues designed to empower, enlighten, and encourage youth and regularly organizes fundraisers, exciting community-building programs and events, and in-depth training sessions for youth. Speaking engagements have included Rutgers Business School in Newark, New Jersey, County College of Morris in Randolph, New Jersey, and Cicely Tyson School of Performing & Fine Arts in East Orange, New Jersey.
The Essex County Codey Arena in West Orange, New Jersey is Shaniyah’s home rink. Shaniyah has been an Essex County resident for over 18 years. Her first experience on the ice was a lesson with Figure Skating Coach Lisa Kops at the Essex County Codey Arena (then named Richard J. Codey Arena) 17 years ago in 2003. Shaniyah began training at the Arena at the age of 8 and began private lessons at the Arena. Shaniyah’s first skating coach was national and international coach Neil Rubin and her second coach is two-time Olympian and world medalist JoJo Starbuck, who she still trains with today. Shaniyah is also trained in Ballet and has a Ballet On Ice off-ice and on-ice training program for skaters ages 3 through adult.
Shaniyah is an active full member of the United States Figure Skating Association (USFSA) and the Professional Skaters Association (PSA). She holds the Professional Skaters Association Basic Accreditation Rating, maintain Coach Compliance in accordance to USFSA and PSA rules, and meet all the requirements as a Certified Coach. Shaniyah has been teaching ice skating for over two years. Shaniyah teaches synchronized skating and has been teaching for the Synchroettes Syncronized Skating Teams at the Essex County Codey Arena since September 2019. As a popular figure skating coach at the Essex County Codey Arena, Shaniyah currently has over 50 students on her roster and provides private coaching and group lessons to skaters of all ages. She teaches basic through progressive skating techniques to children and adults, including children and adults with special needs. Shaniyah is a volunteer coach for the Essex Special Skaters charity program that helps special needs athletes of all ages master the sport of ice skating and is actively involved with Special Olympics events.
As an active leader in the community, Shaniyah continuously seek ways to serve and improve the community. In 2018, Shaniyah organized a fundraiser to benefit The Burn Center at Saint Barnabas Medical Center in Livingston, New Jersey. She partnered with James Howard, owner of the Cosy Cupboard Tea Room, to host a Recovery Tea Fundraiser to support The Burn Center's mission of offering specialty care and implementing community fire prevention and burn safety programs. As the result of the Recovery Tea Fundraiser event, a bake sale, and monetary gifts from donors which include the East Orange Fire Department and Orange Fire Department, Shaniyah raised $1,500.00 for The Burn Center. In 2019, Shaniyah was featured in the newspaper as a result of a fundraiser that she hosted to raise funds for her hometown’s Senior, Youth and Leisure Services (SYLS) department for senior programming in Livingston, New Jersey. See the following link: