Cheryle Robinson-Jackson (born Cheryle Robinson; July 20, 1965) is an American who was appointed in October 2006 to be the first female president and CEO in the 90-year history of the

Chicago Urban League The Chicago Urban League, established in 1916 in Chicago, Illinois, is an affiliate of the National Urban League that develops programs and partnerships and engages in advocacy to address the need for employment, entrepreneurship, affordable housin ...

. Prior to her appointment, Jackson served in the administration of Illinois Gov.

Rod R. Blagojevich Rod Blagojevich ( , born December 10, 1956), often referred to by his nicknames "Blago" or "B-Rod", is an American former politician, political commentator, and convicted felon who served as the 40th governor of Illinois from 2003 to 2009, when ...

, most recently as deputy chief of staff of communications and before that as communications director and chief press secretary, making her both the first woman and African American to hold the position in the state's history. After serving in Gov. Blagojevich's administration for 2 years, Jackson resigned from her post as result of her disapproval of the governor's leadership. Before joining Gov. Blagojevich's administration, Jackson spent three years in senior-level government affairs positions with

Amtrak The National Railroad Passenger Corporation, Trade name, doing business as Amtrak () , is the national Passenger train, passenger railroad company of the United States. It operates inter-city rail service in 46 of the 48 contiguous United Stat ...

as vice president for communications and government affairs. She was responsible for Amtrak's state and local government affairs and served as spokesperson in 41 states, often during times of crises, including the 9/11 terrorist attacks. In addition, she served in various capacities at

National Public Radio National Public Radio (NPR, stylized in all lowercase) is an American privately and state funded nonprofit media organization headquartered in Washington, D.C., with its NPR West headquarters in Culver City, California. It differs from other n ...

(NPR), including as vice president of communications and brand management, director of corporate communications and director of corporate identity and information. Among her charges, Jackson served as national spokesperson and oversaw the network's national marketing, advertising and public affairs operations. Jackson serves as a director on the boards of the Metropolitan Planning Council and the

Chicagoland Chamber of Commerce The Chicagoland Chamber of Commerce is a non-profit organization promoting business in the Chicago metropolitan area The Chicago metropolitan area, also colloquially referred to as Chicagoland, is a metropolitan area in the Midwestern United ...

and serves on the

Chicago 2016 The Chicago bid for the 2016 Summer Olympics and 2016 Summer Paralympics, Paralympics was an unsuccessful bid, first recognized by the International Olympic Committee (IOC) on September 14, 2007. The IOC shortlisted four of the seven applicant ...

Olympics Committee and the Daniel Burnham Anniversary Planning Committee. On August 10, 2009, the

Associated Press The Associated Press (AP) is an American non-profit news agency headquartered in New York City. Founded in 1846, it operates as a cooperative, unincorporated association. It produces news reports that are distributed to its members, U.S. newspa ...

reported Jackson's intent to run for the U.S. Senate seat then held by Democrat

Roland Burris Roland Wallace Burris (born August 3, 1937) is an American politician and attorney who is a former United States Senator from the state of Illinois and a member of the Democratic Party. In 1978, Burris was the first African American elected to ...

. Jackson officially launched her bid for the U.S. Senate Seat representing Illinois on September 16, 2009. On February 2, 2010, she was defeated for the Democratic Party nomination by

Alexi Giannoulias Alexi is a given name that is a variant or nickname of Alexander or Alexandra. Notable people with the name include: Men * Alexi Laiho (1979–2020), full name Markku Uula Aleksi Laiho, Finnish singer, composer, and guitarist of the death metal b ...

References

External links

Cheryle 2010
''official campaign website''

Northwestern Magazine {{DEFAULTSORT:Jackson, Cheryle Robinson Living people People from Chicago African-American people 1965 births

See also

References

External links