Path to Power
Jackson was born in Philadelphia, Pa., but moved to New Orleans after being adopted.
She grew up in the Ninth Ward of New Orleans, the poor, largely black neighborhood hit hardest by Hurricane Katrina. In her speech when she was sworn in as NJDEP commissioner, Jackson talked about her family's plight as they were forced to flee New Orleans, and the new perspective it gave her on environmental work.
"The shameful failures of government that the world witnessed in the wake of Hurricane Katrina have given me a special appreciation for the importance of public service," she said. "Those failures have galvanized my commitment to working tirelessly to protect the health and safety of the people of New Jersey and to enhancing our quality of life."
She attended undergraduate at Tulane University in New Orleans on a scholarship from Shell Oil Co. She earned a degree in chemical engineering, and says she anticipated a career in the petrochemical industry. But Jackson went on to earn a master’s degree in chemical engineering from Princeton University in 1986, where she says her interest in using her engineering skills to address and prevent pollution was invigorated.
Jackson worked for the federal Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) from 1987 until 2002 at both the national headquarters in Washington, D.C., and and its regional office in New York City. During the Clinton years, Jackson managed the Superfund program, which oversees the cleanup of hazardous waste at former industrial sites, for the EPA's regional office in New York. She ran the federal Superfund site remediation program, developing hazardous waste cleanup regulations and overseeing cleanup projects. She later served as deputy director and acting director of the region’s enforcement division.
In March 2002, Jackson came to the NJDEP to serve as the assistant commissioner of compliance and enforcement. In 2005, she became the DEP’s assistant commissioner for land use management, heading up the state programs for land use regulation, water supply, geological survey, water monitoring and standards, and watershed management. She moved up to the top NJDEP slot in February 2006 and served there until November 2008.
Jackson was the vice president of the executive board of the Regional Greenhouse Gas Initiative, the regional cap-and-trade program created by northeastern states to reduce greenhouse-gas emissions. Gov. Corzine said the plan was not perfect, but "off to a good start."
Scott Segal, director of the Electric Reliability Coordinating Council, which lobbies on behalf of the energy sector, prasied Obama's selection of Jackson. "She has experience with enforcement and rule-making matters," said Segal. "Moreover, as head of an agency in New Jersey, she has had real world experience dealing with areas of scenic beauty, large populations, and substantial industrial development. We hope that means she will bring a true sense of balance to a very complicated job."
But the group Public Employees for Environmental Responsibility, which advocates for state and federal environmental employees, has been highly critical of Jackson, putting out a press release against her appointment. "While Ms. Jackson has a compelling biography, little of what occurred during her 31-month tenure commends her for promotion," wrote PEER Executive Director Jeff Ruch.
