After completing a Bachelor of Arts degree in French and Classical Studies on a full academic scholarship at Hope College, Detroit native Octavia Reese won a Fulbright Teaching Assistantship Fellowship, but declined moving to France so she could represent her home state as Miss Michigan 2005 in the 2006 Miss America competition in Las Vegas.
Having studied more than seven languages, and with a history of nearly 10 years touring abroad with international orchestras, Octavia spent her years of service in the Miss America Organization as a spokesperson for UNICEF, promoting her platform “Building Bridges through International Experiences,” and led a group of beauty queen volunteers to donate time and resources to a children’s home in Kingston, Jamaica in 2006.
Since then, Octavia started a family, and began writing novels during nap time when her three boys were toddlers — she is now a five-time published author of young adult sci-fi fantasy novellas. Simultaneously, she became a grant writer and Director of the Leaders of Tomorrow youth program at Roseland Christian Ministries where she mentored children and teens for several years before deciding to fulfill a childhood dream of working in healthcare.
From leading non-profit program development and implementation, Octavia became certified as an Epic Analyst and Principal Trainer, where she spent the next seven years as a corporate instructional experience designer, specializing in surgery, anesthesia, radiology, and population health. Expanding her skills to focus on data-informed engagement strategies, Octavia embarked on a new passion: consumer digital health product design.
Today, Octavia is the Founder and Chief Innovation Officer of OcTech Health, where she offers a wide range of consulting expertise in customer experience, from user acquisition to user retention strategy. In 2022, Octavia completed a Masters of Science in Healthcare Informatics Administration with an emphasis in UX design and global health technology from Northwestern University, and is currently completing a second Masters of Science in Technology Innovation, with a focus on tech startup leadership and GTM strategy, from University of Advancing Technology.
Octavia also serves on the advisory board for the CX Certificate Program at University of Richmond’s School of Professional Studies, and is an Education Committee member with Centerstone’s Ambassadors Circle.
In late summer 2023, Octavia began organizing Logan Square Immersive Arts Collective, a cooperative community of creatives led by a group of co-founders and owned and operated by its members. The program already has nearly 40 participants and will officially launch in October 2023.
Octavia is also a classically-trained cellist of more than 35 years and an international practitioner of musical meditation sound baths. She also scores musical companions to her novellas, The Hibouleans series. Octavia resides in Chicago with her three children.
A chronic thrill-seeker, Octavia also enjoys skydiving, trapeze, dancing in the street, and any opportunity to sing karaoke.
For more information, visit https://octaviareese.com
Subscribe to virtual sound baths on https://YouTube.com/@octaviareese
Start The Hibouleans adventure on Amazon bit.ly/Hibouleans
IG/TW/SC/TT: @octaviaaivatco
Octavia Reese 