CONNECT . MOTIVATE . INSPIRE .
JACKSON ray
DR. RUTH
BY ERICKA BLOUNT DANOIS
A s the daughter of educators, Dr. Ruth Ray Jackson didn’t know she’d follow suit and exceed all the dreams her parents had for her and that she had for herself. Born in Houston, Texas, her father was an elementary school teacher before becoming a professor at Texas Southern University. Her mother taught high school English for 44 years. After her father passed when she was a young child, her mother moved her and her brother to be near family in South Louisiana – a small town called Jennings, Louisiana, halfway between Houston and New Orleans. Jackson graduated early from high school and went to Southern University. By the time she was 20 years old, she was teaching high school English.
that prepared me – they said whatever you lacked in chronological age to make it up in structure.” One of her mentors encouraged her to complete her master’s degree sooner than later. She ended up working on her master’s degree part-time as a first-year teacher. She continued to work in a variety of positions in education early in her career – including as a department chair of the English department. When an administrator took a sick leave, her principal asked her to step into the role. After just four years of teaching she became an assistant principal – her foray into administration. “I was given the advice, ‘always be ready when the opportunity comes,’” Jackson recalls.
graduate school to pursue her Ph.D.
“He had the wisdom and foresight to see down the road, while I am enjoying the position now, maybe it’s not something I will want to do during the course of a lifetime,” said Jackson who started to pursue her Ph.D. part-time. As her first marriage was ending, she made the decision to work on her Ph.D. full-time. By then she had two degrees from Southern University, was enrolled at Louisiana State University, and her professor encouraged her to leave Louisiana to pursue her Ph.D and expand her thinking. “I had a friend that was at Colorado State University that encouraged me to look at the school,” Jackson remembers. They offered me a generous fellowship graduate assistant package and so I moved to Fort Collins, Colorado.”
“I was teaching kids pretty close to my age,” Jackson remembers. “I had phenomenal professors at Southern
And a new opportunity would come. Her mentor urged her to go back to
Her Ph.D. program allowed for a customized approach. She focused
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