Ayesha Jaco, MAM is the Executive Director at West Side United (WSU). She leads the organization on its quest to reduce the 14-year life expectancy gap between Chicago’s Loop and 10 West Side communities. Jaco manages a multitude of local and national civic, philanthropic, community, corporate and healthcare partnerships that seek to impact over 550,000 Chicago residents by successfully deploying and sustaining economic, educational, health related and environmental strategies. Under her leadership, WSU has evolved from an idea to a strategic operation led by the voice of the community and sustained by partners dedicated to eliminating inequitable disparities.
Jaco’s groundbreaking leadership is rooted in innovative artistic and social contributions that have impacted thousands of Chicago families. Over the past decade, her community-based work has leveraged community led interventions to structural violence (Project Orange Tree Co-Founder), substance prevention (Youth Outreach Services, Manager of Prevention), arts education (Move Me Soul Dance Company, Founder), food access, study abroad opportunities for inner-city youth and college readiness (M.U.R.A.L. Co-Founder). Over the past 5 years, Jaco has maintained community serving residences with the Museum of the Contemporary Art Chicago, The Chicago Park District, The Rebuild Foundation, Northeastern Illinois University Jacob Carruthers Center for Inner-City Studies.
Ayesha is a member of the Leadership Greater Chicago Signature Fellows, Class of 2021. She is the recipient of the 2020 Health and Medicine Policy Research Group Health Award for promoting social justice and challenging inequities in health and healthcare. Ayesha is also a recent Chicago Dancemakers Forum Lab Artist and Rebuild Foundation Dance Fellow. She is a Board Member for Choose Chicago. Ayesha holds a Masters in Arts Management (Arts in Youth & Community Development) from the Columbia College Chicago.