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History of MCJ

MCJ’s founding board members and early supporters reflect on the organization’s first 20 years, sharing powerful stories from its early days. Viewers will hear about “The Dirty Dozen,” a list of urgent social injustices the founders set out to address, and discover some of MCJ’s most significant achievements.

Watch our video to learn about the history of MCJ:

Read about Martha Bergmark, Founding President and CEO, 2003-2013

Key Milestones

2003

Founded in Jackson

2005

Propelled sweeping juvenile justice reform with its partners in the Coalition to Prevent Schoolhouse to Jailhouse

2006

Prevented 65,000 poverty-level aged and disabled Mississippians from losing healthcare coverage

2010

Restored $132 million in Hurricane Katrina recovery money to its intended purpose rebuilding housing for more than 5,000 low-income families

2011

Protected affordable housing for hundreds of low-income Mississippi Delta residents through a lawsuit against the housing authority

2013

The Center’s 10th anniversary and launch of the New Roots Credit Partnership

Founding Board Members

Fred L. Banks, Jr., Chair
Robert B. McDuff, Vice Chair
Isaac K. Byrd, Treasurer
Suzanne G. Keys, Secretary
Carol Burnett
L. C. Dorsey
J. Brad Pigott
Carlton W. Reeves
Warren Yoder

Founding Donors

(Each of these generous donors contributed $10,000 or more in 2002-03)

Dr. Eeward Bergmark
Barbara and Ed Blackmon
Isaac K. Byrd, Jr.
Dorothy and Wilbur Colom
Stacy Farraro (the Anonymous)
John Jones
Barbara and David Lipman
Deborah McDonald
Michael J. Miller
Jay L. Wiener