Volunteer Spotlight: Jillian Jordan
Jillian Jordan is a public relations professional and mom to two young children who's giving back to The Nora Project in big ways. From assisting with curriculum materials to brainstorming and outreach for Friendship February, she's dedicated to advancing our mission.
Jillian’s family sits in front of a brown brick wall. Jillian sitting on the right with her young daughter on her lap and her husband sitting to the left with toddler son on his lap.
Jillian first discovered TNP through a friend and fellow TNP supporter. She felt moved by our mission to teach empathy and spark friendships between children and their peers with disabilities. “As a mom, it’s important that I guide my two young children in this direction, lead by example, and educate them and others about disability as an important part of human diversity,” shared Jillian.
She’s supported TNP’s program and development teams in everything from preparing curriculum, to brainstorming, crafting, and pitching fundraising initiatives to local influencers. “I helped build the mindfulness activity bank, which offers ideas for how teachers can engage students and increase their empathy and compassion for themselves and others. I also developed pre-teaching materials for our Nora Project partners, which provides vocabulary that may help students engage with materials during group instruction,” shared Jillian.
When asked what work she’s done with TNP that she’s most proud of, Jillian answered “All of it!”
“I’m proud to be a part of The Nora Project in general, but I’m really excited about Friendship February! My career background is in public relations, so I’m honored to lend some of my experience to help make the fundraising initiative a success,” she added. “It’s inspiring to see the student committee’s hard work come to life and witness the passion of The Nora Project team--all to make the world a bit friendlier this February and support TNP and our partner schools at the same time!”
Volunteering with The Nora Project has encouraged Jillian to think about disability in a new way. “I related to the way Lauren described how she felt about disability growing up. I, too, felt fearful and confused about disability due to the lack of knowledge and understanding. Instead, seeing disability as a natural part of human diversity was eye-opening and an ‘ah-ha’ moment for me. I think we could all use a little more understanding and empathy in today’s world, so I would love to see The Nora Project’s mission be spread far and wide!”