Jessie Harney

Jessie Harney

Board Chair, Director of Public Policy

jessie@sanquentinskunkworks.org

Jessie Harney’s path to Board Chair and Director of Public Policy at San Quentin SkunkWorks is rooted in a blend of research and a drive for tangible, evidence-based reform. A graduate of UC Berkeley Goldman School of Public Policy PhD and current Assistant Professor at Colorado State, Jessie’s expertise in public policy is not just academic, thus, her reason for joining San Quentin SkunkWorks.

At SkunkWorks, she helps guide the Impact Teams strategies, resulting in programs that are reshaping the landscape of justice reform. Her work, including research to understand how to
improve the mental health and well-being of correctional officers and how that influences the way they do their jobs, informs her advocacy. Jessie is deeply honored to learn from and with the incredible team that is San Quentin SkunkWorks and hopes that policymaking can follow models like SkunkWorks is building.

If you would like to know more about Jessie, you can visit her website here or find her CV here.