D Simmons Jendayi is a lifelong Prince lover and an award-winning organizational development strategist dedicated to using the power of social justice to build equitable and healthy communities and opportunities. As Chief of Staff at NYU Liberal Studies, she advances culture-changing schoolwide priorities on behalf of the Dean. She has shaped her higher education career to focus on helping minoritized staff, students, faculty, and alumni thrive — especially those at predominantly white institutions that were not intended for them. She was recognized with NYU’s Distinguished Administrator Award in 2021. Simmons Jendayi earned an MA in Higher Education and Student Affairs with a focus on international social justice from NYU and a BA in Organizational Communication with a focus on Comparative Studies in Race and Ethnicity from Stanford University.

One of her biggest blessings is immersing with fellow music lovers, scholars, and community who experience Prince as a lifeblood. She has always been mesmerized by the way Prince’s life and music help under-resourced and marginalized people build community and reclaim their inborn worth. Simmons Jendayi moderated a panel during the 2021 #1plus1plus1is3 Symposium for 40 years of Controversy, 30 years of Diamonds & Pearls, and 20 years of The Rainbow Children Prince albums and has been soaking up the purple goodness that flows during the weekly What Did Prince Do This Week? book club.

Based in Brooklyn, Simmons Jendayi comes from a military family and has lived, studied, or traveled to nearly 40 countries, always with a focus on the global Black Diaspora and discovering fellow Prince lovers. You’re equally likely to see her sharing love for Prince whether at home, work, church, school, a board meeting, or in the community.