Zuri Jackson
46th Council District - Brooklyn
Zuri is a lifelong resident of Brooklyn. Born and raised in the Bedford Stuyvesant neighborhood of Brooklyn New York, she grew up in a two parent household, where her mother was an educator and father an entrepreneur. Zuri parents' strong work ethnic and commitment to contributing to the building of their community and making their “village” problems their problems, instilled in her, an unshakable commitment to be a part of the solution.
As a student, Zuri was educated at New York City public schools from kindergarten through high school. Zuri holds a B.A. in Education and Master’s in Guidance & School Counseling. She also holds a Master’s in Administration and Supervision in Education from Brooklyn College. Zuri is a long time Georgetown resident with her husband and their daughter.
As a teacher of children with special needs, Zuri demonstrated her commitment to raise the self-esteem of our students and provide them with the broadest participation in the main stream of the school community.
As a school counselor, Zuri was committed to making a difference in the lives of our young people and families . Zuri called on the village for support by partnering with community based organizations as a means of providing wrap around services for our young people. These services included mentoring programs, resources for families and students such as connections to mental health services, affordable housing, health care and employment opportunities.
As an assistant principal, Zuri advocated for our students to have greater access to technology by partnering with Long Island University’s Gaining Early Awareness and Readiness for Undergraduate Programs (GEAR UP); a national initiative to create innovative programs that assist low-income students in preparing to enter and succeed in postsecondary education. Through this partnership Zuri’s school received a free state of the art technology lab as well as free in house tutoring services for our students. Zuri also partnered with health care community based organizations to provide free in house medical services for our students.
As a borough enrollment director, Zuri had a significant and positive impact on the lives of the hundreds of students and families who came to the enrollment office on a daily basis.
Zuri exhibited strong leadership in executing the Middle School Choice Process for fifth grade students in districts 13,14,15 and 16 before this process was centralized. Zuri single-handedly directed the process on both the elementary and middle school level. Zuri worked closely with principals and other regional and central office staff to ensure all of our young people regardless of race, social economic status or religion were considered for admissions on an equal footing.
Zuri played a part in the creation of the Department of Education’s first Office of Guidance and School Counseling. As a senior administrator , Zuri provided professional development and resources to enhance the delivery of counseling services for our New York City’s school counselors and social workers. Zuri has been a strong advocate for addressing inequality in New York City Public Schools and used her platform to speak to issues that matter oftentimes standing up for what she thought was right, even if standing alone . Zuri was transformational in getting people to recognize the need for change. Zuri partnered with Don Kao, Director of Project Reach -Chinese American planning Council to develop and lead the Department of Education’s first city wide Unpacking Racism Trainings for students, school counselors and social workers. Zuri also developed community partnerships to combat Domestic Violence. Zuri's role in leading the Mayor’s Equity and Excellence initiative with Single Shepherd had a profound effect on our city's public schools.
As city councilwoman Zuri will continue to fight for equality and justice for all.