On July 1, 2024, Jonathan Jefferson joined Roxbury Community College, or RCC, as the institution’s 18th president. Throughout his career, Jefferson has worked across four continents, serving as everything from a college dean to a partner at a consulting firm. The Huntington News sat down with Jefferson Oct. 17 to ask him about his first year as president, RCC’s relationship with Northeastern and his goals as he looks ahead.
This interview has been edited for length and clarity.
The Huntington News: You have a range of experiences in multiple countries and fields. What brought you here to RCC at this moment in time?
Jefferson: I’ve been in Boston for over 10 years now. I came to the area originally to work at Lesley University, and I’ve been looking for an opportunity where I can give back. You know, RCC is the only predominantly Black institution in New England, and I wanted to have an opportunity to work with students of color on a more intimate basis. I’m the product of a HBCU [Historically Black College or University]. I am a proud graduate of Morehouse College. And when this opportunity became available, I thought this is a good match for my skills and what I wanted to be able to do for the students.
HN: Can you talk a bit about some of the partnerships you have with Northeastern, and is there anything that you think would make them stronger?
Jefferson: Well, first and foremost, I want to thank Congresswoman Ayanna Pressley. It’s because of the work that she did that enabled some congressional director spending to be available for a partnership between Roxbury and Northeastern. That partnership has materialized into what we call the A2M program, which is the Associates to Master’s Program, which is a very popular program here on campus. There are probably about 35 students in the program right now. Initially, it was in STEM, and now it’s being expanded to just about every area within the College of Professional Studies. I believe the agreement is about ready to be signed where a student at Roxbury is simultaneously accepted at Roxbury and at Northeastern in the College of Professional Studies. So there’ll be future Huskies and a lot of students are very happy about that, Northeastern right down the street.
HN: How would you define success for you as the president of RCC? What metrics do you use?
Jefferson: I think one of the biggest things for us is to be financially solvent and fortunately, we have already accomplished that, and we’re going to continue to be financially solvent. The next is to build a rainy day or a reserve fund. We started doing that. We wanted to make sure that our students have paid internships and have learned and earned experiences throughout their matriculation. At RCC this past summer, we piloted a program with about 20 students to actually place them out into summer internships with different employers. My hope, my big thing, is that Roxbury is a barrier buster. Whether that is food insecurity, housing insecurity, transportation, tutoring, whatever it is, to make sure that we have services available to our students 24/7, to make sure that this place is welcoming and that students can get answers to their questions in one stop. Those things are success for me.
HN: You mentioned that the financial component, raising and saving money, is a big part of the work you do. It’s a very volatile time in the federal government. Has that impacted the work that you’ve been doing in any way?
Jefferson: I almost don’t want to answer that question. The reason I’m hesitant to answer the question is that the impact that many schools have had because of all the changes in Washington have not hit Roxbury very hard. We have a couple of grants to which we were subawardees on that disappeared, but that didn’t have a material impact on the college. We, as the only predominantly Black institution, get Title III funding, and that Title III funding, we’re not sure if it’s disappeared yet. It’s almost been like a Catch-22: Every time that we give them information, we have to fly one more mission. But I would think we’re finally getting to a place where we may be able to draw down that money for us to start the repair for the Center for Economic and Social Justice. But in terms of impacts on our budget, impacts on people, it’s been minimal for us.
HN: Have you seen more impacts with your immigrant and international student populations?
Jefferson: We don’t have a large F1 student visa population. We have fewer than than 40 students in that category, but we do have a significant number of students who did not complete high school in the United States, and we also have a significant population of people who came to the United States through various programs. And so our students are concerned. They have been concerned because we have such a large population of certain ethnic groups. But they’re still coming to class. They’re still pursuing their degrees. I think that — because of things that have happened in the courts, postponing government actions or accelerating government actions — that [the government] being stopped has helped students to continue their education. In fact, we see our enrollment is going up constantly. I think students want to get in, get finished and move on with their lives.
HN: What’s RCC’s relationship with the greater Roxbury community? Are there any partnerships you have and how do you see the institution being perceived by the community?
Jefferson: The community perceives Roxbury Community College as their college. I mean, as you know, this college was born out of activism. Many of the people who were involved in that, or to say several of those people are still alive, so they see this as their institution, and we do a lot of work with the community, whether that’s the Boys and Girls Club or it’s any of the other groups that are within the community. The Reggie [Lewis Track and Athletic Center], which is also managed by the college, puts on over 700 events a year. We here at the college put on probably two to 300 events a year very easily. So we want to do things with the community.
HN: A frequent complaint against Northeastern is the impact that the university is having on gentrification in Roxbury, displacement in Roxbury. Do you share those concerns about Northeastern? And, if anything, what do you think the university could do better to mitigate that?
Jefferson: I think that Northeastern, so far, has been a good partner to Roxbury. I think that we should continue that partnership. We should look at ways to grow together. I laugh and joke that we can be a junior Northeastern and that our students have a starting point at Roxbury, but they have a continuation point at Northeastern. We’re looking at other areas within Northeastern now to develop partnerships, and I think that as long as Northeastern remains a partner for economic and social mobility, that is the best that they can do. I recognize that a large university like Northeastern has lots of ambition. All I’m saying is don’t forget about the partners who are here. There is no group that’s too small or no group that is too large that Northeastern, with its power and finances, cannot help or partner with to make it better for everyone and not just Northeastern.
HN: We’re starting to see a lot more universities adopt this career-ready model. Can you talk a bit about the value of that and what other universities could take away from embracing that?
Jefferson: The biggest complaint that many employers have is that regardless of a student’s major, that many students are not prepared to be in the workforce, or they don’t have the skills that are needed to be successful in the workforce. Our solution to that is, let’s bring the workforce and the college together, and let’s put our students out in the workforce early in their matriculation, so that they can see what it’s like to work in different environments. The skills that are required for that, both the traditional hard skills, computers, AI, but also other skills, like team dynamics, group dynamics, individual behaviors. How do I lead myself? How do I lead others? Where do I fit within the organization? All of those things are very, very important, and that’s what we want to instill in our students.
HN: Being the president of a higher-ed institution is a very expansive job. What’s one thing you think people wouldn’t expect or would be interested to know about your day-to-day or the position?
Jefferson: I think that the most wonderful thing about the job is when you walk to campus and you get to talk to the students and the faculty. When you go sit down in a cafeteria and people come up and talk to you, or if they don’t come, you go talk to them. You know, it’s always good when they say, “Hello, Mr. President,” or “Mr. President, do you have a moment?” and just stopping to have that conversation. I want people to know that I’m accessible and that we can always talk. We can break bread together. We can attend events together. I think those things are the most heartwarming things. We have some of the most economically diverse students in the entire Commonwealth, and to see students break through those barriers, walk across that stage, and their next stop is at Northeastern, it’s really heartwarming to see that they were able to do that. That’s what makes this job fun.
HN: What would you say is the biggest challenge RCC faces at this moment in time?
Jefferson: Ours is no different from anyone else. You know, money answereth all things. So if we had more money, we could do more stuff. But we’re also landlocked. We are half a mile from the Reggie to Jackson Square, where our campus ends in lot three. That’s all the space we got. So if we wanted to expand, we’d have an issue. But having enough money, having enough opportunities for our students, is always a challenge for us. MacKenzie Scott [American novelist and philanthropist] just gave Morgan State University $63 million. I would love for MacKenzie Scott or someone on her team, to give us a call and give us an eight-figure, nine-figure gift, that would be wonderful. But I think that having more finances enables us to do more things.
HN: Has there been one or a couple lessons that you’ve taken away from your time being president so far?
Jefferson: Take time for yourself, because if you don’t take time for yourself, no one’s going to give it to you. Be humble. A president is still a human being. I tell people, I put my pants on one leg at a time. People have a tendency to want what they want when they want it, and they don’t always take into consideration who you are or where you’re coming from, or all the things that you have to do. But just take the time to be civil to one another. I think that if we can learn to do that, people will have an opportunity to express who they are and what they want and their issues and concerns. We will be receptive to those and we will figure out what’s in the realm of the possible. And I think those things are the things that I’ve learned so far. Got a long way to go. I’m only in year two.
HN: From your perspective, what’s one thing that you think needs to change in higher-ed?
Jefferson: It’s not just one thing, multiple things. I think that today, particularly at the president’s level, is understanding you’re running a business, but it’s not just one business. Higher-ed has a bunch of businesses underneath it, and as the president, you’re sitting on top of all of those businesses, and you need to have a perspective of how they all fit together financially. So we have to evolve constantly. Sometimes we have to leapfrog. Sometimes we have to put ourselves in very uncomfortable positions because we have to find out where the puck is going, not where we are today. As long as we can have an eye towards where the puck is going, which is very difficult, particularly in this environment, I think that we can survive. I think that we can thrive. I think that we can make it through all the craziness going on right now, but it requires that we constantly view where we are. What are all the initiating conditions around us? Where is the puck going?
