An Oakland native, Founding Executive Director Brandon Nicholson has always felt a deep sense of commitment to promoting equity in the public realm, particularly in the education space. Previously, he was a Senior Associate at Social Policy Research Associates (SPR), where he conducted research, evaluation, and analysis across a range of key social policy areas. Brandon has conducted substantial research in the areas of education and youth development, with a particular focus on issues of equity and access in K-12 education for underserved populations. He has considerable experience investigating linkages among race, class, and youth development.

A San Francisco native, Tariq Norris is the Finance and Operations Director at The Hidden Genius Project. His expertise is rooted in organizational development, fiscal management, non-profit administration, youth development, and strategic planning. Previously, Tariq held leadership positions at several local and national non-profit organizations which focused on organizational growth and creating positive pathways and opportunities for children and families. Tariq was educated at Alabama State University where he studied Communications. Tariq believes strongly in the power of community and continues to dedicate his life and career to helping historically underserved youth and communities advance and thrive.

After hearing a sermon of Dr. MLK in which he said “our lives begin to end the day we become silent about things that matter,” Akeem decided early on in his life that advocacy and speaking truth to power was his calling. At the intersections of technology, entrepreneurship, and policy, lay his passions as he believes societal transformation is possible when under-resourced demographics begin to trust their innate skills and build for themselves instead of only consuming. Akeem previously served as a Senior Corporate Paralegal overseeing entity formations, intellectual property, and compliance matters. Akeem was educated at the University of California, Riverside where he studied Public Policy and Religion. Currently, Akeem is the Programs Director at The Hidden Genius Project and founder of Corporately LLC.

Sean Valentine grew up in the Greater New York City Area. In 2009 he relocated to Oakland to work with youth athletes through personal training. In this pursuit, Sean developed a passion for mentorship and teen counseling. While studying Economics he became determined to incorporate his life’s experiences, scholastic knowledge, and pure people skills to help underserved teens reach their true potential. Sean received his B.S. in Economics from Saint Mary’s College.

Hodari A. Tourè received his doctorate from UC Berkeley in the School of Education in Social and Cultural Studies. His research in anthropology and education reflects a strong emphasis on inner city African Americans and has resulted in an interest in organic community discourse, which he calls block pedagogy. He states it is a discourse, which reflects the constant negotiation of identity power and privileged knowledge.

Prof. Tourè has taught courses at UC Berkeley and has vast experience working with young Black males throughout the East Bay including; Emery middle school, King Estate middle school among others.

A native of Los Angeles, Kayla Mason is the Los Angeles Site Director at The Hidden Genius Project. Kayla operates at the nexus of program operations, coalition building, and organizational development. She is driven by the opportunity to influence systemic change for at-opportunity youth and has overseen community growth opportunities for local and national organizations. Kayla believes in building youth intrinsic power and is a proud alumni of Community Coalition SCYEA an organization that builds campaigns to improve the conditions of South Los Angeles schools.

Jamal Mitchell drives the holistic arm of The Hidden Genius Project as the Support Services Manager. With over twenty-two years of experience in serving youth and families in the foster care system, Jamal specializes in cultivating relationships with at-risk and underserved youth. He has a strong passion for comprehensive case management and possesses a gift for developing a holistic needs-based service plan. Jamal was also a Life Skills Trainer for twelve years at the Alameda County Independent Living Skills Program.

Born and raised in San Francisco, Denzel Russell is the Communications Manager at The Hidden Genius Project. He provides a wealth of experience in youth development, program management, marketing, and non-profit administration. Prior to this role, Denzel’s passion for mentoring underserved youth stemmed from his service at the Children’s Creativity Museum, where he worked as the Marketing and Development Associate, Floor Manager, and Youth Program Coordinator. Denzel received his B.S. in Business Administration with a focus on Management from San Francisco State University.

Eugene Lemon has over thirty years’ experience in the computer technology field, first as a business software consultant and then as a computer science teacher. He recently retired from Oakland Unified School District after twenty years of service where he worked in alternative educational settings; primarily serving at-risk students who would otherwise have a difficult time succeeding in a traditional high school environment.

Eugene is the president of the local CSTA (Computer Science Teacher Association) Chapter and a member of the CSTA’s Advocacy Leadership Team. Eugene is also a member of The Level Playing Field Institute’s Broadening Participation in Computing advisory committee providing feedback on the development, implementation and evaluation of the BPC project.

Originally from Cleveland, Ohio, David Malone Jr. serves as the Innovation Educator at The Hidden Genius Project. Soon after receiving his B.S. in Computer Engineering from the University of Akron, he moved to Oakland in order to pursue his passion of uplifting Black communities. The under-representation of Black people in the tech industry sparked an interest for David to help provide the resources and opportunities needed to diversify the tech sector. He also worked as a Technical Support Representative for Rockwell Automation overseeing numerous software products.

Computer science enthusiast and aspiring entrepreneur, Abraham Keleta is the Innovation Educator at The Hidden Genius Project. Being an Oakland Native, Abraham is interested in utilizing technology and leadership principles to inspire and empower the next generation to build the tools needed to make a global impact. In his spare time, Abraham is devoted to curating his passion projects; Asend, a personal blog and running a clothing brand, Leopes. He also enjoys reading and reviewing books focused on personal development.

Chris Wilson supports The Hidden Genius Project as the Los Angeles Innovation Educator. Originally from Berkeley, CA, Chris graduated from San Francisco State University with a Bachelor’s Degree in Africana Studies. He is passionate about serving young people in our communities and his work is guided by a deep love for the African Diaspora and the Black experience in America. Prior to this experience, Chris worked as a Program Manager for City Year Los Angeles, where he managed young adults who served students with; tier 2 support time, social & emotional development, and leadership workshops in the Watts and Inglewood communities.

Billy Spearman received his Master of Computer Science degree at Alabama A&M University and is the Los Angeles Innovation Educator at The Hidden Genius Project. Higher education and software development have always been a staple of Billy’s career, as he previously worked as a computer science instructor at Southwest Tennessee Community College and software engineer for the United States Department of Defense. His long term goals are to become an independent software development consultant and tenured professor at a Historical Black College.

Originally from South East Los Angeles County, Michael Lopez is the Los Angeles Program Coordinator at The Hidden Genius Project. While growing up he recognized many of the inequalities people of color face through his personal experiences and those around him. While attending the University of California, San Diego he gained a new set of lenses he could utilize to deconstruct social issues through Sociology, however, he felt limited in the tools he possessed to enact change. This motivated Michael to pursue his M.S.W. at the University of Southern California where he honed in on his passion for working with youth with marginalized identities. In his free time, Michael enjoys staying active, as well as coaching high school wrestling.

Arnold Lopez is the College Adviser from UC Berkeley who provides college access information, resources, and scholarship opportunities to The Hidden Genius Project. Arnold started his career in San Diego where he worked with young people through local recreation centers, the YMCA, and with his church youth group. His passion for education and youth development amplified when he moved to the Bay Area and joined Destination College Advising Corps (DCAC) with UC Berkeley. Arnold hopes to one day work in the Department of Education pursuing Education Policy to bring more resources back into at-opportunity communities.

Born and raised on Travis Air Force Base, California, Kacie Patton has always had a knack for helping others. This passion motivated Kacie to receive her B.S. in Criminal Justice from California State University, Sacramento. After serving the residents of Solano County for over ten years as a probation officer, Kacie chose to pursue her MSW degree from The University of Louisville’s, Kent School of Social Work — where she is currently studying — in hopes of expanding and strengthening her knowledge and ability to effectively support others reach their highest potential. Kacie is excited to support the mission of The Hidden Genius Project as an MSW Intern.

Samantha Rivera, born and raised in Los Angeles, serves as the Los Angeles Care Champion Intern at The Hidden Genius Project. Having found herself at the intersection of numerous nonprofit and education spaces, Samantha is passionate about providing equity-driven, holistic support to youth and adolescent students so they can be successful throughout their education. She earned a B.S. in Liberal Studies with an emphasis in Education at Sonoma State University, and is currently pursuing an M.S.W. at the USC Suzanne Dworak-Peck School of Social Work with a focus in children, youth, and families. Samantha is proud to be on the Support Services Team and is eager to build upon her skills and knowledge to effectively support the students at The Hidden Genius Project.

Aaron Hobson, a Muskegon Michigan native, traces his passion for STEM back to when he participated in Upward Bound Math-Science's program in high school. A lifelong learner, Aaron has called the Bay Area his home since 2013 where and now serves as the Senior Innovation Educator and Curriculum Specialist at The Hidden Genius Project.

Prior to joining our team, Aaron served as a Curriculum Development Manager at Code.org and taught and wrote computer science curriculum across the K-12 spectrum, including game development, web development, data analysis, and AI/ML. In addition to computer science, Aaron is invested in social-emotional learning and critical pedagogy. Aaron earned a Master's degree in Math Education at the University of California at Berkeley, as well as a Master's in School Counseling from Grand Valley State University in Michigan. Aaron enjoys reading and writing fiction, hiking, testing Linux distros, gaming, and spending time with his children.

Perry Irving, Oakland native and OAK3 Hidden Alum, supports The Hidden Genius Project as the first Genius Fellow Educator. In 2015, Perry joined our Intensive Immersion Program with his twin brother, Paris, where he thrived learning about computer science and entrepreneurship. While in the program, Perry combined his passion for technology and skateboarding and founded iCreateSkateboards, which helps skaters design their own skateboards.

After completing the program, Perry continued to support The Hidden Genius Project as a Youth Educator for five years, leading technical workshops to young people and adults throughout the Bay Area, including national and international Catalyst Programs. He also participated in our inaugural Alumni Venture Seed Fund program in 2020. In his spare time, Perry enjoys skateboarding and creating content videos.