Palmer Scholars - Supporting Students in Challenging Times
Sep 03, 2020
Jonathan Jackson
Palmer Scholars - Supporting Students in Challenging Times

Jonathan is a Pierce County native, born and raised in Lakewood, WA. His professional experience has revolved largely around providing youth with access to resources they need in order to be successful in both their personal and academic/professional lives. Jonathan currently serves as the Executive Director for Palmer Scholars, a Pierce-County non-profit that takes a holistic approach to serving low-income students of color in pursuit of their educational and career goals after high school. Prior to this role, Jonathan served as the Executive Director for the Fair Housing Center of Washington, Director of Development for the Foundation for Tacoma Students, and Program Director with the state Office of the Superintendent of Public Instruction. Jonathan holds a Master of Business Administration from Pacific Lutheran University, where he also earned his bachelor’s degree. Jonathan serves as the chair for Friends of the Children-Tacoma, on the board for the Northwest Furniture Bank, the Executive Advisory Council for the Foundation for Tacoma Students, Pacific Lutheran University’s Alumni Board, the University of Washington-Tacoma’s School of Education Advisory Board. Jonathan is also a proud member of Alpha Phi Alpha Fraternity, Inc., and holds leadership roles within the Iota Mu Lambda chapter in Tacoma.

Palmer Scholars' mission is to support underrepresented Pierce County students of color to overcome financial, cultural, and social barriers in their pursuit of higher education. Our “Whole Scholar” model is a deliberately designed set of services that accounts for the holistic needs of our Scholars, not just what is generally encapsulated in a college access program. Palmer Scholars was incorporated as a 501(c)(3) in 1996 and has served nearly 600 promising young low-income students of color from Pierce County in their pursuit of a better life through higher education. In 2019, we expanded our work to be more inclusive and responsive to the industry needs of our community. Our Palmer Pathways program has not only opened avenues for disconnected youth to access family-wage careers in the trades but has also increased the value of services we provide Scholars in our existing Legacy Program. At Palmer Scholars, our family of 6 staff, 10 Board members, and 140+ mentors and volunteers ensure our Scholars successfully graduate from their postsecondary program with the skills, knowledge, and network to be servant leaders in our community.