About Us
We Believe...
Every boy and young man of color deserves to grow up in systems intentionally designed for his success.
Too often, schools, communities, behavioral health systems, public policy, and youth-serving organizations operate in isolation. The result is fragmented support, inconsistent opportunity, and unequal outcomes. The Sims-Fayola Foundation exists to change that.
Rather than addressing one challenge at a time, we strengthen the systems that shape young people's daily experiences so belonging, opportunity, and long-term success become predictable rather than exceptional.
Our Mission
We design systems of belonging that improve outcomes for boys and young men of color.
Our Vision
By 2030, the Sims-Fayola Foundation will be a leading systems influence organization that helps communities, institutions, and policymakers create conditions where belonging, opportunity, and well-being become more predictable for boys and young men of color.
Our Guiding Framework
Everything we do is grounded in the Sims Framework, a systems design approach developed
by Founder & CEO Dr. Dedrick J. Sims.
The Framework recognizes that belonging is created through the interaction of five elements:
Belief: What people believe about young people influences every decision that follows.
Structure: Organizations must intentionally design systems that support belonging.
Practice: Daily actions either reinforce or undermine opportunity.
Alignment: Policies, people, and practices must reinforce one another.
Predictability: Young people should consistently experience environments where they know they belong and can succeed.
What Makes Us Different
Many organizations deliver programs. We design systems.
Our direct-service initiatives are intentionally designed as demonstration models that generate practical evidence about what works. We use that evidence to strengthen public policy, leadership development, cross-sector collaboration, and organizational practice.
This continuous cycle of implementation, learning, and systems improvement allows our impact to extend far beyond the young people we directly serve.
Grounded in our Vision 2030 strategy, this integrated model enables us to design conditions where boys and young men of color can thrive, while simultaneously supporting the evolution of the systems around them. Our work is not only about changing individual trajectories. It is about building systems of belonging that make success predictable, not exceptional.
Our Why
The Foundation exists to help communities build stronger systems rather than simply stronger programs. While we continue operating demonstration initiatives that directly serve boys and young men of color, direct service is no longer our primary identity. Instead, our implementation work generates practical evidence that informs leadership development, public policy, research, ecosystem coordination, and organizational practice.
Our goal is to strengthen the conditions in which young people learn, grow, and lead so that belonging, opportunity, and long-term success become predictable outcomes rather than exceptional experiences.
Our Design Principles
Every decision within Vision 2030 is guided by six organizational design principles:
Systems Before Programs:
Long-term improvement requires stronger systems, not simply additional services.
Belonging by Design:
Belonging should be intentionally created through organizational design rather than left to chance.
Implementation Drives Learning:
Direct implementation generates practical knowledge that strengthens policy, leadership, and institutional practice.
Leadership Multiplies Impact:
Developing leaders expands influence far beyond the work of any single organization.
Collaboration Creates Scale:
Complex challenges require coordinated action across sectors rather than isolated organizational efforts.
Institutions Must Endure:
Sustainable change requires organizations capable of learning, adapting, and creating impact across generations.
Vision 2030 connects implementation, learning, leadership, and policy into a continuous cycle of systems improvement.
Building Systems
Belonging for Boys and Young Men of Color
