Jacklyn Chisholm: Vice President of Planning and Institutional Relations

Jacklyn J. Chisholm, Ph.D. is Vice President of Planning and Institutional Relations at the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame and Museum in Cleveland, Ohio. She is responsible for the development and implementation of the Museum’s strategic plan, management of government relations and community outreach activities, and Project Director of the $13 million Library and Archives construction project. Prior to joining the Rock Hall, Dr. Chisholm served as Associate Vice President for Community Partnerships at Case Western Reserve University, where she developed the Center for Community Partnerships.

Chisholm has served on several civic boards, including the Center for Community Solutions. She has earned certificates from the HERS/Bryn Mawr Summer Institute for Women in Higher Education Administration and the Cornell University Administrative Management Institute.

A Cleveland native, Chisholm is a graduate of John F. Kennedy High School where she was an honors student. She was admitted to Case Western Reserve University in 1977, and, over the course of 20 years, earned three advanced degrees: a Bachelor of Arts in medical anthropology (1985), a Master of Arts in psychological anthropology (1993), and a doctorate in educational and psychological anthropology (2002).

In between her educational endeavors and scholarship, Chisholm married, raised two children, and worked and held leadership positions within her alma mater. Each assignment, from admissions counselor and student retention specialist to her current administrative post, strengthened her skills in strategic planning, advocacy, program development, communication, lobbying, and relationship building.

She is a passionate visionary, and spiritual woman who lives by the credo, “With God all things are possible.” She recognizes that “I could not have succeeded without God and the help of a number of individuals that He placed in my life along the way.”

Her varied and challenging experiences as a student and an adult learner led her to partner with her husband to establish It’s Worth It Educational Consulting, LLC, in 2001. Its purpose is to motivate and prepare students to attend college who may not otherwise consider higher education as an option for their future.

Chisholm lives in Shaker Heights, Ohio, with husband Robert and daughters Robin and Jennifer.