Shayla Zimmerman

WORK HISTORY

EDUCATION

ABOUT SHAYLA ZIMMERMAN

Shayla (Shay) Zimmerman (she/her) is a dedicated and tenacious leader committed to co-liberation and community care. Embracing intersecting identities, she is a Disabled andneurodivergent activist. She began community organizing at 15, since focusing on buildingcommunity resilience and capacity in nonprofits and grassroots efforts.She is a first-generation graduate with a Master of Public Health from the Population and HealthSciences program at the University of Michigan and a Bachelor of Social Work from WayneState University. Additionally, she is certified in Spatial Epidemiology/Health Geography andProject Management. She is the inaugural recipient of the Emerging Social Work Leader Awardfrom the National Association of Social Workers, her contributions in flooding recovery andviolence prevention have left a lasting impact.Currently, she serves as a Program Officer at the Institute for Sustainable Communities, supportingimplementation of EPA Environmental Justice Thriving Communities grantmaking. As adedicated neighbor, she is a member of the East Side Flooding Task Force, Metro DetroitFlooding Recovery Project, and the Detroit Watershed Planning committee. She is an alumna ofBarack Obama’s National Change Collective Fellowship and the Detroit Equity and Action LabRacial Equity Fellowship. Before joining ISC, she was the Associate Director of SpecialProjects, Community Impact for United Way for Southeastern Michigan and an esteemed moderator of What’s the Word Wednesday Town Halls, hosting conversations around equity and community building.Shay is a fourth-generation Detroiter and currently calls the East Side of Detroit, home. In herfree time, she loves to travel, read non-fiction books, and walk with her dog, Izzy.