Sally Ricker

About Sally Ricker

I’m a co-founder of Gennisi Group, Peblink, and the World Literacy Research Center.Together, these platforms are built to solve a problem most development efforts miss: you can’t build economies without building people first.How we buildWe develop regions from the inside out—by embedding literacy, workforce development, real economic participation, and startup formation directly into the rebuilding process. • World Literacy Research Center establishes the foundation: literacy diagnostics, AI-supported tools, curriculum, teacher support, and data dashboards that move populations toward functional and workforce literacy. • Peblink activates that foundation by deploying global university student teams onto real company, government, and infrastructure projects—across agriculture, water, health intelligence, technology, logistics, security, and more. • Gennisi Group integrates it all—aligning education, workforce pipelines, entrepreneurship, economic strategy, culture, and security/oversight into one execution framework that includes the Gennisi incubator, where local founders and startups are developed and accelerated using Peblink-powered student teams as their execution engine.Students don’t “study” development—they do it. Their work produces usable outcomes, intellectual property, startups, and a continuous pipeline of local and global talent.Why it works (and who benefits)This model creates alignment across all stakeholders: • Regions & governments gain a skilled workforce, local ownership, transparent systems, and durable economic momentum • Companies & investors access vetted talent, de-risked innovation, and incubator-supported, market-ready ventures • Universities & students gain real-world experience, global collaboration, and pathways to leadership, employment, or entrepreneurship • Communities move from aid dependency to participation, dignity, and long-term stabilityWorkforce development, startup incubation, and regional development are not separate efforts—they are one integrated system.Where we’re workingWe are actively operating and scaling projects in: • Somaliland • Gaza • Across the Middle East, Africa, India, Brazil, and the U.S, with global university participation embedded in every initiativeWhat drives meI believe development succeeds when local people are builders, not recipients, and when students, companies, startups, and communities are invested in outcomes together. Literacy unlocks workforce. Workforce fuels entrepreneurship. Entrepreneurship builds economies.That’s the system we’re building.

Experience

1. CEO & Co-founder

   Peblink

   Dec 2021 — Present · US

Education

• Evangel University

  Doctor of Education in Educational Leadership, Curriculum & Instruction

• Missouri State University

  BSEd

• Evangel University

  Masters in Education Curriculum and Instruction