Two CSF alums are honored with PSBJ’s 2023 ‘40 Under 40’ award

College Success Foundation congratulates two of our Tacoma-area alums for being honored with this year’s Puget Sound Business Journal’s ‘40 Under 40’ award. Ashley Mangum and Keisha Jackson were CSF Scholars in high school and college and have continued to stay connected to CSF as professionals. We are so proud of their accomplishments and heartily celebrate this well-deserved acknowledgment of their career successes.

Later this evening, the Puget Sound Business Journal will celebrate all of its ‘40 Under 40’ honorees with a reception and awards ceremony at the Showbox in downtown Seattle.

Accolades for a mental health advocate

CSF alum Ashley Mangum served on CSF’s Alumni Board as she began her career as a social worker and has been giving back to CSF and her community ever since. After graduating from Mount Tahoma High School in Tacoma, Ashley went on to receive a bachelor’s degree in social work from Eastern Washington University and a master’s degree in social work from the University of Washington. 

Ashley is now the director of Kids’ Mental Health Pierce County which is supported by Mary Bridge Children’s. In her work to improve the mental health of children and adolescents, she leads a group of agencies, nonprofits and professionals that work to address the growing behavioral health crisis among school-age children and youth.

“Like many of the children she now assists through the collective, supported by Mary Bridge Children’s, Mangum was once a child in the foster system. 

‘I have that empathy piece that families want more than anything,’ she said. ‘The message they want to hear isn’t that we’ve found a bed or a resource. It’s that someone showed up for their child when they needed them. We need to transform how we are approaching families with these complex needs.’”

–An excerpt from the Puget Sound Business Journal, read Ashley’s entire interview. 

A community connector is recognized 

Always active in her community and throughout her collegiate life, Keisha Jackson, another CSF alum, became a CSF staff member after graduation. Later, she joined CSF’s National Board of Directors—as its’ very first alumni member. Since Keisha’s board appointment in 2014, there has always been an alumni member on CSF’s National Board of Directors. A graduate of Lincoln High School in Tacoma, Keisha earned her bachelor’s degree in sociology and communication from Western Washington University and received her master’s degree in student development administration from Seattle University.

Today, Keisha is the Technology Education and Learning Support (TEALS) Northwest Regional Lead at Microsoft. TEALS is a Microsoft Philanthropies program that helps schools build and grow sustainable computer science programs through partnerships between teachers and volunteers. The program focuses on serving students excluded from learning computer science because of race, gender or geography. 

“How big of a part does mentorship have in your identity? 

‘I think it’s a significant part. As a high school student, I was introduced to mentorship through College Success Foundation, so I’ve had so many significant mentors that have helped guide me through different educational experiences, and also through my career through different industries at this point. And without mentorship, it’s hard for people to understand that you also need sponsorship, which is very different.’”  

“What’s the difference?

‘A mentor can talk to you about lived and professional experiences and help guide some of your thinking. A sponsor is someone who’s sitting at the decision-making table who can help pivot a career, business or funding opportunity for you. Sponsorship has been absolutely critical for really, my entire career.’” 

–Excerpts from the Puget Sound Business Journal, read Keisha’s entire interview. 

About the ‘40 Under 40’ award 

This year marks the 25th annual 40 Under 40 awards. This year’s honorees come from a variety of industries including biotech, commercial real estate, banking, law, nonprofit, technology and health care, among others. They represent companies from a variety of sizes and stages that reflect the diversity of the Puget Sound region’s business community. 

Judges look for individuals who have notched impressive professional successes and show great potential based on their visions for the future and strategies to get there. The Puget Sound Business Journal sought candidates active in their communities through industry involvement, civic engagement and company initiatives outside their job responsibilities. 

At CSF, it’s our mission to cultivate transformative leaders that shape a more just and equitable society. We are so pleased to see Keisha and Ashley achieving this goal in such high esteem. 

CSF alums Keisha Jackson and Ashley Mangum receive their 40 Under 40 Award from the Puget Sound Business Journal and CSF staff attend the reception in support of these incredible women.

Photo credits: Anthony Bolante | PSBJ