Jackie Rosa
As the director of community engagement for United Way of Metro Chicago, Jackie guides grant making initiatives and collective impact planning for 10 Neighborhood Network coalitions. She mobilizes government, nonprofit, small businesses and community leaders around common community goals. Additionally, she oversees United Way’s AmeriCorps program, which places 12 AmeriCorps members across the 10 Neighborhood Networks for a year of service addressing critical community needs.
Jackie has more than 10 years of experience in community and civic engagement. Prior to joining United Way in 2015, she worked for Chicago Public Schools and Mikva Challenge. She was the recipient of the 2016 Hispanics in Philanthropy Next Generation Fellowship and holds a bachelor’s degree in communication studies from DePaul University.
In philanthropy, a top-down approach and lack of lived experience has often led to funder-driven decision-making that lacks authentic community expertise and inclusion. The place-based approach gives communities and funders the authority to identify their own greatest assets and needs, and to articulate their own priorities...





