The Northwestern University Black Professionals Network leadership team strives to build community by fostering programing and providing resources to promote an environment in which Black professionals can share experiences, have an open dialogue, network with leadership, and seek mentorship that will improve the Northwestern Black professional experience.
Tracey Gibson-Jackson joined Northwestern University in 2007. She serves as the Director in Student Organizations & Activities. Tracey has a bachelor's degree in Theatre and a master's degree in political and justice studies. As Administration Co-Chair she assists in guiding the steering committees mission and strategic goals while interfacing with the university president and senior leadership team.
Omar is a System Administrator at Northwestern University Information Technology. He is a graduate of ITT Tech with a Bachelor’s Degree in Computer Science. He has over a decade of experience as an IT Specialist working with Servers, JAMF, Active Directory and CrashPlan backup server. In his role with BPN Omar facilitates programming and access by managing the BPN website and creating opportunities for open dialogue among our members.
Maureen's impactful journey at Northwestern University Information Technology began in 1992, where her consistent dedication as a pivotal team member has been evident. Currently holding the role of Director for Application Development and Operations within Northwestern IT Administrative Systems, she spearheads crucial software development teams vital to the university's operations. Serving as the Director of Networking for Northwestern's Black Professionals Network committee, she coordinates the Journey Narrative Series, special events, newsletter editing, and book club facilitation, while fostering a supportive community atmosphere. Additionally, as a founding member of the Northwestern IT Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion committee, she exemplifies her dedication to fostering an inclusive environment within the university.
Focusing on marketing and communication, as well as student development and event planning in a higher education setting, Adrienne has spent most of her career in the realm of collegiate recreation. Prior to Northwestern, she spent a year with the RecSports department at the University of Notre Dame as the Marketing and Special Events intern. And four years in various recreation and recruitment roles at Ohio University. In her role Adrienne will manage all team meetings and assist with the quarterly newsletters. She will support other team members and coordinate all communications.
Joining Northwestern in 2017 as archivist her primary focus is to document the history of Black students, faculty, alumni, and organizations at Northwestern University. She also supports exhibition curation, outreach, instruction, and reference for the University Archives. Charla holds a degree in American Studies with a course concentration relating to African American history and culture. Similarly she assists BPN as the historian and maintains BPN records.
Serena Simpson joined Northwestern IT’s communications team as a communications specialist in March 2020. She brings more than 15 years of leadership experience in strategic communication, writing and editing, project management, employee engagement, and more. In her role, she focuses on content development for various Northwestern IT communication mediums, leading strategy and execution for enterprise IT projects, and guiding the editorial direction of both internal and external operational communications.
As Assistant Director of Access on the BPN Steering Committee, Eric manages content for the BPN website, collaborates with the WebComm team on copy, layout, and design, and helps facilitate BPN dialogue sessions. He also supports Steering Committee initiatives and assists with Chicago campus events. Eric is a Senior User Support Specialist at Northwestern’s Global Marketing and Communications team, where he provides advanced technical/network/AV support internally and manages cloud-based systems such as CrashPlan, Jamf Pro, and Falcon CrowdStrike. He supports both OGMC's and NUSites websites.
Joan has been at Northwestern (NU) since June 1999 where she has also worked in NU’s Office of Audit and Advisory Services and Financial Operations. She holds a JD from Loyola University Chicago School of Law, a MS in Higher Education from NU, and BS in Accountancy from the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign. Joan is licensed to practice law in Illinois and is a registered certified public accountant.