Carolyn Jefferson-Jenkins, a former president of the League of Women Voters and a 1974 graduate of the Western College for Women, will be the commencement speaker at Miami University’s spring graduation ceremonies May 15. 

The university has yet to decide if the ceremonies will be virtual or conducted in person, Miami said Thursday when it announced Jefferson-Jenkins as the speaker.

Jefferson-Jenkins is the first woman of color elected to head the League of Women Voters. She served two terms beginning in 1998 and helped the league’s push for passage of the bipartisan Campaign Reform Act (BDRA), closing campaign finance loopholes.

In March, 2020, Jefferson-Jenkins received Miami’s Freedom Summer of ’64 Award, which honors leaders who work to advance civil rights and social justice in America.

After her graduation from Western, Jefferson-Jenkins had a career as a public school teacher and administrator. She earned a master’s degree in education from John Carroll University, an educational specialist degree from Kent State University and a doctoral degree from Cleveland State.

“Western College prepared us for life, not just a career,” Jefferson-Jenkins said in a university press release on Thursday. “While teaching was my vocation, my calling was always community-based activism. I grew up and came of age during the Civil Rights Movement. There was never a time I was not active or not calling for change, not calling for progress.”

Working with the League of Women Voters, Jefferson-Jenkins helped develop the “Get Out the Vote Campaign,” and the “Wired for Democracy” project, which worked to make sure people could access objective, nonpartisan election information online. 

In announcing Jefferson-Jenkin’s selection as commencement speaker, Miami President Gregory Crawford said, “Time and again she has used her voice and her platform to protect and expand voting rights, encouraging all to participate in the electoral process. Through her example, our graduates will be inspired to use their Miami education to serve, lead, and build a better future for all.”

Jefferson-Jenkins is an adjunct assistant professor in the School of Education at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. Her most recent book, “The Untold Story of Women of Color in the League of Women Voters,” was released last year in honor of the organization’s centennial celebration.