Dr. Kara V. Jackson : She believed she could, so she did

Dr. Kara Vaughn Jackson  (The Gramblinite,1965)

Kara Enid Vaughn was born June 7, 1908, in  Chatawa, Mississippi to Benjamin and Angeline Dillon Vaughn. Benjamin was the younger brother of my 2nd great grandmother, Angeline Vaughn Dillon.  The Vaughn's were a close knit  family of farm laborers that had a strong desire to see all of their children educated, and through hard work and many sacrifices, were able to see that dream realized.

Kara was home-schooled by her Aunt  until the age of 10 and was sent to live with relatives in Gary, Indiana while she attended the historic Froebel High School.   Froebel has a history of it's own as one of the first schools in the nation to integrate.  She  went on to complete her undergraduate studies at Southern University in Baton Rouge, Louisiana . 

 (The Gramblinite,1965)

Kara began her career as a teacher at a rural training school while working her way through Southern University. She began her work at  Grambling in 1937 at the request of A.C Lewis, State supervisor of negro education . After a conversation with A.C Lewis,  "Kara, I want you to go to Grambling to teach at Louisiana Negro Normal. That school is the 'favorite child' in the state right now and I am sending my 'favorite people' to help build it up" (Interview with Mildred B. Gallot , January 5th, 1982).   At that time  Grambling was involved with implementing a unique training program for educating rural teachers. The plan was called the "Louisiana Plan" and was the brain-child of  Dr. Ralph E. Jones, A.C Lewis and Dr. Jane Ellen McAllister. This plan included implementing six field centers at Negro high schools to offer one year of post high school graduate teacher training.  One of the six fields centers was located at the Tangipahoah Parish training school in Kentwood, Louisiana, a school led by Kara's 1st cousin, Professor O.W . Dillon. During the summer, field centers conducted six-week institutes for students and teachers who were unable to attend the regular session at Grambling. Many of the students involved in the program would later go on to complete their teacher training at Grambling. Kara worked as a field agent for the program and travelled between all six  field centers throughout the year. Dr. Jane Ellen McAllister, a 1919 graduate of Talladega College and the first African American women to earn a Doctorate in Education, from Columbia University, became a mentor for Kara and influenced her to continue her academic pursuits. Kara would later obtain her Doctorate in Education from Columbia University as well.   Dr. Jackson served as Professor of Education and Professor of Counseling at Grambling and  held many positions in administration including Director of Student Personnel Services, Director of Financial Aid.  According to the Gramblinite, Dr. Kara V. Jackson was the first  Black woman in the state to earn a doctorate degree in education. (Gramblinite, 2007).    

 (The Pittburgh Courier)

Dr. Jane E. McAllister

  Her career began as an educator, but evolved into so much more. Kara had a passion for education and traveled the globe promoting excellence in teaching.  In 1945, she  published  "Curriculum for Better Living",  in which she emphasized teacher education training in a way that provided long lasting contributions to the well-being and happiness of the communities in which the teachers served. There was a constant demand  for her help as an organizer, leader and consultant for educational and guidance conferences throughout the country.  While maintaining her duties at Grambling, she traveled the nation speaking and teaching educators how to meet the needs of the communities they influenced. In the words of Dr. Jackson  "A truly great educator is one who cares about teachers, children, parents,adults. A truly great leader studies and compares diverse procedures." She helped many in her family achieve their goals of becoming educators as well, including my grandparents, Melbourne Dillon and Marion Redden Dillon, both graduates of Grambling College. 

 In addition to her work on behalf of Grambling, Dr. Jackson also served her sorority, Delta Sigma Theta, as the Chairman of the National Projects Committee.  The Southern Education foundation appointed her  Special Jeanes Supervisor.  

She served as visiting/adjunct professor at 

• 

  Dr. Jackson with students in Portland

  Miami University
• Tuskegee Institute
• Atlanta University
  
• University of Florida
• University of Oklahoma
• Portland State University
• Lincoln University
• Kansas State University
• University of Oregon, Portland
• University of Sydney, Australia

In 1966, Dr .Jackson was named to the Presidential advisory commission on rural poverty by President Lyndon B. Johnson.  This commission produced the popular report " The People Left Behind", in 1967. 

 

(The Shreveport Times)

In an address entitled "Looking Through the Windows at Elementary Education", she stated " My window tells me that the elementary school cannot, anymore, disregard the teaching of the real meaning of freedom, of equality, of fraternity, than it can disregard the teaching of reading, writing, and arithmetic. There is little place in the world for the unskilled and unenlightened, and we must help every elementary youngster accept and understand this fact, as well as carry him as far as his potential will allow him to go in meeting the condition."

Dr. Jackson was  married to  businessman Edward N. Jackson a native of  Vidalia, Louisiana in 1938.  When asked during a 1962 interview about her spouse, her response  "We are childless and we share equally the roles of making a house a home."  This interview offered a glimpse into her position on gender equality. 

After living a life of service and carrying out her passion to educate, Dr. Kara Enid Vaughn Jackson retired from Grambling in 1976, after a nearly 40 year tenure.  She went back to her local community and served in her local church until her death in 1991. 

 

Gallot, Mildred Bernice, "Grambling State University: a History, 1901-1977." (1982). LSU Historical Dissertations and Theses. 3708.

(1944, October 14) Kara Jackson enters Columbia. The Pittburgh Courier, pp. 9

(1966, September 29) Grambling Teacher on Commission. The  Times (Shreveport , LA), p. 37

Did You Know? | thegramblinite

Jackson, Kara Vaughn, "Curriculum for Better Living". (1945). Association for Supervision and Curriculumn Development