Getting to Know: Yolanda Cash Jackson
Lobbyist for Florida’s HBCUs Works the Capitol on Behalf of Minority Students
Yolanda Cash Jackson is one of only a handful of Black lobbyists for historically Black colleges and universities working the halls of the Florida state capitol in Tallahassee. At the time of this interview, a bill concerning funding was inching its way through the state Legislature.
“I have to go see if I can get my senator motivated,” she said. “I hope to be the spark that gets that bill through.”
So do the two HBCUs that she represents: Bethune-Cookman University and Florida Memorial University.
Snagging state funding is Jackson’s primary mission, and she stands behind some impressive numbers. In 1998, Florida’s HBCUs received a total of only $250,000 in state aid programs. Last year, they received a whopping $12 million. “That was the height of all heights,” she says.
That funding has helped countless numbers of students graduate from college and move on to successful careers. The funding is essential, as
80 percent of the state’s HBCU student population is low-income, and more than half are first-generation students. Helping them get a leg up is all part of a day’s work.
