Dr. Derrick E. Felton Named On Black Impact Magazine's 26 Of 2026 Men Of Impact List

Dr. Derrick E. Felton is a social worker, educator, and U.S. Army Veteran with over three decades of combined experience in military service, behavioral health, higher education, and community leadership. He currently serves as a Veteran Liaison Social Worker with Alameda Care Hospice, where he provides psychosocial assessments, counseling, and support to veterans and their families, while also strengthening partnerships between hospice care and veteran-centered services. In addition, he works as a Medical Social Worker II with Sutter Health, delivering biopsychosocial assessments, crisis intervention, and care coordination across diverse patient populations.

Dr. Felton is deeply committed to education and mentorship. He serves as an Adjunct Lecturer in the Department of Social Work at California State University, East Bay, and teaches Psychology at De Anza College, where he also provides mental health counseling services to students through the Mental Health & Wellness Center. His teaching emphasizes real-world application, emotional intelligence, and social responsibility. He earned his Doctorate in Social Work from the University of Southern California, where he was inducted into the Phi Alpha Honor Society, and holds a Master of Social Work from the University of Pennsylvania. He also holds dual master’s degrees in Business Administration and Public Administration from Keller Graduate School of Management, and a Bachelor of Arts in Psychology from the University of Alaska.

A dedicated advocate for equity and leadership development, Dr. Felton is a Fellow of the Father’s UpLift Fellowship, focused on increasing the number of BIPOC therapists in the mental health field, and was honored as Fellow of the Year in 2024. His professional work includes national presentations on workplace civility, bullying prevention, and cyberbullying at conferences and federal agencies.

Dr. Felton’s military service spans multiple branches, including the United States Army, Alaska Air National Guard, Alaska Army National Guard, Pennsylvania Army National Guard, and currently the California State Guard, where he continues to serve. His leadership extends into the community as Vice Chair of a National Board of Directors for Blacks In Government, and a member of the San Leandro Police Department Chief’s Advisory Board.

He is also a long-standing advocate for community engagement and mentorship, serving as a Penn Alumni Ambassador and co-founder of Black Men at Penn, an organization dedicated to supporting Black male graduate students in social work. Dr. Felton’s work is grounded in a commitment to service, leadership, and the advancement of equitable, culturally responsive care particularly for veterans and underserved communities.