Researcher. Educator. Mom.

Dr. Jackie Matise Peng is an award-winning educator and school leader with over a decade of experience in K12 schools. She completed her doctoral degree in Language, Literacy, and Culture at UMBC. Her research centers on mixed-race students, the role of schools and families in supporting positive academic and social outcomes, and diversity and inequality in suburban schools. As a practitioner, Jackie works with school districts and state education agencies to shape policy, professional learning, and resources about PreK-12 educator recruitment and retention and culturally responsive literacy and STEM instruction.

Prior to her studies at UMBC, Jackie was a teacher, Department Chair, Staff Development Teacher, and adjunct faculty member in the Equity and Excellence in Education Certificate Program — a partnership between Montgomery County Public Schools (MCPS) and McDaniel College . In 2009 and 2011 she was recognized by the College Board for the highest national pass rate of her African American students on the AP World History exam. In 2013, she was a recipient of The Washington Post’s Agnes Meyer Distinguished Educational Leadership Award. In 2016, her school was recognized by the National Education Policy Center as a “School of Opportunity” in recognition of innovative, school-based professional learning pioneered by Ms. Peng. She is a 2024 American Educational Research Association (AERA) Minority Dissertation Fellow and has several publications in peer-reviewed journals.

Jackie earned her BA in American Studies and M.Ed. in Secondary Social Studies Education from The George Washington University. She holds an Executive Certificate in Nonprofit Management from Georgetown University and has more than a decade of experience serving youth in the DC-Metro region and from across the state of Maryland.

As a mom of two kids, Jackie is intent on bridging the gap between research, practice, and policy in PreK-12 and championing the needs of families and kids. She is guided by the question “Would I want my kids in that class/program/school?” and a relentless commitment to put in the work if the answer is anything less than a resounding “Yes!”