Dale graduated from John F. Kennedy High School in 1970 and holds BFA (1975) and MFA (1995) degrees from Ohio University.

[11] Shields studied Acting at The Negro Ensemble Company and The Henry Street Settlement House with Harold Scott (director) and Dick Anthony Williams in New York City.

His TV acting credits include The Cosby Show, Another World, Guiding Light, Saturday Night Live, and the ITV television series Special Needs.

[12] In 2001, Shields directed and choreographed a production of the Ntozake Shange play For Colored Girls Who Have Considered Suicide / When the Rainbow Is Enuf which featured the young Danai Gurira, then a senior at Macalester College.

[12] For theatrical director/producer Joseph Papp, he conducted workshops at The Public Theatre (New York Shakespeare Festival) with the Playwriting in the Schools Program (PITS) for six seasons.

The award recognizes a K-12 theatre educator "who has demonstrated monumental impact on the lives of students and who embodies the highest standards of the profession.