Two SOE scholars have been accepted into the Jackson Scholars Network for the 2024-26 cohort. The program, administered by the University Council for Educational Administration (UCEA), provides formal networking, mentoring, and professional development for graduate students of color who intend to pursue a career in educational leadership.
Rebekah Kang, Ed.D. ’26 and Tonya Taylor, Ed.D. ’27 are enrolled in SOE’s doctoral program in educational leadership for social justice. They were nominated by faculty members Manuel Ponce and Rebecca Stephenson, both clinical associate professors.
“We’re thrilled that these dedicated educational leaders were selected for this honor,” says Dolores Delgado Bernal, now co-director of the Ed.D. program along with Cynthia Alcantar. “In the true spirit of our doctoral program, we are certain that the opportunities for professional growth that the Jackson Scholar program offers will be carried forward by these two leaders as they strive toward intersectional racial justice and transform educational environments into more inclusive, equitable, and just spaces.”
Kang began her career as a special education teacher. She is now assistant principal and one of the founding teachers of the RFK UCLA Community School, a K-12 public school in Los Angeles, California, where she has helped develop and launch signature learning programs for students with disabilities. “My research interest is around designing and implementing multi-tiered systems of support to advance social justice so all students can learn and thrive in schools,” she says.
Taylor, who has more than 15 years of experience as an educator, will examine the relationship between mass incarceration and its impact on Black students’ education. “My goal is to develop educational programs and initiatives that support Black students who are affected by mass incarceration,” she says, adding that she enrolled in SOE’s doctoral program because “the school’s commitment to social justice and its responsibility to recognize historically oppressed and marginalized communities deeply resonates with my personal values.”
As required of all Jackson Scholars, Kang and Taylor will attend the UCEA annual convention this November in Los Angeles, along with the annual meeting of the American Educational Research Association (AERA) in Denver in April 2025.
