Dr. Dedrick Sims is currently serving as the Chief Executive Officer of the Sims-Fayola Foundation. The Sims-Fayola Foundation’s mission is to improve the life outcomes of young men and boys of color and the capacity of youth professionals who partner with them.
Dr. Sims’ career in education began in a high school classroom 24 years ago as a substitute and has since served in roles as a High School Biology and Chemistry Teacher, Secondary Curriculum Administrator, Master Lead Teacher, Technology Coordinator, Alternative School Teacher, Dean of Students, Assistant Principal and Principal of both traditional and charter public schools (Co-Ed and Single Gender), and school Founder.
As an education and civic leader, Dr. Sims has engaged in selective and respected professional development like Leadership Denver, University of Kentucky’s Superintendent Program, KIPP Principal Leadership Program, New Leaders for New Schools Principal program, Gulf Coast Business Leadership Council, as a TeachNOLA’s Master Teacher Corps Selector, Harvard’s Project Zero, SUPES Superintendent Academy in Hartford Connecticut, Denver’s Get Smart Schools Leadership Fellowship Program, and Colorado’s Leadership Exchange with Nashville’s top leadership with the Metro Denver Chamber of Commerce’s Leadership Foundation.
Dr. Sims’ commitment to education extends outside the classroom and his non-profit work. As a published author of three books and numerous professional articles, Dr. Sims uses his experience to build the capacity of others to serve students with informed excellence. As the Sims-Fayola Foundation CEO, Dr. Sims provides professional training to educators around the country in single-gender learning, working with young men and boys of color, and school and program design through an equity lens. Through the Sims-Fayola Foundation, Dr. Sims’s work has impacted over 12,000 young men and boys of color and provided workshops and coaching to over 5,500 professionals who work with young men and boys of color. Dr. Sims has also been the lead designer and founding member of three charter schools in Arkansas, Colorado, and Louisiana.
Dr. Sims’ community involvement includes having served as a gubernatorial appointee member of Colorado’s Workforce Development Commission, Serve Commission, and Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention Council. Additionally, Dr. Sims has served as a Youth Commissioner for the city of Aurora and currently serves as a Youth Commissioner for the city of Denver. Other community involvement has included being a past member of the Denver African American Philanthropists, President of the Board for Hill Harper’s Manifest Your Destiny Foundation, past Board President of the Young Philanthropists Foundation, a past Senior Education Advisor to Mississippi State Representative, a past board member for the Bridge Project, a past board member for the Don Burns Center for Homelessness and Poverty at the University of Denver, current advisory member for Mentor Colorado, current board vice-president of the Foundation for Science and Mathematics Education in New Orleans, and past board member of Wyatt Elementary school in Denver, CO.
Dr. Sims was selected by Black Enterprise Magazine as one of the national 100 Modern BE Men of 2018, Sisters Enterprise “Random Acts of Kindness” 2020 honoree, and one of the African Americans Who Make A Difference for 2021. Dr. Sims has served his country as an officer in the United States Army and is a Kappa Alpha Psi Fraternity member, Inc. Black Enterprise Magazine, My Black City Colorado Springs, Go Solo, The Denver Urban Spectrum, GlobalMindED, Blended Magazine, Voyage Denver, Canvas Rebel, Shout Out Colorado, and Spark the Change have highlighted Dr. Sims’s work and personal story. Dr. Sims is an avid golfer and loves to read, travel, and do karaoke!
Finally, Dr. Sims earned his B.S. in Biology from the University of Arkansas Pine Bluff, his M.S. in Secondary Science Education, M.S. in Instructional Design and Development, and his Ph.D. in Instructional Design and Development from the University of South Alabama. Dr. Sims has also served his country as an officer in the United States Army and is a member of Kappa Alpha Psi Fraternity, Inc.