Keynote Speaker – Phillip Jackson is the Founder and Executive Director of The Black Star Project: the only organization of its kind that specifically works towards the elimination of the racial academic achievement gap. His diverse career includes serving as:

• President & CEO, Boys & Girls Club
• Deputy Chief of Staff, Chicago Public Schools
• Director of Intergovernmental Affairs, Chicago Public Schools
• Chief of Staff, Chicago Public Schools
• Chief Executive Officer, Chicago Housing Authority
• Chief of Education, City of Chicago.

Amongst Mr. Jackson’s many professional awards, he recently received Alpha Kappa Alpha‘s 2005 “Monarch Man of the Year Award” and the Illinois Fatherhood Initiative’s 2004 “Father of the Year” award. Mr. Jackson’s numerous civic and volunteer roles include having served on the Board of Directors of the American Red Cross and as President of The Gap Community Organization. In 1991 he organized People to Feed Somalia – the largest grassroots relief effort & response to the famine.

Mr. Jackson has appeared on Fox, NBC, CBS, Channel 26/WCIU Chicago, and Chicago’s Channel 11 Television, and has spoken on National Public Radio. Recent speaking engagements include: the Congressional Black Caucus, University of Chicago, and Loyola Chicago University’s Law School. Mr. Jackson got his BA from Roosevelt University in 1974.

During his five-year tenure at Chicago Public Schools, Jackson helped CPS achieve the highest number of contracts in history with businesses owned by Blacks, Latinos and Women. As the director of intergovernmental affairs, Jackson he managed a team that secured millions of dollars in grant funds for new construction and renovation projects, as well as innovative educational initiatives. During this tenure, Phillip became acutely aware of the racial academic achievement gap, and eventually decided to enter the non-profit sector in order to address this problem. In 1996 he founded The Black Star Project to address this issue.