Chicago Children’s Advocacy Center (ChicagoCAC) is delighted to announce that former Chicago Public Schools CEO Dr. Janice Jackson was elected to our Board of Directors on September 28, 2021. This announcement comes as Jackson has also accepted a new role as CEO of HOPE Chicago, a new education-focused nonprofit seeking to “raise, invest and deploy” over $1 billion in scholarships and aid for local students and their families over the next decade.
ChicagoCAC began working with Dr. Jackson in 2018, when the organization was asked to create a training curriculum for all staff entitled Protecting Chicago’s Children. ChicagoCAC also partnered with CPS’s Office of Student Protections and Title IX in assisting with ongoing training curriculum regarding child sexual abuse, and consulting on policies and procedures.
“Dr. Jackson is credited for creating the Office of Student Protections and investing in a strong partnership with ChicagoCAC in their start-up phase,” said Rivette. “When she announced her resignation, I reached out to her to see if she would be willing to join our board, thinking that her expertise at CPS and her role as a community leader would be a great fit, and I was thrilled when she said yes.”
During her time at CPS, Dr. Jackson was known for her focus on equity and her ability to guide the district through the unprecedented COVID-19 pandemic. A lifelong Chicagoan, she attended CPS schools from Head Start Preschool through high school and was both an educator and principal in the district before becoming CEO in 2017.
“The well-being and future success of Chicago’s children has been my focus for over two decades,” said Jackson. “I’m excited to be joining a dynamic, essential agency that has served our city’s most vulnerable children for the past 20 years, and I look forward to working with my fellow ChicagoCAC board members to help grow and advance the organization in the years to come.”