Jackson is currently the Rupple-Bascom professor of education and Vilas Distinguished professor of higher education at the University of Wisconsin-Madison. Jackson has spent more than two decades at UW-Madison where he also chairs the Department of Educational Leadership and Policy Analysis and is founder, director and chief research scientist of Wisconsin’s Equity and Inclusion Laboratory.  

“A prolific scholar and national leader in higher education, Dr. Jackson also brings with him an impressive history of garnering significant sponsored research,” Woodruff said in the press release. “His academic excellence and commitment to advancing the field of education will create momentum within and for our college of education, and in support of broader university aspirations.”  

Jackson has research experience in advancements in hiring practices, career mobility, workforce diversity and workplace discrimination. He is credited with coining the term organizational disparities, and has evolved his focus on the subject. 

In the press release, Jackson said he views leading the College of Education at MSU as a wonderful opportunity to confront and meet inclusivity challenges in education, in a creative and innovative environment that has a shared commitment.

“Colleges of education in the United States are now challenged, perhaps like never before, with the task of figuring out how to remain fiscally vibrant, research-engaged and competitive at the highest levels while at the same time remaining accessible and accountable to local, state and federal interests,” Jackson said in the release. “Colleges of education at research land-grant universities occupy a unique place in the landscape of higher education to address these challenges head on, which I developed a great appreciation for since graduate school and later as a faculty member at the University of Wisconsin-Madison.” 

Jackson earned a bachelor’s degree from the University of Southern Mississippi, a master’s from Auburn University and a doctorate degree in higher education from Iowa State University. He has been at UW-Madison since 2000, where he became the first African American faculty member in his department.  

During his time at UW-Madison, Jackson co-founded the International Colloquium on Black Males in Education in 2011 and was elected an American Association for the Advancement of Science Fellow in 2021. 

Jackson garnered more than $13 million in external funding, and developed programs including Beyond the Game and the National Study of Intercollegiate Athletics. Both programs are transformational in relation to the experiences of student-athletes and staff in intercollegiate athletics.