POPMENTALITY
Dr. Ryan Sykes is a nationally recognized public school educator from Chesapeake, Virginia. He is currently the Assistant Principal at L.C. Bird High School for Chesterfield Public School.
He started his career in 2011 in Chesapeake Public Schools as a 6th grade Special Education Math Teacher. In 2017, he got his first Assistant Principal position at Carter G. Woodson Middle School in Hopewell, VA where he won the Milken Educator Award in 2019 for the Commonwealth of Virginia. He went on to gain administrative experience at the elementary level as assistant principal at Patrick Copeland Elementary School in Hopewell and Principal of Pleasants Lane Elementary School in Petersburg, Virginia from 2020 - 2022.. Dr. Sykes earned a bachelor’s in Interdisciplinary Studies in 2011 and a Master’s in Education Administration & Supervision in 2014 from Virginia State University (VSU). He completed his doctoral degree in Education Administration Supervision with a concentration in Special Education at VSU in May of 2024. He is the Chief Operating Officer (COO) for Building Our Youth LLC, Mentoring and Therapeutic Day Treatment (TDT) healthcare provider serving Central Virginia since 2019. In August 2024, he founded POPScholar INC., a nonprofit organization dedicated to rewarding high school seniors that has experienced homelessness that intends to pursue a career in teaching.