124. Patrick Jackson, Answering the Call

Show Notes:

Patrick Jackson talks about growing up in his great-grandparents' home in an unincorporated area of Shelby County, where he had no indoor plumbing until age 10. That home, where he lived with his mother and three brothers, was his formative space before going to Harvard. Patrick was initially considering medical school. However, he decided to pursue politics, inspired by an experience he had as a junior in high school working as a U.S. House Page on Capitol Hill.

Becoming a Page in the U.S. House of Representatives

Patrick believes that God opened a door for him to become a Page through his freshman football and track coach, Mac Hawkins, a government  and civics teacher and Bartlett High School, who became like a surrogate father to him. In 1985 Coach Hawkins found out about an opportunity to become a page through then-Congressman Don Sunquist, who was looking to appoint a promising high school student. Patrick’s experience with the Page Program highlights the importance of faith, connections, and the support of family and friends. In this conversation, Patrick discusses his experience as a page in the House of Representatives and the impact it had on his life. He recalls the experience as transformative and fueled him to pursue a career in government. Patrick ended up concentrating in Government at Harvard.

Working in Politics

After graduation from Harvard, Patrick landed an internship with the Small Business Administration, an opportunity that helped him gain experience and broaden his horizons. Patrick also mentions that he had a temporary spot with Congresswoman Barbara Boxer, who was running for the US Senate at the time. He was invited to work as a legislative correspondent in the Senate office, answering constituent letters and handling constituent calls. However, he wanted to move up quickly and take on more responsibility, so he left Senator Boxer's office and worked for Congresswoman Nydia Velazquez from New York. One significant experience he had there was witnessing Congresswoman Velazquez testify during the healthcare debate about privacy. He had to help write her testimony, which was a tough day but a good day because it helped many people. Patrick acknowledges that this incident did not directly lead to the enactment of the HIPAA law, but it helped with the debate about privacy and HIPAA, adding to the chorus of voices calling for the law to be made and enacted. In 1995, Patrick left Congresswoman Velazquez’ office and worked for the late Julian Dixon, a California member of Congress who served as a senior Democrat on Appropriations Committee. He learned a lot from his time there, including the importance of strong relationships across the aisle. Dixon was part of a tight California delegation that worked together to get things done for the state, including medical research funding for top universities and public hospital systems. Patrick also owes a lot to Tracy Holmes, his Chief of Staff, who was skilled in working with people and helping them succeed.

Law School and Study Abroad

Patrick discusses his experiences in law school and his study abroad experience.  Though he initially planned to work for just two years before law school, he did not enter law school until 1998, when he began at the University of Wisconsin law school in Madison.  While in law school Patricj participated in a law school exchange program at the University of Groningen in the Netherlands. There Patrick lived in a student house with other international students and enjoyed the hustle and bustle of the square area. He learned about European legal systems through the international comparative comparative law program at the University of Wisconsin.  After law school, he was offered a job after graduation in Columbus, Ohio. He worked as a firm there for a few years but realized that it wasn't what he wanted to spend the rest of his life doing and left the firm at the end of 2005.

From Law to the Seminary

Patrick left Columbus, Ohio, in 2007, returning to his home in Tennessee to work briefly as a substitute teacher in the Shelby County school system. In 2008 he left Tennessee to return to D.C. to work for United Way of America as a federal lobbyist, covering national issues like the 211 information system and the Emergency Food and Shelter National Board Program. He met his wife in 2006 while still in Columbus, Ohio, and they became friends and stayed in touch even long distance. In 2010, they decided to move their relationship forward and got married. He worked with Senator Sherrod Brown from 2009 to 2011, but they decided to return to Columbus in 2011.  During that time of transition, Patrick sensed a call to fulltime ministry, which was influenced in part by his involvement in the music ministry at a church in Dumfries, Virginia.  He also attended US Senate Chaplain Barry Black's weekly Bible studies and enrolled in his spiritual mentoring classes. During one of these Bible studies, Chaplain Black encouraged him to consider attending seminary. However, Patrick would not attend seminary until 2013, after spending some time working as a contract lawyer in Columbus.  Patrick attended Andover Newton Theological School in Newton, Massachusetts, graduating with honors in 2017.

Life As a Pastor

Patrick shares his experience of applying to American Baptist churches for senior pastor positions after graduation from Andover Newton. In 2018 Patrick accepted a Pastoral Residency at Richmond's First Baptist Church in Richmond, Virginia.  It was a tremendously rewarding experience and helped prepare him for his first pastorate at First Baptist Church-Church of the Brethren and Cedar Rapids, a dually-aligned American Baptist and Church of the Brethren congregation. The process of becoming a pastor at the church involved submitting materials, having phone conversations, and attending a candidate weekend. The church then voted on whether to call the applicant. This experience led to his current position. As an African American pastor at a predominantly white congregation.  Patrick shares his experiences of working as a pastor and delivering sermons during Covid.

Influential Harvard Courses and Professors

Patrick shares his experiences with the late Professor Martin Kilson, a government professor who taught him about African American political development in the south. He took a graduate course from Prof. Kilson on African political systems: Power, and Legitimacy, which provided insights into the history and politics of Nigeria, the Congo, and Kenya.

Timestamps:

05:02: The Impact of the Page Program and Early Career 

18:18: Transition to Capitol Hill and Early Career Challenges

33:20: Law School and International Experience

40:09: Return to Capitol Hill and Transition to Ministry 

53:58: Seminary and Pastoral Career 

1:08:19: Transition to Cedar Rapids and Current Role 

1:20:25: Reflections on Harvard and Influential Courses 

Links:

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/patrick-jackson-0489a6/  

Patrick’s church: https://www.thechurchonnorthland.com/

Featured Non-profit:

The featured non-profit of this episode of The 92 Report is recommended by Julie Mallozzi who reports:

“Hi, I'm Julie Mallozzi, class of 1992 the featured organization of this episode of The 92 report is New Day Films. New Day Films is a filmmaker-run distributor of educational documentaries, many of them exploring urgent social issues. I have been a member of this amazing co-op for six years, and am proud to be serving my third year on its steering committee. You can learn more about our [e-mail] and now here's Will Bachmann with this week's episode."

To learn more about their work visit: https://www.newday.com/