Alvertis Brooks Jr. - Aaron Brooks Foundation CEO
Alvertis Brooks Jr., a Seattle native graduated from Franklin High School where he excelled in many sports and activities before graduating in 2000. He then went on to attend Seattle University on basketball and academic scholarships and graduated in 2006 with a degree in accounting and finance. While at Seattle University he was involved in several professional organizations such as National Society of Black Engineers, National Association of Black Accountants, and Kappa Alpha Psi Fraternity Incorporated. He also co-founded Minorities Involved in the Community and worked as an assistant basketball coach at Franklin High School. Currently Alvertis works as a youth services specialist at Franklin High School. Alvertis Brooks Jr. is the co-founder and Chief Executive Office of the Aaron Brooks Foundation.
James E. Hampton - Aaron Brooks Foundation COO
A native of the South, James was born in Florence, Alabama. A 1975 graduate of Sheffield High School, James attended the University of North Alabama and Alabama A&M on a football scholarship. In 1979, after leaving college, he began his working career in Seattle, Washington as a supervisor of a custom woodshop, while spending most of his evenings volunteering in the community. In 1990, he took a part-time job with the Seattle Parks and Recreation Department as a Recreational Specialist working with at-risk youth and gangs. James also served on a task force established by Mayor Norm Rice during the Rodney King riots designed to establish good race relations in Seattle. In 1991 while working with the Seattle Parks department, He created the first community-based computer lab called Project Compute located at the Rainier Community Center, the program went on to win a Points of Light Award. In 1992, he received the Outstanding Service Award and the Humanitarian Award form the Seattle Commission on Children & Youth from Mayor Rice for his work in co-creating the design and implementation of the Late Night Program. Included in the Late Night Program, he established a project called Drills and Skills which taught youth basic and advanced skills for basketball and life. KOMO-TV “For Kids Sake” program honored him as an volunteer and Youth Role Model of the Year in 1994 by featuring him in their nationally syndicated program.