DPP, a nonprofit public/private organization, leads Delawares efforts to attract, grow and retain businesses; build a stronger entrepreneurial and innovation ecosystem; and support employers in place-marketing Delaware to potential employees. In collaboration with statewide economic development partners, the DPP team works with site selectors, executives and developers focused on where to locate or grow a business and helps with reviewing potential sites, cost-of-living analyses and funding opportunities, including available tax credits and incentives. DPP advances a culture of innovation in Delaware, working to connect innovators and startups with resources and showcase their successes. DPP and its partners support and advance the missions of companies of all sizes and sectors.
At DPP, Lewis leads marketing strategy and brand initiatives and works to align advertising and communications campaigns with the organizations business development, innovation support and existing business engagement initiatives. He also helps build mutually beneficial relationships with key stakeholders, including DPPs Board of Directors, investors and partner organizations.
Lewis, a graduate of Duquesne University, most recently was self-employed, collaborating with firms such as Landesberg Design in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania; Community Marketing Concepts in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania; and Aloysius Butler & Clark in Wilmington, Delaware. He previously was employed by Beach Advertising in Philadelphia and Acrobatique Creative and Mullen Advertising in Pittsburgh.
Lewis also was executive director of the Jazz Bridge Project Inc. in Philadelphia; director of advertising and marketing for the Pittsburgh International Jazz Festival and the Highmark Blues & Heritage Festival; and founder of the Black Bottom Film Festival at Pittsburghs August Wilson African American Cultural Center. His other nonprofit work has been with the YMCA of Philadelphia; Walt Whitman Cultural Arts Center in Camden, New Jersey; the Pittsburgh Cultural Trust; and Pittsburghs Kelly Strayhorn Theater.
In addition to covering politics and courts for The Philadelphia Tribune and serving on the staff of HealthQuest: the Publication of Black Wellness, his media experience includes co-creator and executive producer of The Adventures of Teddy P. Brains: Journey into the Rainforest and producer of Science Mission 101 both of which are award-winning childrens programming. Lewis also worked on documentary projects that aired on PBS, NBC, Bravo and A&E, including the four-part Images & Realities: African American Children series; Biography episodes on Ella Fitzgerald, Rosemary Clooney and Dizzy Gillespie; and a film that provides the historic context of the NAACP.
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