Dr. Fields' career has moved through school leadership, district human resources, the superintendency, university teaching, writing, design, and the creation of learning experiences.
Explore the work
Since July 1, 2025, Dr. Fields has led the Ferguson-Florissant School District in North St. Louis County, the community where he attended preschool and completed his student teaching. The role carries responsibility for the district's finances, staffing, facilities, academics, safety, and relationship with the public it serves.
Since July 1, 2025, Dr. Fields has led the Ferguson-Florissant School District in North St. Louis County, the community where he attended preschool and completed his student teaching.
The first-year report →
The 2025–2026 school year asked the district to face real challenges at once: financial, operational, staffing, facilities, academic, safety, culture, and community trust. The year that followed was less about announcements than about steadier ground. That work was shared by the Board of Education, district administration, staff, students, families, and community.
The 2025–2026 school year asked the district to face financial, operational, staffing, facilities, academic, safety, culture, and community-trust challenges at once. The year that followed was work shared by the Board of Education, administration, staff, students, families, and community.
Unrestricted fund balance, from the prior projection to the end-of-year projection.
Unrestricted fund balance, prior projection to end-of-year projection.
From a projected deficit to a projected surplus, the district's largest since 2018 and second largest in 15 years.
Projected deficit to projected surplus, the largest since 2018.
Voters approved an operating levy ballot measure, the district's first in over a decade.
An operating levy ballot measure, the district's first in over a decade.
The first year was not presented as a finish line. It was a reset: a move toward greater stability, alignment, honesty, and readiness for the work ahead.
Read the full account →Dr. Fields' work has moved from individual schools to districtwide systems. Each chapter reflects a different scale of responsibility, and a consistent attention to people, access, institutional clarity, and the conditions that allow students and educators to thrive.
Each chapter reflects a different scale of responsibility, and a consistent attention to people, access, institutional clarity, and the conditions that allow students and educators to thrive.
A first year focused on fiscal stabilization, stronger systems and oversight, more transparent governance, candid community engagement, Proposition S, elevated student voice, and honest planning for what remains.
Fiscal stabilization, stronger systems, transparent governance, Proposition S, student voice, and honest planning for what remains.
Staff retention credited as the district's strongest in recent years, labor agreements shaped around sustainability and workplace equity, the district's first certified-staff collective-bargaining agreement, and a 40-day paid parental-leave policy.
Strong staff retention, the district's first certified-staff CBA, and a 40-day paid parental-leave policy.
The school stayed open, paired trauma-informed support with academic focus, and saw its state report-card score rise from 14 to 42 of 70 points after his first year.
The school stayed open; its state report-card score rose from 14 to 42 of 70 points after his first year.
Students gained computer science, foreign language, drama, and art and design, taught by existing certified staff, alongside a rethought gifted-assessment process and community-taught Passion Days.
Computer science, foreign language, drama, and art and design, taught by existing certified staff.
“This was not a ‘sit-and-get’ experience. Dr. Fields didn't simply talk at us. He modeled the expectations and engaged in the process with us. Everything was aligned. And for that reason, the entire retreat was made meaningful and extraordinarily memorable.”
Anonymous participant
2026 facilitated leadership retreat
An interactive leadership simulation built around the roles, incentives, relationships, and difficult choices that shape educational systems. It includes 24 roles and more than 25 scenarios, designed to make the usually invisible dynamics of a district discussable.
An interactive leadership simulation built around the roles, incentives, relationships, and difficult choices that shape educational systems. It includes 24 roles and more than 25 scenarios.
Learn more about The Game of Education →“A game changer for how leaders can do professional learning together.”
Zaretta Hammond, educator and author
His 2017 dissertation used a feature-length documentary to center families affected by Missouri's student-transfer program, and it earned an international Innovative ETD Award. The research later informed Transfers & Open Enrollment. His first book, How to Achieve Educational Equity, turns a broad commitment into questions and actions leaders can use.
Questions and actions leaders can use. Audiobook narrated by the author.
Questions and actions leaders can use.
The Denigration of Black School Communities, built on the dissertation research.
The Denigration of Black School Communities.
Feature-length documentary; 2017 NDLTD Innovative ETD Award.
2017 NDLTD Innovative ETD Award.
Conversations and coverage with Education Week · St. Louis Post-Dispatch · Associated Press · St. Louis Public Radio · St. Louis American · NAESP · Teaching Channel · Corwin · SchoolCEO · Saint Louis University · UMSL · Kauffman Foundation · Missouri NEA
Education Week · St. Louis Post-Dispatch · Associated Press · St. Louis Public Radio · St. Louis American · NAESP · Teaching Channel · Corwin · SchoolCEO · SLU · UMSL · Kauffman Foundation · Missouri NEA
Each entry in the archive names the piece, outlet, date, and format. No logo walls, no unverified claims.
Explore the media archive →Dr. Fields grew up in North St. Louis County, began his career as a student teacher in Ferguson-Florissant, led the elementary school he once attended, and returned in 2025 to lead the district itself. Along the way he earned four degrees from UMSL, taught at the university level, and wrote books that grew out of his research.
There is also a creative dimension: years of work in visual communication, branding, writing, video, and web design that continue to shape how he approaches leadership: not only as a set of decisions, but as the deliberate design of environments, messages, and experiences.
Dr. Fields grew up in North St. Louis County, began his career as a student teacher in Ferguson-Florissant, led the elementary school he once attended, and returned in 2025 to lead the district itself.
There is also a creative dimension: years of work in visual communication, branding, writing, video, and web design that continue to shape how he approaches leadership as the deliberate design of environments, messages, and experiences.
Read the story →Dr. Fields participates in conversations about public education, leadership, educational equity, organizational systems, and the design of meaningful learning experiences.