Skyler Jackson, PhD, is recognized with this APA Citizen Psychology Citation for his sustained dedication to equity and social change throughout his graduate studies with demonstrated commitment to using his psychological training and leadership skills to make the world a better place.
Throughout his tenure as a PhD student in counseling psychology at the University of Maryland-College Park, Jackson engaged in ongoing work to reduce prejudice and intergroup conflict among California youth. This work was made possible by his affiliation with Western Justice Center/ENCOMPASS, a nonprofit organization dedicated to building a more civil, peaceful society where differences are valued. Jackson worked for WJC/ENCOMPASS as a program specialist and associate director prior to pursuing his PhD. He stayed engaged throughout his graduate training by serving as a long-distance consultant on various prejudice reduction interventions, traveling to deliver in-person anti-bias trainings to hundreds of beginning K-12 teachers and finding ways to use his emerging psychological research skills to expand the organization’s community impact.
Jackson’s work as a consultant for WJC/ENCOMPASS included ongoing remote work to support and expand programs, such as Creating Bias-Free Classrooms, a three-part training series on race, gender, and sexual orientation. This program combines live improvisational theater delivered by young actors with facilitation by a human relations expert. It aims to equip educators to build safer, more inclusive classrooms for students targeted by bias. Jackson remotely helped to make necessary updates to the training curriculum, supported the development of new theatrical scripts and wrote numerous grants to expand the reach of this training series. Creating Bias-Free Classrooms has served over 1,000 K-12 teachers and school administrators in southern California, indirectly impacting over 100,000 students.
Jackson also helped the organization launch new programs and initiatives, such as SchoolTools.info, a conflict resolution education resource website for K-12 educators. This program features original video-based lessons on culture, power and conflict resolution for high school classes and clubs. The site had over 14,000 unique users in 2017.
Based on changes in the sociopolitical climate, he also worked to create new personal bias trainings, including one integrating new content on transgender students and another focusing on attitudes toward immigrants. This multifaceted cultural competency program produced such excellent results that all newly credentialed beginning teachers seeking California Clear Multiple and Single Subjects credentials in Orange County are required to complete the sequence. His trainings reach over 100 educators annually on bias and classroom equity related to race, sex, gender identity, sexual orientation and immigration status.
Jackson just received his PhD in counseling psychology at the University of Maryland-College Park. His dissertation title was “Intersectional experiences, stigma-related stress, and psychological health among Black LGB communities.” He is the recipient of a Mental Health & Substance Services Fellowship (APA Minority Fellowship Program). He recently completed his internship at the Atlanta VA Medical Center.