Leadership is a topic that Dr. Tina Jackson, Collin College district director of developmental education, takes very seriously. Years ago, when she was teaching education courses at Minneapolis Community and Technical College (MCTC) she was plagued with a problem.
“Eighty percent of the students I served needed to take at least one developmental education class,” Jackson said. “Many were students of color and in poverty. Some had to take three or four developmental education courses before getting to regular college classes.”
After years of working on the issue, Jackson has a solution for the problem, and in her quest to help others she gained valuable experience as a leader in higher education. Recently, that leadership afforded her the chance to refine her skills at a national institute.
Jackson was one of only 20 individuals across the country selected for the American Association of Blacks in Higher Education (AABHE) Leadership and Mentoring Institute. The mentorship program provides training and skill-building for African American educators to prepare them for executive-level leadership positions in higher education. The institute facilitates discussions among its participants and university presidents and chancellors to develop a leadership mindset. Jackson was nominated for the executive leadership institute by Dr. Mary McRae, vice president/provost of the Wylie Campus, and Dr. Donald Weasenforth, vice president/provost of the Frisco Campus.
“This experience was life-changing,” Jackson said. “I think differently now. This was looking at leadership through the eyes of leaders. The people who walk that walk shared lessons they learned.”
Jackson had the opportunity to work with individuals from the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools Commission on Colleges (SACSCOC) and the Texas Higher Education Coordinating Board.
“I spoke with presidents and chancellors,” Jackson said. “We discussed building relationships, understanding different cultures and dealing with conflict, topics you cannot truly fully comprehend through textbooks.”
In 2008, Jackson was one of 60 individuals in the world selected to attend a leadership conference at Harvard. She said she learned a great deal from that experience, but this institute took leadership lessons to a new level.
“Harvard opened my eyes that I have something to give,” Jackson said. “This professional development showed me that I could be a leader in higher education. We completed exercises which drew out our strengths and weaknesses. We discussed challenges and real-life situations, and we worked through them. I am building the right relationships to influence positive change at the college and sharing resources that will impact larger populations of students.”
The leadership institute served as a capstone experience, allowing Jackson the opportunity to communicate with national leaders that are changing the educational landscape. Meanwhile, Jackson’s personal story has come full circle. Before working at Collin College, she researched STEM, workforce development and how to fast track community college students to the careers of their choice. Jackson worked as the statewide coordinator of Community College Programs at the University of Texas at Austin and helped redesign developmental math throughout all 50 community colleges in the state of Texas.
Today, at Collin College she is helping institute corequisite developmental education classes which allow students to take a developmental education math or English class along with a college-level math and English class. This new course design is helping students to move out of developmental education classes in one semester.
“Now students have another path they can take,” she said. “Instead of taking three courses, they can take two courses in one semester and be ready for whatever path they choose. I am grateful to be a part of the solution,” she said.
But Jackson’s journey doesn’t end there. She wants to help create additional leaders throughout the United States by disseminating the knowledge she gained from her recent leadership experience.
“I am working with a colleague from Cornell University to facilitate a national webinar in October to share what we learned. We will follow that up with a webinar series. We want to share what we learned.”
For more information about the webinar, email Tmjackson@collin.edu.