[2] She has discussed how a lack of resources and knowledge about how best to educate Deaf children contributed to her initial enrollment at an oral school.
[2] Simms attended the University of Nebraska, Lincoln for her Bachelor of Science in Elementary Education, graduating in 1986.
In 2000, she earned her Doctor of Philosophy in Language, Reading and Culture with a minor in Teaching and Teacher Education from the University of Arizona.
[1] Simms also co-authored the "Visual Communication & Sign Language Checklist",[5] a standardized system for tracking ASL benchmarks from birth to age 5.
She is on the leadership board of Deaf Women of Color, an organization she founded in 2005 with Leticia Arellano, Thuan Nguyen-Lakrik, and Francisca Rangel,[7] which provides educational and professional development opportunities for Deaf women of color, including annual conferences.
They created an online community called "Overlooked Gems" on their website and Facebook page, where Deaf women of color can share their experiences and promote their businesses.
[14] Simms directed and produced the film, featuring the life experiences of a number of activists and Deaf people of color (Victoria Monroe, Dr. Paddy Ladd, Dr. Kimberlé Crenshaw, Erica Hossler, Chad Wolfe, David Hamilton, Aurora Frias, Nha Kim).
Anecdotes from participants include the effect of disproportionate representation in the school resulting in exclusion, discrimination around hair and food, and the implicit pressure placed on students of color to compensate for an imperfect education system.