Donald C. Simmons Jr.

Donald C. Simmons, Jr. (1963- ) is an educator, author, historian and public servant. The director of the George McGovern Center for Leadership and Public Service at Dakota Wesleyan University, he has held numerous elected and appointed political postions during his career. His professional life has focused on social justice, helping create opportunities for the poor, utilizing the commitment and abilities of America's youth,and encouraging progressive change.

Biography

Simmons received a B.A.and M.A.in history from the University of Mississippi in 1985, and in 1992, a Doctor of Philosophy in History and International Studies from the University of Denver in Denver, Colorado. He has also completed additional graduate studies in education, leadership, political science and criminal justice at Mississippi University for Women, Troy State University, Millsaps College, and the University of South Dakota. His research interests have focused on the displacement of peoples as a result of military conflict and their subsequent emigration to other countries.

Simmons worked in higher education at Mississippi University for Women and Troy University from 1989 until 1995. From 1995 until 2001, he served as assistant director of the Mississippi Humanities Council, the state affiliate of the National Endowment for the Humanities, prior to his appointment as executive director of the South Dakota Humanities Council. While director of the SDHC, he established the South Dakota Center for the Book and the South Dakota Festival of the Book.In 2006 he was named the founding director of the George McGovern Center for Leadership and Public Service at Dakota Wesleyan University in Mitchell, South Dakota. He also serves as associate professor of leadership and public service, department chair and as a senior member of the graduate faculty committee at Dakota Wesleyan University.

Books and Writings

Simmons was first published as a poet while in college, although his writing career did not take off until 1995 when he partnered with Robert P. Watson of Florida Atlantic University, to edit and serve as a contributing author for Latin America and the Caribbean in Transition. During the late 1990s, Simmons wrote a regular syndicated column that appeared in the Mississippi Business Journal and other similar publications. He also served as a frequent contributor to numerous newspapers during that period. In 2000, he was recognized by the Mississippi Business Journal as one of Mississippi's Top 40 Under 40.

His second book, Confederate Settlements in British Honduras, was released in 2001. He was a contributing author for Robert P. Watson's George McGovern: A Political Life, A Political Legacy. He has served on the board of editors of White House Studies since 2005. He is currently working with Senator George McGovern and Dan Gakin, Central Michigan University, to publish a textbook on leadership and service to be released in 2008. He is also working on a book about political culture in South Dakota that will be released in 2009. An accomplished photographer, his work has appeared in Mississippi: An Illustrated History and in numerous regional magazines.

Political Career

Simmons grew up in a family with a heritage of political participation. Active in poltics at an early age, he worked on the campaign of Representative Cecil L. Simmons, his uncle and later speaker pro tempre of the Mississippi Legislature. An active member of Young Democrats, he attended the Democratic National Convention in San Francisco as a John Glenn delegate in 1984. During the 1988 presidential campaign, he worked as a Democratic Party volunteer coordinator for the voter registration drive in Colorado.

Governor Kirk Fordice appointed him to the Mississippi State Historical Records Advisory Board in 1991, a position he held for one year. While living in Alabama, he volunteered on numerous statewide campaigns and served as an advisor to a number of elected officials. In 1995, Simmons and his wife, Donna Addkison, returned to Mississippi where she served Governor Ronnie Musgrove in a number of capacities, including campaign director for both lieutenant governor and gubernatorial campaigns. Simmons served as the volunteer director of the Mississippi Young Democrats from 1998-2000. The couple seperated in 2001 and Simmons moved to South Dakota. They divorced in 2002.

After moving to South Dakota, Simmons continued his involvement in politics. He has been twice elected a member of the Egan City Council and currently serves as vice chair of the city board of trustees. He also serves on the South Dakota Municipal League's Public Works Committee. Simmons served on the Kilian Community College board of trustees from 2005-2006, and was appointed by Governor Mike Rounds to the South Dakota Board of Nursing in 2003.

Personal

A native of Mississippi, Simmons spent his childhood in Alabama and North Carolina prior to his family's return to the state just before his senior year of high school. While in college he volunteered with a number of church-based organizations and spent time in Belize as a medical missionary for Health Talents International. In 1995 he was the recipient of the Presidential Award of the Associaition of Third World Studies for his work related to the developing world. He has been active in Habitat for Humanity and the Humane Society in a number of capacities. In 2004, the South Dakota Library Association recognized him with the statewide Friend of the Library Award for his support of South Dakota libraries.

Simmons was married to Donna Addkison from 1988-2002. The couple had one child: Donald. He married Rachelle Schaap of South Dakota in 2003.

Further reading

• Bolton, Charles and Edward N. Akin, Mississippi: An Illustrated History, American Historical Press, 2002.
• McGovern, George S., The Essential America: Our Founders and the Liberal Tradition, Simon & Schuster, 2004. ISBN 0-7432-6927-6.
• McGovern, George S., The Third Freedom: Ending Hunger in Our Time, Rowman & Littlefield Publishers, 2002. ISBN 0-7425-2125-7.
• Phillips, Michael (ed.), Belize: Selected Proceedings from the Second Interdisciplinary Conference, University Press of America, 1996.
• Simmons Jr., Donald C., Confederate Settlements In British Honduras, McFarland and Company Publishers, 2001.
• Simmons Jr., Donald C. and Robert P. Watson (eds.), Latin America and the Caribbean in Transition, Troy State Univesity Press, 1995.
• Watson, Robert P. (ed.), George McGovern: A Political Life, A Political Legacy, South Dakota State Historical Society Press, 2004.