INFORM.
SUPPORT.
ADVOCATE.
EMPOWER.
PATRICIA JACKSON
PATRICIA JACKSON, BOARD MEMBER
Educational Background:
BA in English and Political Science from University of Pennsylvania
MBA from University of Southern California
Professional Background:
Currently a SAHM (stay-at-home mother)
Previously worked in university administration
Former Park Ranger at Independence National Historical Park where the Declaration of Independence and the U.S. Constitution were written, as well as at Tongass National Forest in Juneau, Alaska.
Sibling Experience:
Patricia has been strongly shaped by being a sib. As a mom, Patricia’s experience seeing the transformative effect of education on her sibling lead her to seek schools for her children that mainstreamed children with disabilities. Patricia has been an active K-12 volunteer in her children’s schools to support teachers in the difficult work of shaping an educational system that recognizes the ways we all benefit when classrooms are not “learning silos”.
Patricia’s sibling Caitie lived with Epilepsy and other coexisting conditions that were not always diagnosed. Caitie was diagnosed with cancer as an adult, which is unfortunately what it took for her to realize that there were gaps in her healthcare but which is also ultimately what ended her life. Caitie’s ability to function at a high level of autonomy paradoxically created many quality-of-life complications that were difficult to discuss and address in Caitie’s lifetime. As a mom, Patricia’s experience seeing the transformative effect of education on her sibling led her to seek schools for her children that mainstreamed children with disabilities. Patricia discovered California Sibs when struggling to come to terms with her grief over many things that in an ideal world would have been easier for Caitie.
Other Interests: I enjoy the process of quilting and making mosaics, and generally any kind of maker activities that let me take broken pieces and transform them into something different. I am a lapse marathon runner who has discovered the pleasures of leisurely cups of coffee while reading the morning newspaper or a good book. And yes, I do love to hike, I just don’t seem to get to doing it as much as I’d like!