Recent doctoral graduate of Morehead State University receives grant funding for tool to assist athletes in journey to graduation

Dr. Jamaal Jackson, a recent graduate of Morehead State University’s Doctor of Education in Adult and Higher Education Leadership program has been awarded grant funding for his tool to assist Black male student athletes get to graduation by helping university staff give the best guidance for overcoming the obstacles the students face.

According to an article on Morehead State University’s website, Dr. Jackson explained what the grant project will look like, saying, “The KYNETIC team helped me through every step, and being awarded the grant is just the beginning for me and my team. We hope to develop our e-Learning tool and successfully market it to institutions throughout the nation, not just for use in athletics, but for all different student populations.”

He went on to say, “The relationships built with my diverse cohort were very helpful in helping me through the process of earning the Ed.D. degree and will be very helpful as I continue to grow professionally. The ideas that were shared, stories about different paths, why’s, and backgrounds, along with the need to constantly motivate each other, is something that I’ll never forget.”

Dr. Jackson is Kentucky State University’s head coach of men’s basketball, which helped inform him of the barriers Black male student athletes face in both their athletic and academic pursuits. 

Dr. Timothy Simpson, who serves as the director of the MSU Doctoral Program, commented on Dr. Jackson’s accomplishments, saying, "The Morehead State University doctoral program is proud of Dr. Jackson's accomplishment. He had the ability to recognize a problem facing student athletics, design a solution in collaboration with others to support students and staff, and the tenacity to see the solution to reality. Dr. Jackson is an excellent representative of our program's desire to create educational leaders in the Commonwealth."  

For more information about Morehead State University, visit the school’s website.