JASMINE JACKSON

Growing up in a low-income neighborhood, I learned very quickly the importance of education as a key lever of change for upward economic mobility.

Jasmine has a decade of experience in the Indianapolis education space. She enjoys lecturing at IU Indianapolis where she teaches Introduction to Public Affairs, and in her spare time, participates in community service and activities with her local church. Prior to RISE INDY, Jasmine served in the Mayor's Office of Education Innovation (OEI) where she helped oversee performance and revised governance accountability for over 30 public charter schools with 40+ locations across Indianapolis. She also served as a contributor and project lead for the Mayor's Working Group on Poverty and Education. During this project, Jasmine helped bring together Superintendents, business leaders, and nonprofit leaders to develop a strategy to improve student outcomes by standing in the gap for food and housing insecurity, crime, and lack of access to education resources. This project resulted in the City's investment in City Connects to provide resources for students in school and alleviate barriers to learning. Jasmine's work in education started during her graduate school internship at Masaka Primary School in Uganda. During her studies, Jasmine facilitated the implementation of programs to bolster student learning and teacher pay. 

Jasmine has served at RISE INDY since 2019 and enjoys the ability to support the organization's mission through policy, programs, and political efforts so students can achieve their dreams. During her early years at RISE INDY, Jasmine worked to establish several coalitions, namely, the RISE Advisory Council of community leaders to advise our work, the School Leaders Circle to connect with education executives across our city, and the Policymakers Hub to drive student impact at the local and state levels of government. She's led the support of several successful policy initiatives, including state-funded resources for literacy credentials for educators, minority teaching scholarships to increase Black and Hispanic educator representation, and equitable funding for students. In her current role, Jasmine supports strategic vision, direction and planning for the organization. She also works across departments to align our work while leading strategy and communications. Jasmine serves on local education boards and enjoys cooking new vegan recipes.