who we are

Veronica McDaniel has worked in education for almost two decades. Since volunteering as a student and young adult in after-school programs with vulnerable youth, interpretive services for Hispanic populations, education and prevention programs in Colombia, and interning for Latin American human rights she turned to teaching as a way to connect with young people. 

In 2011 two students asked her to be the advisor to a student-led human trafficking awareness group. From there her passion grew to raise awareness and take action against human trafficking locally and globally. She has mentored AIS Against Human Trafficking (AISAHT) for 12 years, along with hosting panel discussions, leading workshops for students, and other awareness-raising activities. She is a teacher liaison for CNN International’s Freedom Project in which she coordinates schools worldwide for a student day of action called #MyFreedomDay, taking place each March since 2017. In 2022 #MyFreedomDay resulted in nearly 2 billion social media impressions, connecting students from over 140 countries. In 2020 Veronica accepted the International Impact Award at ISC Research’s International School Awards on behalf of AISAHT for their work raising awareness about human trafficking worldwide. As a half-Colombian born in France, Veronica is trilingual, with a love for travel and celebrating different people and cultures, which has forged her passion for connecting people worldwide. Veronica has a Bachelor of Arts in International Studies from Vassar College and a Masters in Global Policy Studies in Education from University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign. She teaches at Atlanta International School and lives in Sandy Springs, Georgia with her educator husband Mark, two kids Lana and Mateo, dog Jasmine and bearded dragon Spike.