ABOUT Dr. Tamara Jefferson
Dr. Tamara Jefferson was born and raised in Detroit Michigan. She earned her Bachelor of Art degree in Journalism from Oakland University, a Naturopathic Doctor certificate from the Michigan Institute of Natural Health and holds many certifications and licenses in various industries.
Dr. Jefferson is Co-Owner of Joyful Tots Childcare and Learning Center. Joyful Tots Daycare was started as an in-home in 1999. In 2006, Joyful Tots was moved from inhome to a commercial space. In 2008, a second wing was opened and was named Joyful Preschool. It was then that Joyful brought in extra partners, which included Ms. Sue, Dr. Jefferson’s mother, and others to help operate the center. In 2015, Dr. Jefferson had a vision of giving the babies a building all to themselves. She wanted a place just for the babies. And in 2017 they opened a third wing and loving called it Joyful Babies.
In 2020 Dr. Jefferson was offered a new space in Roseville. Joyful Tots-Roseville opened in 2021. As Joyful Roseville was beginning construction, Ology was formed. Ology is a school age site, in Oak Park that was designed to accommodate the academic and extracurricular needs for Joyful’s school-age children. In February 2023, Joyful started construction on a new site in Warren, Michigan. Joyful Tots-Warren will be connected to Team Up Academy, a non-profit organization where Dr. Jefferson is a Board Member.
During her time at Oakland University, she worked as a copy editor for the university’s newspaper. She then worked as a Staff Writer for the Michigan Citizen Newspaper, then located in Highland Park, Michigan. Just before graduating college, she joined the Michigan Chronicle Newspaper in Detroit, as a Staff Writer. After spending some time writing for various publications and newspapers, she decided to leave the Chronicle to seek out a new venture and had always been interested in Public Relations and Marketing. She spent time as an Account Executive at Hermanoff & Associates and Doner Advertising. Just before resigning from the world of PR and marketing, she began speaking with her grandmother often about the joys of teaching children. Dr. Jefferson remembers going to school with her grandmother, a retired schoolteacher, on career day and coming home reenacting how she saw her grandmother, with loving patience and care, teaching other children.
Dr. Jefferson says children are her JOY. She and her husband have five children who also volunteer and help to run the businesses. She also assists her husband in operating the family’s water company Gotta Have Water which produces and delivers fresh steam distilled water and carries many water filtration products.
Dr. Jefferson is a Graduate of Goldman Sachs 10KSB, Southeast Michigan, a member of Women United, the Oakland County Childcare Council and an Empire member of the Childcare Success Company.
This fall Dr. Jefferson will launch her first Podcast Dr. T.J. Speaks. The podcast will focus on healthy living for everyone of all ages. The goal is to help continue to break the curses of illness in households. Dr. Jefferson is a humanitarian, giving to countless charitable organizations, that focus on early education missions and helping families in Metro Detroit live a healthier lifestyle within their own homes and in their communities.