As community outreach manager at Illinois Central College, Gregory S. Wilson, Jr. goes above and beyond to help students reach their potential, while serving as a resource for the educational and cultural needs of the community. Prior to this role, he was marketing and public relations specialist for Peoria Citizens Committee for Economic Opportunity (PCCEO), a community action agency and local leader in promoting self-sufficiency and economic security for area residents. He is also an entrepreneur and cofounder of SikFramez, LLC, an online health and wellness company.
Wilson’s commitment to education not only led him to earn his MBA and pursue a doctorate in business administration; it also found him serving on the Peoria Public Schools (PPS) Board of Education, including leadership roles as vice president and president. Tackling a challenging set of issues in the especially challenging time of COVID-19, he has shown vision equal to the task. Under his leadership, PPS has seen improvements in the teacher shortage crisis, graduation rates and student achievement.
Among other commitments, Wilson serves as a volunteer educator for Junior Achievement of Central Illinois, board member and co-chair of marketing for the Peoria Area World Affairs Council, board member of the Central Illinois Autism Association, board member and coach for Peoria Pride Basketball, and board member of Divine Intellect, which offers life coaching, mentoring, and therapeutic services to adolescents.
In addition to these formal roles, Wilson was a co-organizer of Peoria’s successful 2021 Juneteenth celebration, working to mobilize donations to numerous local food pantries. A father of five and part-time radio DJ, he has volunteered with Richwoods JFL youth football and ELITE Youth Outreach and is a member of Toastmasters and Alpha Phi Alpha’s Kappa Pi Lambda chapter. From large-scale work at the community-college level to projects impacting individual neighborhoods, Wilson exemplifies the quiet, yet reliable leadership that is invaluable to the community as it tackles longstanding challenges at the intersection of education, equity and business. PM
