About us
A nonprofit built to open the airspace
The Okii Dream Initiative, Inc. is a registered 501(c)(3) nonprofit serving Hampton Roads, Virginia. We teach drone flight, aviation technology, coding, and STEM to communities of all ages — especially the ones these opportunities usually skip.
Mission
The Okii Dream Initiative empowers underserved communities of all ages through aviation technology, creative education, and hands-on STEAM experiences.
Vision
A Hampton Roads where every young person, family, and adult has a real chance to touch aviation technology, explore how it works, and see a future for themselves in it.
Our story
How Okii Dream began
What does Okii mean?
In Japanese, Ōkii means big — or great. At Okii Dream we believe in living with heart, creativity, and limitless imagination.
Be Okii. Dream without limits.
- 1
It started with a camera and a controller
Founder Shaymon Owens built Okii Dream to prove that creativity, technology, aviation, and determination can open doors that once seemed out of reach.
- 2
Aviation became the storytelling tool
After earning his FAA Remote Pilot Certification he used aviation and media to help organizations tell their stories and see their communities from perspectives they had never seen before.
- 3
The mission grew beyond the camera
Opportunities opened for children, adults, schools, and organizations to experience technology firsthand — sometimes placing a drone controller into the hands of someone who had never imagined themselves participating in aviation at all.
- 4
That moment is the mission
That is what Okii Dream represents: the moment someone realizes there may be more possible for them than they previously believed.
Core values
What we hold to
Access
Aviation technology belongs in every neighborhood, not just the ones that already have it.
Curiosity
Questions come before answers. We build programs that reward exploring.
Safety First
Every class starts with airspace, awareness, and responsible flight.
Creativity
Drones, storytelling, code, and art are one continuous craft here.
Community
We build alongside schools, community centers, and families in Hampton Roads.
Who we serve
Communities and populations
We work across Hampton Roads, with a focus on Chesapeake and Portsmouth.
- Youth and teens across Hampton Roads
- Families and caregivers
- Public schools and school divisions
- Community centers, libraries, and youth-serving nonprofits
- Adults and seniors new to drone technology
- Underserved and under-resourced neighborhoods
Our team
Leadership
Shaymon Owens
Founder & Executive Director
FAA Certified Drone Pilot, Founder & CEO of Okii Dream LLC, and Executive Director of the Initiative.
Shaymon Owens is the Founder and Executive Director of the Okii Dream Initiative, a nonprofit created to help underserved youth and communities discover what is possible through technology, aviation, creativity, and opportunity.
For Shaymon, this work is deeply personal. Growing up, interests like anime, gaming, and technology did not always come with a sense of belonging, and there were not always spaces where young people could explore their creativity and feel accepted for who they were.
As an FAA Certified Drone Pilot and Founder and CEO of Okii Dream LLC, he has built his professional work around drone technology, aerial media, STEM education, and workforce development with students, schools, nonprofits, and workforce partners throughout Hampton Roads.
After teaching hundreds of students, he recognized something bigger than teaching someone to fly a drone: many young people simply need exposure to careers, technology, and environments that do not exist within their everyday world.
His goal is not simply to teach technology. It is to help young people dream bigger — creating a place where they can belong, explore, learn, and dream without limits.
Governance
Board of Directors
Keisha Nichols
Board Chair
CTE professional and STEM education leader with more than 25 years of experience.
A dedicated Career and Technical Education (CTE) professional and STEM education leader with more than 25 years of experience in teaching, program development, and educational leadership.
After brief professional experiences at NASA Langley Research Center and the Virginia Department of Transportation, she began her career in education.
A former high school technology education teacher, she is currently Associate Professor of Industrial Technology at Paul D. Camp Community College, teaching advanced manufacturing, automation, robotics, and skilled trades.
Since 2017 she has served as Director of the STEM Achievers Camp for middle school students, leading program development, recruitment, staff coordination, and budgeting.
She holds a BS in Industrial Technology Education and an M.Ed. in Vocational and Technical Education from Virginia State University.
Courtney Owens, M.Ed.
Vice-Chair
Education Director and author of The Joy of Learning workbook series.
Educator, adjunct professor, and doctoral candidate in Education who has taught middle school since 2019.
Author of The Joy of Learning Interactive Workbook series, designed to make learning engaging and accessible for diverse learners.
Brings a holistic approach to student support and mentorship rooted in her Bachelor's degree in Social Work.
Angela Hines
Treasurer
Bookkeeper and business owner providing financial stewardship for the Initiative.
Angela Hines serves as Treasurer of The Okii Dream Initiative, Inc., bringing a strong background in bookkeeping, business ownership, financial organization, and thoughtful leadership.
Her decision to serve is rooted in a simple but powerful desire: to give back, using her professional skills to strengthen an organization creating opportunities for underserved youth and communities.
As Treasurer she provides the financial stewardship and accountability needed to support the Initiative's continued growth, with attention to detail and responsible decision-making.
For Angela, board service is about more than managing numbers — it is about building a strong foundation so the Initiative can keep helping young people dream without limits.
Joy Vernon, M.M.
Secretary
Choral conductor and performing arts educator in Hampton Roads.
BA in Secondary Music Education from Virginia Wesleyan and an MM in Choral Conducting from Temple University.
Performs as a soloist and with ensembles across Hampton Roads and Philadelphia, and has toured the Eastern US, Italy, and Switzerland.
Directs chorus and theater at John Yeates Middle School and teaches voice and piano at Centerstage Academy of Performing Arts.
Neal Dewing
Board Member
Portsmouth native with a background in management and procurement.
A Portsmouth native who returned to the city as an adult, Neal is proud to once again call Portsmouth home.
Transparency & governance
Accountability
The Okii Dream Initiative, Inc. is committed to responsible stewardship of every dollar entrusted to us, to transparent reporting on what our programs deliver, to accessibility for families regardless of income, and to measuring our community impact honestly — publishing results only after they have been verified.
Federal 501(c)(3) status
- Legal name
- The Okii Dream Initiative, Inc.
- EIN
- 41-4201163
- Status
- Registered 501(c)(3) tax-exempt nonprofit. Donations are tax-deductible to the fullest extent allowed by law.
Documents
Our IRS determination letter, annual reporting, and governance policies are available on request while we prepare them for download here. We publish only documents we can actually provide.
Request documents501(c)(3) verified. The Okii Dream Initiative, Inc. is a registered 501(c)(3) tax-exempt nonprofit organization. EIN 41-4201163. All donations are tax-deductible to the fullest extent allowed by law.