Jennifer Stimpson, Ed.D., Joins T.D. Jakes Foundation as Chief Programs Officer

Nationally recognized science educator, innovator, entrepreneur, and community leader will accelerate Foundation's STEAM programming and workforce solutions to bridge racial, gender and socio-economic opportunity gaps for underrepresented populations

DALLAS, Sept. 6, 2022 /PRNewswire/ -- T.D. Jakes Foundation, a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization dedicated to building bridges to opportunity for underserved populations around the world, today announced the appointment of Jennifer Stimpson, Ed.D., as its Chief Programs Officer. Reporting to the President and CEO Hattie Hill and serving as a member of the senior leadership team, Stimpson will play a key role in developing and implementing T. D. Jakes Foundation's mission-focused programs in STEAM (science, technology, engineering, arts, mathematics) education and training, workforce development and community building.

Stimpson is a content expert who consults with community, civic and federal organizations, including the National Science Foundation, the Department of Justice, and Girl Scouts of Northeast Texas, to design educational programs that expand STEAM education opportunities for all students. She is the founder of JSTEMP Science and has produced science-themed camps for students for 20 years. In 2020, Stimpson was a fellow with the U.S. Congress as an Albert Einstein Distinguished Educator, helping craft STEM education legislation, co-authoring the first Women and Girls in STEM Resolution for Congress, and launching the HBCU Podcast to honor the voices and experiences of Blacks in the federal government. She is a recent graduate of the Education Policy Fellows Program, representing the state of Texas, where she worked with state education policy leaders to increase the number of STEM teachers of color. Stimpson is an American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS)/IF THEN Science Ambassador, selected to inspire the next generation of female scientists, and is featured as one of 125 women scientists presented as a collection of life-size statues in the Smithsonian Museum in Washington, D.C.

Stimpson joins T.D. Jakes Foundation after serving as a science teacher at The Hockaday School for 11 years. During her tenure there, she participated in global educational initiatives in Ghana, Brazil, and Uganda, and was awarded a grant to investigate seismic activity in the Galapagos Islands and pre-Colonial Andean and Incan mathematics in Peru.  Previously, she taught at Dallas ISD's Yvonne Ewell Townview Magnet. Before teaching, she was a forensic chemist for the Drug Enforcement Administration and a forensic toxicologist at Dallas County.

"T.D. Jakes Foundation is thrilled to have Dr. Jennifer Stimpson lend her formidable talents, expertise and energy to the role of Chief Programs Officer," said Hattie Hill, Foundation president and CEO. "With a national and international reputation as one of the leading educators and innovators, she will elevate and accelerate our mission-focused work in STEAM education, workforce development and community building to unprecedented levels. Through her leadership, we will be entering an entirely new dimension of programming for impact on the racial, gender and socioeconomic opportunity gaps affecting underserved and underrepresented populations."

Stimpson said, "Here, at T.D. Jakes Foundation, I have the opportunity to lead a global effort to reimagine STEAM education, training, and workforce development to make quantum leaps across the barriers and gaps that separate underrepresented people from life-changing opportunities. I am deeply committed to what we can do through the Foundation, which has not been done before. We can and will create and deploy new models that drive greater impact through learning, knowledge and real-world application, which enable everyone to fully participate in the global workforce and innovation economy."

Stimpson has received numerous accolades and awards for her work in science education, including The Oprah Magazine, the Michael Jordan Foundation, and the Drug Enforcement Administration. She received the inaugural Hidden Figures in STEM Dallas award from the National Society of Black Engineers and was a finalist for the People's Choice Award by Ebony Magazine. Stimpson is also a recipient of Texas Women's Foundation's Maura Women Helping Women Award.

Stimpson is a member of the Association of Women in Science; Delta Sigma Theta Sorority, Inc.; The Links Incorporated; Leadership Women; the National Science Education Leadership Association; National Girls Collaborative; and The Dallas Summit. She serves on the board of directors at Montessori Children's House and School and the STEM advisory board for Girl Scouts of Northeast Texas. In Spring 2021, Stimpson founded the National Association of Black Science Teachers.

A native of Dallas, Texas, Stimpson earned a Bachelor of Science in Chemistry at Dillard University, a Master of Arts in Environmental Chemistry at the University of Northern Iowa, and a Doctorate in Education from the University of Pennsylvania.

Founded by Chairman T.D. Jakes in 2020, the T.D. Jakes Foundation (TDJF) is a nonprofit 501(c)(3) organization dedicated to building bridges to opportunity for underserved populations in the United States and around the world. The Foundation aims to create a generational legacy of success for those it serves by providing access to the skills and resources needed for success in the modern workplace and forging partnerships with private companies, nonprofits, and public organizations to amplify the impact of every initiative. Building on Chairman Jakes' 45 years of connecting diverse communities across socio-economic divides, TDJF is focused on uplifting communities, educating people of all ages on STEAM subjects, and connecting corporations to new, highly-skilled pools of talent amid increasing global competition. For more information, visit: www.tdjfoundation.org. 

Contact         
Jill Goldsberry
JConnelly 
201-898-0142
[email protected]

SOURCE T.D. Jakes Foundation