Opening General Session with Keynote Speaker

John H. Jackson, EdD, JD
President and CEO, The Schott Foundation

Dr. John H. Jackson became the president and chief executive officer of the Schott Foundation for Public Education in 2007. In this role he leads the Foundation’s efforts to ensure high quality public education for all students regardless of race or gender. Dr. Jackson joined the Schott Foundation after seven productive years in leadership positions at the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP). He served as the NAACP chief policy officer and prior to that as the NAACP's national director of education.

Dr. Jackson also served as an adjunct professor of race, gender, and public policy at the Georgetown Public Policy Institute. In 1999 President Bill Clinton appointed Dr. Jackson to serve in his administration as senior policy advisor in the Office for Civil Rights in the U.S. Department of Education. Dr. Jackson served on the transition team of Barack Obama and Joe Biden as a member of the president’s Education Policy Transition Work Group.

Dr. Jackson possesses a bachelor of arts in political science from Xavier University of Louisiana, a master of education in education policy from the University of Illinois, and a juris doctorate from the University of Illinois. In addition, he received a master of education and doctorate of education in administration, planning, and social policy from the Harvard Graduate School of Education.