George Robinson, II, is currently the Director of the Toledo Minority Contractors Business Assistance Programs at the Toledo Chamber of Commerce. George was graduated from St. Francis de Sales High School and The University of Toledo’s College of Chemical and Environmental Engineering. While at UT, he was vice president of the College’s Engineering Council, which represents all engineering campus organizations. Mr. Robinson also became a member of Abraham Great Lodge #4 A.F. & A.M. George decided that upon graduation he would pursue a career in patent law, and in the fall of 2002, he began his law school education at The University of Toledo. In his first year, he was active in the campus Black Law Students’ Association. George, who is a member of TOLEDO EXCEL Group V, has also completed course requirements for the M.B.A. degree from The University of Toledo.
Reba Peoples, M.D., a member of Group III, is the first TOLEDO EXCEL student to earn a medical degree. A 2003 graduate of the Medical College of Ohio, Dr. Peoples took a brief hiatus from medicine to join the GEAR UP staff at The University of Toledo. In her previous position as Interim Associate Director, Dr. Peoples was actively involved in the coordination of educational activities designed to boost student achievement and encourage student success in groups that have been traditionally underrepresented in higher education. She was excited about the opportunity to work with GEAR UP because it allowed her a chance to make a positive contribution to her community. She dedicated two years of service to the GEAR UP program before pursuing her medical residency training. Dr. Peoples is currently the Psychiatry Chief Resident at Hennepin County Medical Center in Minneapolis, MN.
Airron Richardson, MD, MBA was inducted into TOLEDO EXCEL Group I as he was about to move from Robinson Junior High to Start High School, where he was a 4.0 scholar and a member of the high school All-American wrestling squad. He has continued on the road to success, both academically and athletically, having been a member of the U.S. Olympic Team in 2000. Knowing early that he wanted to be a doctor, a medical mentor allowed him the opportunity to observe an actual surgery when he was just in high school. He began post-secondary studies at Morehouse College, in Atlanta, then transferred and became a graduate of the University of Michigan, in Ann Arbor. Airron completed medical school at Vanderbilt University, in Nashville, where he also studied business, earning both the M.D. and M.B.A. in May 2005. Having finished his medical internship, he has covered a lot of ground since he left Toledo. Graduating with Group I, he spoke as EXCEL’s first Salutatorian. Six years later, in 1999, he was Keynote Speaker for the commencement of Group VII. EXCEL welcomed back Doctor Airron Richardson another six years later, as the Keynote Speaker for the commencement of TOLEDO EXCEL Group XIII.
His interest in Emergency Medicine developed from the combination of the urgency, the challenges, and the variety of medical situations faced in the specialty, along with the satisfaction of being able to offer immediate intervention to people in medical need. He also appreciates recognizing and applying, in trauma care, something he learned in his study of business -- the importance of the dynamics of teamwork and organization. Dr. Richardson is currently a team physician with Duke University.
Ms. Jamilah N. Jones, of TOLEDO EXCEL Group V, was graduated from Toledo’s St. Ursula Academy in 1997. Continuing her academic EXCELlence, she was graduated Cum Laude from The University of Toledo in 2001. Jamilah is currently the Graduate Recruitment Coordinator at The University of Toledo. She says it was her positive experiences in EXCEL Summer Institutes which inspired her to pursue a professional career in the field of Higher Education.
As an undergraduate student here at the University, Jamilah served as President of the Black Student Union, and ran for Vice President of Student Government. She was a charter member of the NAACP – Youth and College Chapter. She now is an advisor to the Black Student Union, a mentor for MINIYA, the University’s mentorship program, and is involved in the University Math Engineering and Computer Science Scholarship Program. She is a volunteer Tax Preparer for VITA, and a member of Zeta Phi Beta Sorority. Jamilah, who says she is proud to be a sister, friend, Godparent, and Child of God, is a fifth generation member of All Saints Episcopal Church.
An advocate of life-long learning, she plans to continue her own education, and encourages others “to take failure as a chance for a fresh start, not a measure of one’s worth.” For her Master’s Thesis, she did a comparative analysis of the digital competencies of first year African American students and White students, and its effects on student involvement at The University of Toledo.