Jackson, TN, is Unlocking Potential

Jackson, TN, schools and organizations work to lend career support to residents at all stages of their career development.

By Teree Caruthers on August 9, 2023

From work-based learning and mentoring programs in the local school system to coworking spaces for entrepreneurs, the Jackson community works together to support the career development of all its residents.

In the LOOP

For example, through the Jackson-Madison County School System (JMCSS) and West Tennessee Healthcare’s work-based learning LOOP 2.0 program, students earn high school credit and a paycheck while gaining experience at the Jackson-Madison County General Hospital. In addition to health care, other LOOP programs focus on in-demand career pathways. Students are placed with partner companies in health care, advanced manufacturing, food services, environmental services, distribution and energy.

“Work-based learning provides opportunities for students to learn how to apply, interview and complete onboarding tasks for employment,” says Teresa Littrell McSweeney, chief innovation officer for the Jackson-Madison County School System. “Our LOOP students participate in selection interviews with hiring partners and supervising managers. Our corporate partners consider our students’ full-time employees, and our students complete the full onboarding process, including background checks, physicals and orientations. Several of our students have been offered full-time employment upon graduation.”

Focused on the Future

JMCSS also partnered with the City of Jackson and theCO, a regional innovation hub, to launch Jackson Grown, a leadership fellowship for high school seniors. The fellowship – the brainchild of Jon Mark Walls, a graduate of Jackson-Madison County Schools – pairs students with local business mentors for skill development and network building.

“Students selected for the Jackson Grown Leader Fellowship work with their mentor throughout the school year. Mentors help students develop interpersonal and communication skills that translate to career applications,” McSweeney says. “Seeing alumni take an interest in our students and give back in this manner is certainly an immediate win for our community and our public school system. There’s renewed energy right now around JMCSS, and Jackson Grown is just one example of that.”

The students meet once a month at theCO and are connected with notable JMCSS alumni, both locally and internationally, who are able to provide inspiration and insight on the paths their lives have taken. Students work in groups to develop research, teamwork, communication and other employability skills as they identify individual community issues. They then use a problem-based learning approach to research the problem and identify potential solutions. At the end of the program, students present their individual solutions to community leaders.

A Place for Innovation

In addition to the Jackson Grown fellowship, Our Jackson Home works to promote the people and places that make Jackson a great place to live and do business.

“In both the storytelling projects we create and events we host, we seek to create spaces that bring people together from all parts of our community, and that encourages people to see and connect with the place they live,” Searcy says. “Our Jackson Home has also served to showcase the talent of creatives in our community who have contributed as writers, photographers, filmmakers, illustrators, musicians, and more and create a culture that is supportive of and grows opportunities for them.”

TheCO’s mission is to attract and retain Jackson’s next generation of community leaders, and it does that through entrepreneur support, STEM education and community placemaking.

“TheCO is a great resource to have – to have that kind of community of people,” says Lisa Garner, CEO of theCo. “Technology is constantly changing, so we’re planning meetups for entrepreneurs and young professionals to learn things like how to use AI in your business or how to use tools like the Square point of sales app.”

Garner says it is beneficial to have a place where you can go and interact with people who are doing what you’re doing.

“Those conversations happen fairly organically with business owners, but to be able to have a space that is connecting people to talk about those things is really beneficial – even for me personally – which is why we keep hosting more of these programs,” she says.

A Collaborative Effort

Preparing students for local careers is a collaborative effort in Jackson. From career and technical education programs to private tutoring companies, the city’s students have multiple opportunities to gain career readiness skills. Take The Math Success Coach, a math coaching service that helps students learn strategies that can help them succeed at math.

“I call this coaching rather than tutoring because there’s a lot more to helping students than just the math,” says owner Danielle Barbee. “Kids also need to know how to strategize. They need to know how to be prepared and how to study.”

Barbee, who has a math degree and is a former Algebra teacher, says the disruption in education during the pandemic is one of the main reasons she started her business, which she was able to launch thanks to resources from the CO.STARTERS progam (geared toward new entrepreneurs) and branding help from SOUL Collective (focused on elevating Black businesses).

“There’s a significant need for math help in the United States. Students are significantly behind. They’re not meeting grade-level expectations, they’re scared to ask questions and they’re afraid of making mistakes. Sometimes it even trickles over to other subjects,” she says.

Barbee developed The Math Success Coach to help students overcome their fear of math, improve their test performance and boost their confidence. Also, she says math helps students become better problem solvers – a skill they need to be successful in college and beyond.

“It helps students build their perseverance, and it lets them know that they can do the hard stuff,” she says.