Vanity Jenkins

CEO/Mom/PhD Student

I’m a Black woman with almost 20 years of experience working towards equitable outcomes. I’m from SC, but moved across the country as a child living in Iowa and Connecticut before settling in New Jersey. This transientness allowed me to see different parts of the country and, unfortunately, experience racism in different parts of the world.
One of the most vivid experiences surrounds my brother. He transitioned to public school from private school in 3rd grade. My parents received a letter saying my brother would be moved to a special education classroom in a week. My parents went to the school and asked to view the test they’d given my brother to determine that he needed to be moved to a special education classroom. The administrators said they misplaced the tests. My parents showed the school my brother’s test scores from his private school, where he scored in the top 1% for both ELA and Math. The administrators started apologizing and said they made a mistake.
This was one of my earliest memories of individual and structural bias. My brother was a very hyper young Black boy. His teacher and school administrators made assumptions about him and weaponized structural policies to “solve” a problem instead of confronting their own biases. Observing my parents navigate this challenge in my formative years and ultimately create the opportunity for learning with the teacher and administrators was transformative. I learned the power of advocacy, liberation, and healing. I now work to create healing and learning for others because inclusion matters.