“Education was always very, very important to me and my parents,” says Jackie Taylor, former counselor at Colorado College’s Student Health Center. She was at CC for 19 years, from 1988 to 2007, one of the first women of color to counsel Colorado College students at the center.

Growing up in Union, South Carolina, her teacher mother and her businessman father taught her the importance of education from an early age. Schooling, though, was vastly different at that time.

“It was a totally segregated schooling environment from elementary school through high school, and because of that the expectations and opportunities were different for us,” she says.

“There weren’t many careers that people of color could go into. The majority of my family were teachers,” she adds.

“My older brother, James Randolph Jeter, ran his own IT business before he passed away and my younger brother, Howard F. Jeter, was the U.S. ambassador to both Botswana and Nigeria,” she says.

Taylor attended North Carolina A&T State University, majoring in sociology and minoring in psychology. Later in life, she got her master’s in social work from the University of Denver in 1982.

After college, she moved to Tampa, Florida, with her husband Fred Taylor, an Air Force officer, to work for Project Head Start, a federal program that promotes the school readiness of young children from low-income families.

The Taylors moved a lot because of Fred’s Air Force career, spending time in New Hampshire and New Jersey before arriving in Colorado Springs. Along the way, they had two children, Fred Jr. and Teneshia.

“My first job in town was at the Pikes Peak Mental Health Center, working with residential adolescents — challenging work, with that age group,” she says. She worked for the Pikes Peak Mental Health Center for 25 years.

Here, CC became a part her life. Taylor was asked by Dr. Bill Dove ’69, who worked at CC’s CounselingCenter, to apply for an opening. Dove, a clinical psychologist, is now director of the Counseling Center.

“I think I was fortunate to be chosen, particularly at the time when the staff was smaller than it is today. None of us were full-time solely at CC.”

Taylor arrived at a college in transition. The college’s first female president, Kathryn Mohrman, and Dr. Judith Reynolds ’71, then medical director at Boettcher Health Center, were instrumental in growing the resources for mental health. Students were at the heart of this work.

“What I remember the most about the work was the support systems around campus,” Taylor recalls. “Students at CC all have very high expectations of themselves. Many of the students had issues fitting in, being successful in time management, or coping with stress. The Block Plan is wonderful, but it really isn’t wonderful for everybody,” she adds.

Over 19 years at the college, Taylor saw firsthand the successes and challenges of generations of students.

“Students of color have their own unique challenges, definitely, but the fact is that 18-, 19-, 20-year-olds all share a lot of the same issues,” she says.

“International students had some difficulty during my time at the college, as did Native students at adapting to the college community. There wasn’t the representative housing or community options for minority students yet, so that was difficult for them,” she says.

“Mike Edmonds, dean of students/vice president for student life, and Rochelle Dickey-Mason ’83, who during my employment was the director of minority student life, were invaluable support systems for me and all students.”

Taylor retired from the college in 2007. Her life remains as active and engaged as ever.

“I’m very involved with my church, with local women’s groups. I love the outdoors, gardening, walking and hiking, taking yoga classes. Hopefully, I’ll be able to start some volunteer work soon with seniors,” she says.

Taylor’s family is the center of her life. Her son is a retired Air Force full colonel, just like his dad. Her daughter, who lives in Nepal, is pursuing a Ph.D. in education. She has three grandchildren.

In summary, she says, “My experience at Colorado College was very rewarding and most memorable. I am proud to have been a part of this special institution.”