Today we’d like to introduce you to Jacquelyn S. Dalton.
Hi Jacquelyn S., can you start by introducing yourself? We’d love to learn more about how you got to where you are today?
I’m a Middle Tennessee native who used grit and determination to jump-start my career as a public health strategist at a national nonprofit. At a very young age, I showed leadership qualities. I was a middle child with firstborn qualities. At five years old, I responded to “What do you want to be when you grow up?” with “President of the United States of America.” However, my mother worked in the health field and was a caregiver to my aging great-grandmother, and I would follow in her shadow, knowing that I wanted to do something that would help people. As a teenager, I volunteered at the senior living facility where my mother worked. I became president of the local NAACP youth chapter and joined multiple clubs, Rotary, Beta, and Gospel Chorus. I loved to be involved in my community.
Over time, that same persistence shaped my calling: building healthier communities by centering the people who live and work closest to the issues. While in college, I became a Student Health Ambassador for the HBCU Wellness Program and got my start in health disparities research, working on maternal health. Now, over a decade later, I am still focusing on some of the same health inequities I learned about in undergrad. As with my younger self, I remain driven to be the best public health leader that I can be, and this fall, I started my doctoral degree at Johns Hopkins. Although unglamorous and complex, at its core, my work is simple: listen, learn, and act with integrity to ensure that all communities have access to what they need to thrive.
I’m sure it wasn’t obstacle-free, but would you say the journey has been fairly smooth so far?
Of course, I didn’t take a straight path here. Like many other people, I’ve navigated trauma, bias, and seasons where my resources didn’t match the load of my responsibilities. I lost my mother during my first year of college, and I became a young mother myself. Times were tough; I’ve had to work two jobs while balancing school and family life. My saving grace is faith, focus, and a good planner! (Don’t skimp on the time management lessons!)
Additionally, public health work in this era has not been smooth. Health is often politicized and seen as a privilege rather than a basic human right. Public health is usually undervalued and misunderstood. Health equity, in particular, is frequently met with fierce backlash. Oftentimes, people don’t realize that public health professionals are the ones thinking about their safety at every moment, at every level. Public health professionals are often over-explaining and re-stating, and providing data to prove that our work is needed. We battle backlash, underfunded initiatives, detrimental policies, and burnout to do our work.
Despite this reality, my saving grace has been my purpose and the relationships I have built. I got into public health knowing firsthand what health disparities looked like beyond the data. I’ve seen what it looks like when one in three people you know is suffering a chronic disease. When someone isn’t able to go to the doctor when they need it, when family members die way too young. My purpose in life is to change that trajectory for as many people as possible. In addition, public health is all about working with others through partnerships and collaborations. In many ways, the mentors, the partners, the team members who persist and are fully dedicated to doing the work right all help me continue to stay in this work and stay human.
As you know, we’re big fans of you and your work. For our readers who might not be as familiar what can you tell them about what you do?
Today, I serve as Senior Director at Health Leads, directing the Health Equity Community Collaborative (HECC) and cross-sector projects that collaborate with community-based organizations, strengthen the community health workforce, and push systems to redesign around equity.
Locally, co-chair the Greater Nashville Health Disparities Coalition, which brings together multidisciplinary professionals to address local health disparities. I also facilitate community forums of all kinds and have presented and taught in a variety of classroom settings on health equity, community engagement, and cultural humility.
My work centers on strategic partnerships grounded in cultural humility, trust, transparency, and mutual benefits. I help convene partners who might not otherwise work together, specifically bringing community leaders with lived experience to the table. My caveat is that everyone, especially those with lived experience, has to be treated fairly and with respect. Usually, when health programs, tools, research, and initiatives are developed, they are created “for” the people whom they intend to benefit rather than “with” them, so I aim to change that trend.
Locally and nationally, I lead collaboratives of organizational leaders to share resources, tools, funding opportunities, and more with those who can use them to maintain or expand their work.
At heart, I am a convener, connector, facilitator, and thinker passionate about community health.
I’ve done local convenings and national work that I hope to scale globally—but this is a lifelong effort with a long way to go, God-willing. My goal every day is to compete with myself and keep building systems where communities lead and everyone can thrive.
With my work, I am most proud that I have the opportunity to do something that I truly believe matters and makes a difference, not only today but for generations to come.
Who else deserves credit in your story?
Career-wise, my childhood mentor, Victoria Williams, who always challenged me to do things I didn’t know I was capable of doing and exposed me to new ways of thinking. Also, Tené Hamilton Franklin, who took me on my first walking meeting, offered such dynamic guidance, and let me know that you could be a bad-ass working mom, and gave me a chance to level up.
Personally, my village—family and friends, who have been there for me, especially my husband and kids, who challenge me to be a better wife and mother. I am grateful to countless individuals, and to them all I say a million thank yous.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://www.jacquelynsimone.com/
- LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/jacquelynsdalton/
