Media Advisory: For Immediate Release

Date: February 13, 2019

UnKoch My Campus Names Jasmine Banks New Executive Director

UnKoch My Campus is pleased to announce the selection of Jasmine Banks as its new Executive Director.  UnKoch My Campus selected Banks after her exceptional performance guiding the organization’s digital organizing efforts.

UnKoch My Campus is dedicated to fighting the undue donor influence that seeks to manipulate higher education for corporate interests. UnKoch My Campus investigates the relationships between wealthy donors, corporations, and educational institutions. Education, in particular, higher education, serves as an engine of critical inquiry and foundation of our democracy, where the pursuit and production of knowledge shape public opinion, political discourse, and public policy.

UnKoch My Campus’ 2019 strategic goal is to critically examine the ways in which vulnerable communities, in particular, are impacted by wealthy donors and corporations exerting undue influence in educational institutions.

Jasmine Banks is a former non-profit co-founder, digital organizer and strategist, Chief Marketing Officer, and small business owner.

“As a first-generation high school and university graduate, I understand the critical role that all education plays in shaping our democracy. For many of us, one of the first places we begin to wrestle with ideas about the common good and our democracy is in our public education. The corporate takeover of education has been a covert strategy of our opposition for some time.  My experience as a Black queer mother of four, has prepared me well to lead the UnKoch My Campus team. While we are a small team, we are taking on corrupt billionaires with fearless determination.”

Banks succeeds UnKoch My Campus’ previous Executive Director and co-founder, Lindsey Berger, who is now senior outreach coordinator at the Union of Concerned Scientists' Center for Science & Democracy.

UnKoch My Campus’ solutions come from student activists, professors, and local stakeholders. We support the grassroots efforts of campuses working to rid themselves of the Koch Network’s corporate influence. Through a cohesive and intentional plan of action, we catalyze local efforts and use these networks to expand national power in our issue area.

UnKoch My Campus believes that transparency is an essential feature of accountability. We partner with local and national actors and engage media in order to create conversations about our investigations.

Jasmine can be reached for media inquiries, interviews, or questions at Jasmine@unkochmycampus.org

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