Jerry Williamson continues his mission to pour into his community through educational, athletic, journalistic, and philanthropic efforts.
A native of West Perrine, Florida, Williamson has more than a decade of experience working with youth.
He currently serves as founder/headmaster of Rise Preparatory Academy in Miami, Florida. Walking in the footsteps of his grandmother Emma Moultrie-Little, a former head-start preschool educator, Williamson elected to start Rise Preparatory Academy in 2018 to fill a void for students that needed an alternative to the cookie-cutter educational path – providing an innovative and unique learning experience.
“I noticed students and student-athletes falling by the wayside in the conventional system that schools use day to day…with students being overwhelmed by multiple periods per day and endless standardized testing. I decided to gather all the negatives and create a small academy, to make a difference for students looking for a nontraditional route of learning.” In a two-year span, Williamson – through Rise Preparatory Academy – has placed over 20 seniors in colleges and universities across nine states. He also has aided other at-risk inner-city students find college placement while also serving as before and aftercare programs coordinator.
Williamson represents and walked the path that he’s looking lead youth towards.
A graduate of Miami Palmetto High School, Williamson earned his Associate of Arts degree at Miami-Dade College and matriculated to Florida International University, where he received his Bachelor of Arts degree in Education. He’s also currently working towards attaining his Master’s degree.
He has worked in both public and charter schools, teaching students in the general populous as well as special needs students and honors students.
Williamson has also worked as a sports writer in South Florida over the past decade, contributing to multiple publications. He gained much acclaim for his work covering youth football – for both Generation Next and his own publication Rising Stars – spotlighting and promoting the next generation of student-athletes as they progress from the youth league ranks to high school and beyond.
He also has helped student-athletes in more hands-on capacities, coaching various Pop Warner football teams and serving as the Team Manager for Miami-Dade College’s Women’s Basketball team.