Jennifer Stimpson
T.D. Jakes Foundation Chief Program Officer
Feb. 11 marks International Women and Girls in Science Day each year. Jennifer Stimpson, chief program officer for the T.D. Jakes Foundation, is one of the people we can thank for it.
She co-authored the resolution declaring the holiday during her 2020-2021 term as an Albert Einstein Distinguished Educator Fellow in Capitol Hill.
“As a fellow, my role was to influence federal policy that’s centered around STEM (science, technology, engineering, mathematics) education,” Stimpson said. “The experiences, though limited [due to COVID-19], provided me with insight on the importance of having educator voices in federal spaces.”
STEM has always been one of her passions. She worked as a science educator at Dallas ISD for 11 years and The Hockaday School for 12 years before starting her gig at T.D. Jakes.
She says some assets she brought to the classroom were providing career-driven lessons and showing students how science influences their day-to-day lives, such as through technology, using colors, and getting up in the morning.
Stimpson is also an IF/THEN Ambassador, an initiative to further women in STEM by empowering current innovators and inspiring the next generation of pioneers. An orange, life-sized, 3D-printed can be found of her at Pegasus Park, along with a plaque about her work.
“As an IF/THEN Ambassador, I immediately saw my goal, not just as a science teacher to so many students but as a role model to inspire students to consider what science means to them and how to see themselves in the field of science,” Stimpson said.
In her new role at T.D. Jakes, which started in August 2022, she oversees the programmatic output for the foundation’s entities.
“I am focused on two initiatives, and that is workforce development and STEAM (A added to STEM for art), and that is to help young students become exposed to the wonders and possibilities of science through different activities,” Stimpson said.
She continues to use her expertise to empower the next generation of women in STEM.
“What I recognize is that I’m always going to be a role model for girls who look like me and look up to me because when they can see themselves in you, then they see the possibilities of what can be because so many kids need that,” Stimpson said.
Her advice for women or girls in STEM: “The first thing I would encourage you to do is to find a mentor, find someone you can talk to about your interest. … I would [also] say find which field of science interests you the most, and find your way to that interest and participate in opportunities that expand your active practice in that field.”
