Edna Jackson

of Cities and the Georgia Municipal Association, and is former President of the National League of Cities: Women in Municipal Government. She served as the second vice president of the Georgia Municipal Association. Mayor Jackson was fully engaged in the Civil Rights Movement, first joining the NAACP Youth Council in Savannah at age nine. Law and Eugene Gadsden, she participated in sit-ins at downtown Savannah businesses, wade-ins at Tybee Beach, and kneel-ins at various local churches. She helped conduct voter registration drives, and participated in demonstrations throughout the South, including the 1963 March on Washington and the 1965 March from Selma to Montgomery. During this period, she was employed with the NAACP National Youth Task Force, and spent time in Florida, Alabama, Mississippi, and Georgia, demonstrating and carrying out voter registration drives. She is the past Southern regional vice president and national vice president of the Savannah State University National Alumni Association. She served as vice chairman and member of the Chatham County Democratic executive committee; former chairperson of the Chatham County Hospital Authority; former board member of Economic Opportunity Authority; and former board member of the US Selected Service board. She was appointed by Congressman John Barrow to serve as a member of the Military Academy selection committee and the regional committee of the US Civil Rights Commission. She is a member of the Savannah Regional Second Harvest Food Bank board of directors; Step Up Savannah board, and others. She is a Diamond Life Member of Delta Sigma Theta Sorority, Inc., a member of the NAACP, and the founder and member of the Mandingo Socio Civic Club. Mayor Jackson has traveled throughout the United States, China, Ghana, Nigeria, Israel, and Turkey, among other countries. She presented a paper on tourism, economic development, and preservation in Shanghai, China, in October 2014. Mayor Jackson is also known for her public speaking. She earned her bachelor and masters degrees from Savannah State College (now university), where she worked as an administrator for thirty years. During her tenure, she served her alma mater in the areas of counseling, admissions and recruiting, financial aid, and as director of Alumni Affairs and Elderhostel Coordinator. Mayor Jackson has one son, Kevan LaMar Jackson. Mayor Jackson’s honors include:
GeorgiaTrends magazine “Most Influential Georgian” in 1212, 2013, and 2014; Savannah State University’s 2014 Award of Excellence for Leadership; Savannah Technical College Tribute to Community STARs Award 2013; Emancipation Day Leadership Award 2012; Savannah State University’s “Richard R. Wright Award” 2012; Bennett University “Outstanding Woman in Civil Rights;” Savannah Civil Rights Museum’s “Unsung Heroes” award; and the Tom Joyner “Hardest Working Community Advocate” award. Delta Sigma Theta named a scholarship in her honor at SSU. She also received the NAACP Freedom Award, the Delta Sigma Theta “Alfreta Adams Community Service” award, the Alpha Kappa Alpha “Mozella Collier Volunteer Service” award, and the Omega Psi Phi “Citizen of the Year” award, among others.