Mitchell S. Jackson

Mitchell S. Jackson is the John O. Whiteman Dean’s Distinguished Professor. He joined ASU from the University of Chicago, where he served as an assistant professor of creative writing. He is the first Black columnist in the history of Esquire, where he covers topics of race and culture. He was awarded the 2021 Pulitzer Prize in Feature Writing and a 2021 National Magazine Award in Feature Writing for his article on the killing of Ahmaud Arbery that appeared in Runner’s World. Jackson’s debut novel “The Residue Years” received widespread critical acclaim and was recognized with a Whiting Award and the Ernest J. Gaines Prize for Literary Excellence. The novel was also a finalist for the Center for Fiction Flaherty-Dunnan First Novel Prize, the PEN/Hemingway Award for Debut Fiction and the Hurston/Wright Legacy Award. His nonfiction book, “Survival Math: Notes on an All-American Family,” was named a best book of 2019 by 15 publications, including NPR, Time, The Paris Review, The Root and Kirkus Reviews. Jackson's work has also been recognized with a number of prestigious fellowships, grants and awards. A formerly incarcerated person who began writing while in prison, Jackson is also a social justice advocate who engages in outreach at prisons and youth facilities in the United States and abroad. Jackson earned a master’s degree in creative writing from New York University in 2004, a master’s degree in writing from Portland State University in 2002 and a bachelor’s degree in speech communication from Portland State University in 1999. More faculty spolights