Today we’d like to introduce you to Jasiri Jenkins-Glenn.
Hi Jasiri, we’d love for you to start by introducing yourself.
My story has always been about connection—how people move, how people communicate, and how communities are strengthened through both.
I grew up in the Altadena and Pasadena area and transportation was part of everyday life. My father spent 33 years as a public transit operator with Santa Cruz METRO Transit District and, early in my career, I had the opportunity to work alongside him in the same system. I learned what transportation really means at the ground level—not just as infrastructure, but as a daily lifeline that requires safety, patience, adaptability, and genuine care for the people you serve. That experience shaped how I understand service, responsibility, and the impact transportation has on people’s daily lives.
Over time, my work expanded into transportation operations, dispatch, and logistics across both public and private sectors, including large-scale coordination roles in event and charter transportation. Each step taught me how many moving parts exist behind the scenes to keep people safely connected, and how essential communication and collaboration are to making those operations successful.
While building my transportation career, I discovered I was equally drawn to communication. Studying Communication Studies helped me better understand how relationships, perception, and public engagement shape organizations and communities. That interest ultimately led me to earn both my Associate and Bachelor of Arts degrees in Communication Studies.
Since 2015, I’ve been involved in public access media, and today I serve as the Director of Community Engagement at Pasadena Media. In that role, I focus on building partnerships, expanding access to information, and helping elevate community voices. Being able to serve the community where I grew up has been especially meaningful.
Currently, I am on leave from Pasadena Media to support Venue Transport operations for the FIFA World Cup 2026 in Los Angeles. It’s a unique opportunity because it brings together transportation, logistics, large-scale coordination, and public service on a global stage. After the tournament, I’ll return to Pasadena Media while continuing to pursue opportunities to contribute to the future of transportation.
Alongside my professional journey, I am also a mother and a lifelong learner. My path has not been linear, but it has been defined by persistence and purpose. I’ve learned how to keep moving forward through different seasons of life while continuing to grow professionally and personally.
No matter the role, my work has always centered on helping people stay connected—to places, to information, and to each other.
I’m sure it wasn’t obstacle-free, but would you say the journey has been fairly smooth so far?
My path has not been a particularly smooth one. There have been real challenges along the way, especially early in my academic journey when I struggled in school and had to reassess my direction. For a long time, I thought my career was “behind schedule” because my educational journey took much longer than I expected. I earned my Associate degree in 2011 and ultimately completed my Bachelor of Arts in Communication Studies in May 2026.
During that time, I also had to build a career without the traditional academic milestones that many roles often require. That meant learning through experience—starting in frontline transit operations, working in dispatch and logistics, and gradually growing into positions with greater responsibility across transportation and community engagement. There were moments when I had to rely on persistence more than certainty and learn by doing.
One of the biggest challenges was navigating my career without consistent mentorship or a clearly defined roadmap. I often had to teach myself, seek out opportunities independently, and embrace unfamiliar environments. Although that process wasn’t always easy, it strengthened my ability to adapt, solve problems, and remain grounded through change.
Throughout it all, my faith has been a steady anchor. It has helped me stay focused during uncertain seasons and trust that even when things didn’t go according to plan, they were still moving me toward opportunities I couldn’t yet see. Looking back, many of the experiences that have shaped my career—including roles I never could have planned for—came from those unexpected turns.
Today, I can honestly say that while the road has not been linear, every challenge helped me grow into a stronger, more resilient version of myself, both personally and professionally.
Thanks – so what else should our readers know about your work and what you’re currently focused on?
My work sits at the intersection of transportation operations, logistics, and community engagement, but at a deeper level, I see myself as someone who connects ideas, people, and processes. I specialize in bringing structure to complexity—taking moving parts, competing priorities, and operational challenges, and organizing them into clear, functional, and people-centered solutions.
People often describe me as highly analytical, but also deeply empathetic. I bring both logic and care into the same space and I enjoy stepping into fast-moving environments where I can create clarity, structure, and direction while remaining mindful of the people involved.
Whether I am working in transportation, large-scale event operations, or community media, I approach challenges in a similar way. I look at all the pieces, identify how they relate to one another, and develop solutions that are effective operationally while also improving the experience of the people they serve.
What I am most proud of is my persistence—especially completing my Bachelor degree this past May after a long and discontinuous academic journey, and being accepted into the Master of Science in Transportation Management program at San José State University. Those milestones represent much more than academic achievement to me; they reflect discipline, resilience, and a long-term commitment to personal and professional growth.
What sets me apart is the way I think. I am equally comfortable working through operations and strategy as I am understanding people and communication dynamics. That combination allows me to translate complexity into clarity and build solutions that are both efficient and thoughtful.
What’s next?
One of the things I’m looking forward to is returning to my role as Director of Community Engagement at Pasadena Media after my temporary assignment supporting Venue Transport operations for the FIFA World Cup 2026. Serving the community where I grew up has been one of the most rewarding parts of my career and I’m excited to continue building partnerships, expanding access to information, and helping strengthen community connections.
I also look forward to beginning the Master of Science in Transportation Management program at San José State University, where I’ll continue building the knowledge and skills needed to grow as a transportation professional.
Long term, my goal is to continue advancing within the field of transportation and mobility, particularly in roles that integrate operations, logistics, strategic planning, safety culture, and community impact. I’m especially interested in how multimodal transportation systems and public-private mobility solutions can improve both efficiency and accessibility for the communities they serve.
I also hope to continue bringing my background in communication and community engagement into my transportation work. I’ve learned that strong operations depend not only on technical execution, but also on trust, clarity, and meaningful communication with the people they serve.
More than anything, I’m looking forward to continuing a career that evolves with purpose—one that allows me to grow, contribute, and make a meaningful impact in both transportation and the communities I serve.
Image Credits
Ariel Nava & JK Stanfill
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