b'PROFILEVanessa Blacknall-JamisonBy Brenda Jones lined and already figured out for George Jetsonairplane mechanics, air traffic controllers, ramp but that only in the cartoons. agents, engineers, scientists - and even astronauts.Prior to joining FAAs Flight Standards LeadershipCurrently a change management adviser and lead-W hen the Civil Air Patrol Foundation meets Feb.DevelopmentBranchin2013,ershipcoachwiththeFederal 16, it will officially welcome its newest trustee Blacknall-JamisonwasasanAviationAdministrationin Vanessa Blacknall-Jamison. aviationsafetyinspectorinWashington,D.C.,Blacknall-Ms. Blacknall-Jamisons interest in aviation start- Fort Worth, Texas for AmericanJamisonwasappointedto ed at an early age, and it pertains directly to grow- AirlinesandEagleAirlines.theCivilAirPatrolboardin ingupintheDenverneighborhoodofParkHillPreviously,shewasmanagerAugust. The foundations boardand the communitys final approach location forof emergency procedures train- providesgeneralsupportfor StapletonAirport.Whilelivingthere,everycon- ingandprogramsforUnitedCAP and its programs and mis-versation always included wait, a plane passing isAirlines in Denver. sions,directfinancialsupport overhead, especially on Sunday mornings, smilesOverthelastfiveyears,to CAPs operations and schol-Blacknall-Jamison.The powerful roar of the planeBlacknall-Jamison has provid- arships to CAP members.engines while passing over her family home simplyedconsultation,projectsup- Itisanhonortoserveon fascinated her. port and individual skills devel- theCAPFoundationBoard Eventually, she graduated from East High SchoolopmentfortheFAA-AviationofTrustees,shesaid.Ilook and then received her B.A. in Finance from UniversitySafety-FlightStandardsforwardtosupportingCAPin of Southern California. Her desire to travel the worldService-ChangeManagementmaintainingitsaviationmem-beforesettlingdownintoarealjobresultedinGroup on change management.bershipthatincludespeople hertakingaflightattendantpositionwithBraniffShedesigned,developedandfrom all backgrounds, lifestyles Internationalat her mothers urging - and quicklymanagedlogisticsfortrainingand occupations.discoveringthatherpersonalitywasntcompatiblemorethan5,000executives,CAPschiefofphilanthropy with handling the typical A-Type frequent flyer busi- middle and frontline managersand the foundations president/nessman. and employees on change man- Vanessa Blacknall executivedirectorKristina Lucky for aviation, she became a Human Resourcesagement. Blacknall-Jamison isJones recently stated, We are recruiter which also revealed the inequitable num- also an associate certified coachso pleased to have her join as bers reflecting people of color in the aviation busi- through the International Coaching Federation.a trustee.Vanessa brings a strong understanding ness. I realized that HR was an opportunity for meAsifthoseaccomplishmentswerentenough,ofnotonlytheaviationcommunitybutalsothe toincreasethenumberofminoritiesintheaero- in2016Blacknall-Jamisonwasnamedthefirstimportance of inspiring young people in aerospace space industry. woman - and first non-pilot - to be chairperson ofeducation.The numbers are dismal:Black females representtheOrganizationofBlackAerospaceProfessionalsA member of Living Hope Bible Church in Aurora, less than 0.1% in the industry; in total, women only(OBAP.org).Thenonprofitorganization,originallyBlacknall-Jamisons faith in God has been a constant equal 7.0%. People of color are at 8-9% - and theknown as the Organization of Black Airline Pilots,in her life, and is reflected in her belief that by reaching needle hasnt substantially moved in 20-plus years. is a professional organization focused on addressingout and helping others move forward, God has reward-I quickly got over the nonsensical view of aviationthe dire lack of diverse representation in the aviationed her life as well. Our prayer line, every morning at that Id had since elementary school via The Jetsonsindustry. The name was changed to reflect the orga- 6:30am and every evening at 7:00 PM are phenomenal! cartoon.Everything was automated, super-stream- nizations choice to expand its reach to persons ofSenior Pastor Elridge Sims and Pastor Juan Romero color working in all aspects of the aerospace industry(en espaol), says Blacknall-Jamison.2 MARCH 2021 BOCNEWS.com'