Diverse Backgrounds. One Mission.
Dion Parson, President
Dion is an educator, composer, Grammy Award-winning performer, and bandleader. He currently resides on the island of St. Thomas and serves as the Chair of the Communication and Performing Arts Department at the University of the Virgin Islands. He is also the President of the United Jazz Foundation, which is a music education organization that mentors underprivileged kids to become musicians. His musical career has allowed him to tour internationally for over 30 years, and he has been recorded on over 80 records.
Milton Rice, Strategic Development
Milton started building festivals and partnerships between sponsors and local governments in 1976. He joined The Miller Brewing Sound Express Mobil concert series in 1986 until 1990 under the direction of Bill Rouselle and world-famous George Wein. In 1992 Milton joined the United States Olympic Committee as Chief of Operations in charge of logistics and working closely with all global sponsors and athletes. Currently, Milton produces and merchandises concerts for both live and broadcast platforms.
Nate Howard, Creative Content
An executive level with a 35-year career, Nate has created a series of original programs for local and national distribution in every genre of production, including corporate, educational, health, series, documentary, news, arts, music, and film. Nate has consistently been honored and recognized, garnering numerous local and national awards; among them 4 Regional Emmy Awards, 2-first place National Association of Black Journalist Awards, NETA Awards, Telly Awards, Questar Awards, and scores of others.
Cooper James, Content Development
Cooper is an integral part of the content development team at Hyperdrive. He is a multi-talented artist with an extensive entertainment career that began in NYC. He then relocated to Los Angeles, where he secured a deal with HBO that eventually led to a Story Editor position on ABC's HANGIN’ WITH MR. COOPER. Cooper combined this experience of casting, editing, and scriptwriting to aid in developing THE JAMIE FOXX SHOW, where he rose to Supervising Producer and contributed to a hundred episodes. He continues to create and collaborate across multiple platforms, from Executive Producing, Directing, and Podcasting to developing original content.
Hector Gonzalez, MarComm
Drawing upon his 24 years of experience within the private and public sectors, Hector leads the marketing and communication strategy for Hyperdrive. He is responsible for developing a sound brand platform for all endeavors and creating a strategic vision for our partners and collaborators.
Jerusa Carl Wilson, Jr. (“Carl”),
Senior Advisor
Before becoming a Member of and General Counsel for Hyperdrive, Carl served The Universal Service Administrative Company (USAC) as its Senior Director and Deputy General Counsel. Before joining USAC, Carl served the District of Columbia’s Commission on the Arts and Humanities as its first-ever General Counsel. Carl additionally served the District of Columbia government as (1) the Deputy General Counsel (and Acting General Counsel) of the DC Department of Insurance, Securities and Banking; (2) the General Counsel of the District’s former Office of Cable Television; (3) the Deputy General Counsel of the DC Department of Consumer and Regulatory Affairs; and (4) as a litigator in the Office of the Attorney General of the District of Columbia’s Civil Litigation Division.
Prior to working for the District government, Carl worked as an attorney in the private sector. Car’s private sector experience is comprised of successful service to (1) a small District-based private sector law firm; (2) subsequently, a large Maryland-based law firm; (3) as Senior Regulatory Counsel for a Fortune 100 telecommunications company (i.e., MCI Communications and its successor, MCI WorldCom, which is now a Verizon company).
Donna R. Ryles, Program Manager
Donna is an experienced and dedicated professional with a commitment to the growth of others. She has over two decades of successful experience in relationship building, training, influencing, and teaching across various sectors, including Higher Education institutions, Fortune 500 companies, Government Agencies, and Non-Profit employment. Donna is a talented bridge builder between public and private entities who has the ability to swiftly embrace change and find workable solutions that benefit all stakeholders. In addition to her role as program manager, she also serves as the Director of Project Management and Advancement for a community-based organization, Donna continues her passion for creating meaningful partnerships that empower communities to reach their potential.
Let’s Work Together
We’re always looking for new opportunities and meeting new talent. Please get in touch and one of our team members will contact you.