The signature program of the foundation is the A.J. Terrell Jr. Academy, a school-based leadership and academic coaching program that serves high school student athletes in under-resourced communities. Trained academic athletic coaches are placed directly into schools to work one-on-one with students on academic progress, time management, college planning and life skills.
The foundation also holds an event called the Crownucopia, which served more than 200 women and children living at My Sister’s House in Atlanta in 2024. Customized care packages were distributed with premium hair care, skin care and personal care items tailored to natural hair textures and diverse skin needs—an often-overlooked need.
The A.J. Terrell Jr. Foundation had been growing significantly as Terrell’s professional career took off, too, but it went into hyperdrive in 2025. That’s because Terrell saw a need arise that he was perfectly inclined to fill.
For much of the last decade, Grady Jarrett was the heart and soul of the Atlanta community. As one of the most respected defensive tackles in the league, a longtime mainstay in the Falcons’ defense and a kid from Conyers, Georgia, Jarrett was a cornerstone in Atlanta.
The way Jarrett carried himself in the city he called home nearly his entire life resonated with Terrell — a hometown guy himself. As close friends and teammates, the impact Jarrett had in the community was noticed by no one more than Terrell.
When Jarrett was released by the Falcons in early 2025 and signed with the Chicago Bears, there was a Jarrett-sized hole in the hearts of Atlanta. Terrell immediately knew what he had to do, and that was to take up the mantle of his friend and continue the tradition of an Atlanta-raised superstar leading the charge of taking care of the broader Atlanta community.
Terrell and his team got to work.
“I saw Grady get it,” Terrell said. “I know how much of an impact he was, and to be the Walter Payton Man of the Year for the whole state of Georgia, for the city. I saw how much he did for where he was from, where he grew up. I feel like this year, I did that a lot. I still think I need to do more, so I plan on getting more of these for sure.”