Baltimore’s “Dr. KSAL” has built an empire spanning education, performing arts, television, radio and youth development
(BALTIMORE — July 31, 2026) — Dr. Kimberly Hawkins-Salley, the Baltimore educator, entrepreneur, media personality and business leader widely known as Dr. KSAL, will be honored at the Black Wall Street Summit 2026 on Wednesday, August 5, from 6 to 8 p.m. at the Justice Thurgood Marshall Amenity Center, 1315 Division Street in West Baltimore.
Presented by BMORENews.com, the summit will feature leadership and Black wealth forums, followed by the Joe Manns Black Wall Street Awards. Since 2011, the awards have honored Black entrepreneurs, professionals and allies for their contributions to business and community development.
RSVP: BlackWallStreetSummit26.Eventbrite.com
At the conclusion of my recent interview with Hawkins-Salley, I asked her a simple question:
“Did Baltimore ever give you your props?”
Her answer was just as direct.
“No.”
After hearing her story, I understood exactly why she felt that way—and why she deserves to be honored on August 5.
Known throughout the region as Dr. KSAL, Hawkins-Salley is an educator, media personality, executive producer, author and entrepreneur whose enterprises span education, performing arts, television, radio and digital media.
She is the founder and CEO of GLA Youth Church Inc.; God’s Little Angels Learning Center, serving children from infancy through age 5; and GLA Academy “School of Excellence,” a private Christian school serving students from kindergarten through eighth grade.
Her business portfolio also includes the GLA Performing Arts Center, the GLA Sound Stage, Triple Threat Elite Dance Academy, KSAL Studios and The KSAL Empire LLC.
She has built more than a collection of companies. She has created an ecosystem designed to educate children, discover their gifts, develop their talents and protect them from an entertainment industry that does not always have their best interests at heart.
“That’s why I do what I do,” she said.
Where Stars Are Born
Hawkins-Salley founded God’s Little Angels Learning Center in 1995. She later opened GLA Academy to provide children with a strong academic foundation while continuing to nurture their creativity.
Today, her educational programs serve children from infancy through eighth grade. Some families have remained connected to GLA across generations.
“I have graduated generations of children,” she said.
Triple Threat Elite Dance Academy has grown to approximately 300 students across two locations. Hawkins-Salley credits her daughter Jasmine, the program’s head coach, with helping develop the academy into what she describes as the top competitive dance team in the DMV.
Her other daughter directs the childcare center, while a niece she helped raise serves as secretary for the school. The KSAL Empire, in other words, is also a family enterprise.
But the mission reaches far beyond family.
Hawkins-Salley recalled taking four young performers to compete at the Apollo Theater. The children won three times and eventually joined a 12-city youth tour.
When they returned to Baltimore, the young performers asked her a question she could not ignore:
“Miss Kim, what do we do now?”
She realized Baltimore lacked enough safe, professionally managed platforms where talented children could continue performing and developing.
“If I could build and create a platform for myself, I would have a platform that was safe for them,” she explained.
That realization propelled her deeper into television, radio, production and the performing arts.
The Birth of The KSAL Show
The KSAL Show began in 2017 as a comedy and variety program built around sketches and original characters.
Among its memorable personalities were Sandy, Sister Salley, Reverend Revelations and the musical duo Hot and Spicy. Hawkins-Salley portrayed “Hot,” while comedian Big Girl appeared as “Spicy.”
Another popular character was Uncle Craig, an unpredictable personality who regularly found himself in trouble while Hawkins-Salley attempted to rescue him.
Those sketches first attracted an audience on social media. Viewers began waiting for the pair to post their next episode and asking questions whenever they missed a night.
“People were literally staying up to watch us do these skits,” Hawkins-Salley recalled. “I said, ‘I might as well make some money doing this.’”
That online momentum became the foundation for The KSAL Show, which aired on Baltimore’s ABC affiliate, WMAR-2.
The show gained greater visibility during the COVID-19 pandemic as audiences spent more time at home watching broadcast television and digital programming. Episodes continued circulating, introducing the KSAL brand to a much broader audience.
The program has now been running for nine years.
Despite that longevity, Hawkins-Salley admitted that she has rarely stopped to celebrate.
“I never get a chance to celebrate the moments,” she said. “I just keep it moving.”
Her media portfolio now includes Building Your Empire with KSAL, which has aired on 92Q JAMS/WERQ and WOL 1450 AM in Washington, D.C., as well as The KSAL Show Podcast.
Her digital following has grown substantially. Hawkins-Salley recalled the excitement at her school when YouTube sent her a Silver Creator Award recognizing 100,000 subscribers.
The children knew what the package represented before she did.
Now, with her channel continuing to grow, she has her eyes on YouTube’s Gold Creator Award for reaching one million subscribers.
Baltimore Business Is in Her Blood
Hawkins-Salley’s entrepreneurial instincts were shaped early.
She grew up around Harford Road and Montpelier Street and attended Lake Clifton High School. Her father, Leroy “Hawk” Hawkins, became a pioneering Black business owner on Greenmount Avenue, operating several businesses from two buildings.
Watching her father taught her how multiple enterprises could work together under one roof. She learned about customers, cash flow, ownership, and the independence that comes from controlling one’s own operation.
Her family also has deep ties to the church and entertainment. Hawkins-Salley said her mother was the sister of legendary gospel singer and pastor Shirley Caesar. Her uncle, Bishop Leo Caesar, led Mount Olive Freewill Baptist Church in Baltimore.
At 18, Hawkins-Salley began building something of her own.
She created a youth dance group called Nerve Gas during the era when popping and locking were taking over the culture. She designed costumes, found performance opportunities and talked her way into clubs and venues so the children could showcase their talent.
The group eventually performed during a halftime show connected to an LL Cool J event at Baltimore’s Fifth Regiment Armory.
Years before GLA Academy, Triple Threat Elite or The KSAL Show, she was already doing the same essential work: identifying young talent, organizing it and creating opportunities where none existed.
“The KSAL Way”
Hawkins-Salley’s connection to Montpelier Street has since been permanently recognized.
A portion of the 1500 block of Montpelier Street in Baltimore has been ceremonially named “The KSAL Way.”
She was also inducted into a Business Hall of Fame on February 25, 2024, in recognition of her entrepreneurial and community contributions. Hawkins-Salley describes herself as the first African American woman to receive that particular distinction.
Her academic credentials include a bachelor’s degree in business administration, a master’s degree in education, and a doctorate related to business management.
She is also the author of From the Ground to Greatest: The KSAL Story.
Yet her résumé alone does not fully explain her impact.
Dr. KSAL has built places where children can learn, dance, act, perform, and dream. When an existing platform did not provide what they needed, she created another one. When the entertainment industry did not appear safe, she built an infrastructure she could control.
She did not simply build her own empire.
She built one large enough to bring Baltimore’s children with her.
On August 5, Baltimore will give Dr. Kimberly Hawkins-Salley some of the props she has earned.
Black Wall Street Summit 2026
Wednesday, August 5, 2026
6 to 8 p.m.
Justice Thurgood Marshall Amenity Center
1315 Division Street, Baltimore, MD
The summit’s theme is:
“The Primary Is Over. What’s Your Agenda?”
RSVP today: BlackWallStreetSummit26.Eventbrite.com
