For Release: 2008-10-21 11:48:00
Judy "JJ" Jackson, University of Kentucky vice president of institutional diversity, a new office at the university, is the next guest on Connections with Renee Shaw. The program, taped at UK's Hilary J. Boone Center, airs Friday, Nov. 7 at 4/3 p.m. CT on KET2 and Sunday, Nov. 9 at 1:30/12:30 p.m. CT on KET1.Jackson officially assumed her administrative duties at UK in July 2008. In her new role, she is responsible for promoting collaboration among UK faculty, staff, administration and students in the university's pursuit of diversity goals. Those goals, she says, go well beyond simply boosting minority enrollment. She plans to search through many different groups of people to find the best minds to do research at UK. Jackson also suggests that a campus rich in diversity will enrich the quality of life not only at UK but also throughout Lexington.
Previously, Jackson held positions at Vassar College, MIT and Cornell. She discusses her decision to leave the private sector to come to UK. She sites the university's plan to become a Top 20 public research institution as one of the key factors in her decision. Jackson talks about persuading others to "buy in" to the Top 20 vision and become a part of what could be a historic moment in higher education. She discusses diversity's role in the Top 20 plan as well.
Jackson also talks about her family background, her professional goals and how she plans to negotiate obstacles at UK.
Connections with Renee Shaw is a KET production, produced by Shaw and Carolyn Gwinn. More information about Connections, including streaming video, is available at www.ket.org/connections. More information about KET programming and education services, as well as how to support KET, can be found at www.ket.org.
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