Our Team

Corinne Brion is an Assistant professor at the university of Dayton where she teaches intercultural proficiency courses. Corinne founded Turtle Up in 2023 to help the planet, the people, and generate revenues for turtle conservancy and the New Ningo community. Corinne is married to a Ghanaian and has worked for six years in Ghana where she led numerous leadership training in schools, created a train the trainer model with locals, and conducted extensive research. In the U.S. Corinne founded and was the principal of a charter school in Oregon. In summer of 2022, she was awarded a Fulbright fellowship and through her work at the University of Cape Coast, she has forged robust relationships with locals, academics, and practitioners in the Western region and in the New Ningo Prampram community where her family lives. Corinne holds a bachelor’s in international business and marketing from the Ecole Nationale de Commerce in Paris, France a master’s in education, and a PhD in Leadership. Turtle Up is Corinne’s passion project.

Dr. Mornah holds a Post-doctoral degree in International Business and Entrepreneurship from the University of Florida, a Ph.D. and an M.A. in Economics from the University of Mississippi, and a B.A. in Economics from the University of Ghana. He is currently an Assistant Professor of Entrepreneurship at Northern Kentucky University, working previously at the Virginia Military Institute as an Associate Professor of Economics and Entrepreneurship. His research focuses on migration, culture, entrepreneurship, and the interplay of institutions in national entrepreneurial outcomes. Dr. Mornah is originally from Ghana. As a result of his bicultural exposure, experiences, and expertise, he is passionate about connecting American and African businesses or entrepreneurs to explore opportunities and solve problems across national boundaries. To this end, he founded a few companies, including Saharan Economic and Financial Consortium and Saharan Business Frontiers, with which he facilitated the development of several projects ranging from energy, telecommunications, construction and manufacturing.

Kim Petro is a Certified Business Advisor, Certified QuickBooks Online Advanced ProAdvisor and owns her own business, Designed to Organize, LLC, where she is both the CEO and a Business and Financial Organizer. She envisions every business owner harnessing the power of their financial data to make sound and impactful business decisions every day. She is committed to helping business owners know and trust their numbers so they can ensure that their business’s financial future has a firm foundation. She knows that numbers are not the only thing that makes a business thrive. She also understands how businesses connect to the community and how their support is vital to the health and growth of the communities which they serve.  Kim has been instrumental in helping many small business owners succeed in her hometown of Dayton, OH and virtually across the US, through a unique combination of education on managing their QuickBooks Online file, advising business owners on accounting best practices, strategic business planning, QuickBooks Online Transitional Bookkeeping Services and being a connector to resources that business owners need to support and grow their own visions. Her latest endeavor is building a community of like-minded accounting professionals who excel in the clean up/catch up space to help even more small businesses have secure financial foundations to aid their business’s growth and sustainability.

Jessica Hunter is the Nonprofit Services Specialist at Dayton Metro Library. Her current role merges her passions: libraries and nonprofit work. She helps nonprofit rganizations find information on funders, proposal writing, and nonprofit management. She connects nonprofits to community resources and helps them access data and statistics that funders require. She has worked in a variety of library settings over 20 years, and has served as grants and donor relations manager for a local nonprofit.  Jessica has a Bachelor of Arts from Elon University and a Masters of Information and Library Management from the University of Bristol, England. She joined Turtle Up because she is impressed with Corinne’s passion and plan, and because her daughter loves sea turtles.  She looks forward to bringing her family to the turtle hatchery in Ghana one day.

Sekou Sheriff works at the Global Partnership for Education at the World Bank. He is from Liberia and very passionate about the upward mobility of the African continent. Sekou holds a Bachelor’s in Finance from Bloomfield College in New Jersey and a Master’s in International Development from New York University. 

As an entrepreneur and small business owner, my professional journey has been driven by a passion for growth and an unwavering commitment to service. Having founded and managed a successful coaching business, I’ve recognized the importance of seeking guidance from branding and marketing mentors to foster its expansion. These experiences have equipped me with an understanding of business strategy, honed my leadership skills, and enhanced the transformative power of mentorship in achieving my professional goals.

Beyond my entrepreneurial endeavors, my life has been deeply rooted in service from an early age. Beginning with my volunteer work in 6th grade, supporting children with disabilities, I’ve consistently engaged in various community initiatives. Notably, as a lead volunteer for park cleanup initiatives in Charlotte and a committed contributor to Mama’s Kitchen in San Diego over the years, I’ve demonstrated an enduring commitment to making a tangible difference. These experiences have instilled in me a profound sense of social responsibility and a keen understanding of the importance of community engagement and outreach.

My extensive background in project management further complements my multifaceted skill set, enabling me to adeptly oversee initiatives and achieve tangible results. I am eager to apply my diverse expertise, entrepreneurial acumen, commitment to service, and project management proficiency in contributing meaningfully to the impactful initiatives of Turtle Up.