Meet Michael Ikuesan of Oluwafemi Ikuesan in East Atlanta

Today we’d like to introduce you to Michael Ikuesan.

Michael, let’s start with your story. We’d love to hear how you got started and how the journey has been so far.
For my entire life, I have worked in childhood development, not knowing God was preparing me to become a leader in my community. In 2002, I landed my first job as a summer camp counselor at the South Dekalb YMCA. From then I worked for the Boy Scouts of America, Big Brother and Big Sister, Boys and Girls Club, Juvenile Detention Centers, Foster Care homes, nonprofit organizations, mental health facilities and now completing my 7th year in education. As you can see, I have always secured jobs that allowed me to help others.

After graduating from high school, college was the ONLY route encouraged by my parents. Having a Nigerian father, Math, Science, or Health degrees were the only acceptable careers to pursue in my family. With this mindset, I graduated from Columbus State University with a Bachelors Degree in in Math and Science, Masters Degree in Curriculum Instruction, and later completed my Specialist degree in Instructional Technology at the University of West Georgia. Fast forward to now, and I am finally completing my last course to receive a leadership certificate to become an administrator in the education system.
After obtaining 3 degrees and five certifications, I realized the system created for our students to follow was not in their best interest. Several students were graduating from high school and experiencing culture shocks due to the inability to properly prepare students for the “real world”. As I continued to research more about issues in education, I decided to become advocate of education reform.
I partnered with Nolij Non-Profit Organization to create scholarships for low-income students in South Georgia. Recently joined Youth Branding University Nonprofit Organization to teach entrepreneurship, financial literacy, and currently creating a STEM Summer Camp program in the city of Atlanta. This summer I launched my clothing line Oluwafemi Ikuesan, which means God loves me in Nigerian, to raise money for families in need and projects focused on the development of the community.
Growing up in Lithonia, I have made it my duty to give back the best way I can. Life has not always been easy and I planned to work as hard as possible to ensure the next generation has far more opportunities than the ones that were given to me.

Great, so let’s dig a little deeper into the story – has it been an easy path overall and if not, what were the challenges you’ve had to overcome?
It has definitely been a challenging journey. Of course being young, black, and educated in America, you face many trials and tribulations. Some races view you as incompetent and unable to fulfill certain leadership positions. Along with that, you have our elders who are stuck in their ways and refuse to adapt to their environment. Non-conformist are considered rebels and a disagreement to them, equates to disrespect. With this mindset, the gap between young adults and our elders continues to increase due to the inability to truly create a solid relationship with young professionals.

Being an educator, you become emotionally drained as we continue to pour into the lives of children and adults. We experience so many tragic stories such as, death, student incapability to control their emotions, parents struggling to financially support their children, and many more. Having to work in this environment affects teachers emotionally and mentally. So taking mental health days and stepping away from community service are vital to maintain a healthy balanced lifestyle.

Alright – so let’s talk business. Tell us about Oluwafemi Ikuesan – what should we know?
Oluwafemi is my Nigerian name. Oluwa is a Yoruba word for “Our God, Our Lord” and Femi is a Yoruba word for “loves me”. When you place both names together you create my name which means “God Loves Me”. What I decided to do was brand my African name. As an advocate for education reform, I want people to know me for who I am. I would like for children to claim their roots and never allow anyone to strip their identity.
This summer was a successful launch that allowed me to purchase school supplies for my mentees and donate money to a single-parent mother who needed financial assistance to register for her bar exam.

I am extremely proud of my success and all the children and adult’s lives that I have touched. I am a firm believer in taking care of community.
What sets me apart from others would be my hard work and dedication to the community. I have done a lot of behind the scenes work and many people can attest to that. I try my best to live in the moment and truly focus on the progression of the community.
I truly do believe we must create a life to our own definitions for happiness and success. While doing this, we must stay true to our values and focus our time and energy on the areas of life that matters to us most. Live our lives aligned to our own standards and desires. Find that internal validation and continue to seek knowledge, wisdom, and areas to grow.

Is there a characteristic or quality that you feel is essential to success?
Balance, grit, active knowledge seeker (read a lot of books), creativity, ability to walk alone if I’m the only person to believe in my vision, humility, spiritual connection/relationship with God, willing to take risk, flexibility, learned to never take someone’s actions personal, and my NETWORK.

Contact Info:

• Instagram: oluwafemi_edu
• Twitter: oluwafemi_edu

Image Credit:
Olga Tulei, Photography Business Name: PXOlga

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