Atlanta Board of Education recommends Jessica Johnson for seat 9 vacancy
The Atlanta Board of Education recommended Jessica Johnson to fill the board’s At-Large Seat 9 vacancy on Jan. 4, 2023. The seat’s new occupant will serve the final year of the previous seat occupant, Jason Esteves’, term. Esteves was required to resign from the seat at the end of December after being elected to the Georgia State Senate in Nov. 2022.
Johnson is the founder and executive director of The Scholarship Academy, a program that teaches low-income and first-generation college students how to navigate financial aid applications to fund their college education. She is also a member of the Dell Scholars National Selection Committee and was an Atlanta Business Chronicle “40 Under 40” Award winner in 2021. She holds a master’s degree in Public Administration-Nonprofit Management from American University.
“[Through The Scholarship Academy] I’ve had some amazing opportunities to partner with almost every single [Atlanta Public Schools] High School,” said Johnson in last year’s board member appointment community forum. “I have watched the current board leadership shepherd the students in the entire school system through a pandemic, and I feel like there is an energy around reimagining what education could be like as a social entrepreneur. I’m really excited about the possibility of joining in that momentum.”
The Atlanta Board of Education will hold a Special Called Meeting at 11 a.m. on January 9 to vote on their recommendation. Immediately after the Special Called Board Meeting, Johnson will be sworn into office.
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