Dr. Carolyn Jefferson-Jenkins

Dr. Carolyn Jefferson-Jenkins is an internationally respected educator, author and speaker whose decades of work are grounded in civil rights, voting rights, women’s rights, African-American history and racial equity. Her career in public and higher education spans 50 years.

Since 1998, Dr. Jefferson-Jenkins has worked with the U.S. Department of State Speakers and Specialist Program engaging with audiences on topics related to the democratic process and elections, women’s empowerment and women’s history, the legacy of enslavement and African American history, and the impact of policies and laws for people of color for nations around the world.

She was the first woman of color to hold the position of President of the League of Women Voters of the United States where she spearheaded, “The Future Plan” focusing the League’s work on campaign finance reform health care reform, education reform, as well as empowering women of color to run for elected office.

Dr. Jefferson-Jenkins is the author of "One Man, One Vote: The History of the African American Vote in the United States" as well as, "The Untold Story of Women of Color in the League of Women Voters," honoring the contributions of women of color in the suffrage movement and its legacy organization which received the 2020 INDIES Bronze Award in Women’s Studies.

She has been recognized in Notable Black American Women; Who’s Who Among Successful African-Americans, and Who’s Who in American Education. She is the recipient of the Distinguished Alumni Award in Civic Leadership from Cleveland State University, the Making a Difference Award from John Carroll University and the National Coalition of Black Civic Achievement Civic Leadership Award. In 2020, Dr. Jefferson-Jenkins received the Trailblazer Award from the League of Women Voters of Ohio, and the Freedom Summer ’64 award from Miami University, Ohio for her lifetime of civil rights activism.