Who is DeRonte C Craig?
Early Years
I was born in Washington, D.C., on Saturday, September 27, 1997, to Tasha Duggar and Ronald Craig Jr. A few months later, my father went to prison and has been there my entire life. My mother—and a handful of family members who chose to show up—raised me.
I grew up in Landover, MD, and Southeast D.C., and later lived in Bowie, Hyattsville, and Temple Hills, MD. As the oldest of three, my brother, Dayvid Crutchfield, and my sister, Naytasha Ferrell, I felt responsible early. My mom did everything she could to make ends meet, and I often wondered how she pulled it off. Once I understood what money really meant and how little we had, I couldn’t sit by and watch her struggle. In 7th grade, I “hopped off the porch.” I started selling drugs to support my brother, my sister, and myself, so we didn’t have to ask my mom for anything. I began because I was too young to get a job; I stopped in 11th grade because the risk, losing another family member to the system, or worse, wasn’t worth it.
When my mom met my stepfather, everything changed. He and I clashed, and living under the same roof became hard. On the last day of my 8th-grade year, we were evicted, the first time we became homeless. Feeling like a burden, I gave my family space. That summer, during the transition from middle school to high school, I floated from house to house, staying wherever I could, while my brother and sister stayed with our grandparents.
The chaos at home showed up in my grades. I finished freshman year with a 1.8 GPA and hit a breaking point. I ran away and kept bouncing around through the summer. When the next school year started, I moved into my grandparents’ house, and things finally stabilized. I still made some poor choices and struggled to leave my old life behind, but my grades turned around: from a 1.8 to a 3.65, then a 3.85 junior year, and finally a 4.0 senior year. I moved again, and then I graduated.
College Life: Bowie State University
I made it to college. I didn’t choose Bowie State University, Bowie State chose me. BSU became home, a place where I grew, evolved, faced challenges, and came out on top. I graduated on May 17, 2019.
I arrived as a kid from some of the roughest parts of the DMV, introverted, guarded, and keeping to myself. Early on, I wrote down the kind of person I wanted to become: kind, well known, respected, someone who could walk into a room and be recognized without an introduction. Year by year, I worked toward that version of myself.
There were times I didn’t want to be at Bowie, especially since it wasn’t my first choice, but those were growing pains I had to push through. BSU turned me into a leader. I served as Class King my freshman, sophomore, and junior years, and later as Mister Bowie State University. Pageants, speaking engagements, and representing the university opened doors to travel, and I visited about 15 states and two countries, the Netherlands, Amsterdam, and Ghana.
I also pledged Alpha Phi Alpha Fraternity, Inc., the greatest fraternity in the world. These experiences shaped me and helped me leave an everlasting legacy at Bowie State. Friday, May 17, 2019, was the last day I walked campus as a student, and the first as an alumnus.
University of California, Irvine
I made it. After graduating from Bowie State University, I had to figure out what came next. The plan was to graduate school to earn my master’s. I applied to many universities, including the Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania, Duke University, Harvard Business School, and the University of Chicago Booth School of Business. I ultimately committed to the University of California, Irvine, at the Paul Merage School of Business, where I studied Innovation and Entrepreneurship and joined the first cohort of its kind in the UC system.
I got accepted and was ready to go, but the challenge was just beginning. Moving to California was difficult. I couldn’t find housing and didn’t have a good sense of neighborhoods, space, or cost from over 2,000 miles away. When I arrived on September 12, 2019, it was just me, two suitcases, a scholarship, and an Airbnb reserved for three weeks. The transition was tough, and I had low moments when I couldn’t afford to eat, couldn’t find a place to stay, and stayed up all night stressed about what I could do. It took about two months to find a consistent place to live, and I stayed there for about nine months, which finally eased the pressure for a while.
My master’s program was truly valuable. I built a strong network, made lifelong friends, and had opportunities to work on my startup at the time. The company was called Saphely, a medical technology device that monitored the health of senior citizens. I closed the project upon graduation and faced a tough decision. I could continue working on the startup with no personal income, which likely meant moving back to Maryland, or I could work and earn income so I could remain in California to build my network, name, and opportunities in the startup and entrepreneurial space. California offered more opportunity and community than the DMV, so I stayed.
Life After College
California began to settle in as home. After finishing my master’s at UC Irvine, I stayed to build a life, a network, and a career in a place that challenged me and expanded my vision. When COVID-19 hit in 2020, everything moved online, opportunities shifted, and I learned to adapt quickly.
I went to work and sharpened my skills, I built businesses and startups, some failed, and some taught me how to win, and I grew through both. I travel often, for work and for curiosity, and those miles broadened my perspective and deepened my relationships. In 2021, I started Nine27, serving small businesses first, then learning the language of government contracting, and securing public-sector contracts that strengthened my operations, outreach, and communications. I wrote books, refined my daily habits, and continued to invest in my craft and character.
In 2024, I embraced the principle of masagi: stay ready so you do not have to get ready. Masagi became a lifestyle and a pledge to take on a hard challenge every year, to become wiser and stronger through disciplined effort, where iron sharpens iron, and growth is the goal. Guided by that mindset, I joined the Long Beach Running Club, trained consistently, and got into the best shape of my life. I ran a half-marathon in 2024, I completed a triathlon in 2025, and in July 2025, I earned my Private Pilot License, one of the hardest and most meaningful challenges I have taken on.
Brotherhood made California feel like home. My fraternity brothers, my running community, and my aviation family anchored me, challenged me, supported me, and helped me show up as my best self. In 2025, I continued serving my community and became the Director of Communications for Alpha Phi Alpha Fraternity, Inc., Western Region.