Marijuana Pepsi Vandyck ( Jackson) is an American educational professional. Vandyck earned her Ph.D. from

Cardinal Stritch University Cardinal Stritch University was a private Catholic university with its primary campus in Fox Point and Glendale, Wisconsin, United States. Its enrollment as of fall 2021 was 1,365. The university closed in May 2023 due to financial challenges a ...

in 2019 with a dissertation on uncommon black names in the classroom.

Early life and name

Marijuana Pepsi Jackson was born in 1972 to Aaron and Maggie (Brandy) Jackson, who chose her name. She lived in

Chicago, Illinois Chicago is the List of municipalities in Illinois, most populous city in the U.S. state of Illinois and in the Midwestern United States. With a population of 2,746,388, as of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, it is the List of Unite ...

until she was nine years old; then she moved to

Beloit, Wisconsin Beloit ( ) is a city in Rock County, Wisconsin, United States. As of the 2020 census, the city had a population of 36,657 people. Beloit is a principal city of the Janesville, Wisconsin, Janesville–Beloit metropolitan statistical area (Rock Co ...

to live with her mother after her parents separated. She has two sisters, Kimberly and Robin. She first realized her name was unusual at age nine. She said her mother told her "your name will take you around the world", and that her mother insisted on correcting a school spelling bee award certificate that read "Mary Jackson". She described being bullied in high school over her name, crediting her family with helping her learn to embrace the name. She moved out of her mother's house at age 15, staying with friends and focusing on school. She graduated from Beloit Memorial High School in 1990 and received a scholarship for college at

University of Wisconsin–Whitewater The University of Wisconsin–Whitewater (UW–Whitewater or UWW) is a public university in Whitewater, Wisconsin, United States. It is part of the University of Wisconsin System. As of Fall 2024, the university offers 47 undergraduate majors ...

. She majored in education and became a teacher after graduation. While she was teaching elementary school in Atlanta, she studied for a masters degree at

Georgia Southern Georgia Southern University (informally known as Southern or Georgia Southern) is a public research university in the U.S. state of Georgia. The largest campus is in Statesboro, with additional campuses in Savannah ( Armstrong Campus) and Hine ...

, then returned to Beloit with her young son from her first marriage.

Education

Vandyck earned her bachelor's degree from University of Wisconsin–Whitewater. After two semesters and a summer, she earned her master's degree from Georgia Southern University, before earning her Ph.D. in Leadership for the Advancement of Learning and Service in Higher Education from

in May 2019. Her dissertation, titled "Black names in white classrooms: Teacher behaviors and student perceptions," was inspired by prejudice she saw while working as a teacher. A co-worker had complained that her upcoming class would do poorly, based on the list of students with mostly "black-sounding" names.

Career

Having previously worked as a teacher, Vandyck currently directs a program for first-generation, disabled and low-income students at

Beloit College Beloit College is a private liberal arts college in Beloit, Wisconsin, United States. Founded in 1846 when Wisconsin was still a territory, it is the state's oldest continuously operated college. It has an enrollment of roughly 1,000 undergradua ...

, in addition to owning a Performance Coaching Agency. In the fall of 2019, Vandyck sponsored the Marijuana Pepsi Scholarship for first-generation African-American students at UW–Whitewater.

Personal life

Vandyck was previously married to a Mr. Sawyer. The couple lived in Atlanta and had a son in the early 2000s. Their marriage ended in divorce and Vandyck returned to her hometown of Beloit, Wisconsin. As of 2019, Vandyck is married to Fredrick Vandyck. They live on a farm in

Pecatonica, Illinois Pecatonica is a village in Winnebago County, Illinois, United States. It is part of the Rockford, Illinois Metropolitan Statistical Area. The population was 2,195 at the 2010 census, up from 1,997 in 2000. History The village was named aft ...

, with her son and his three children from a previous relationship.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Vandyck, Marijuana Pepsi Living people University of Wisconsin–Whitewater alumni Georgia Southern University alumni Cardinal Stritch University alumni Educators from Chicago People from Beloit, Wisconsin People from Pecatonica, Illinois 1972 births 21st-century African-American academics 21st-century American academics Educators from Wisconsin