Jackson Five Enjoys Family, Home at Harvard

As a first-year, when Benjamin T. Jackson ’03 wondered why his parents, Isaiah Jackson ’66 and Helen T. Jackson, had not made advance hotel reservations for his graduation, they initially mentioned the possibility of relocating to Boston.

“I sort of laughed it off, thinking they weren’t serious—little did I know,” Ben jokes.

But four years later, as he prepares to graduate today, his entire family is living here on campus in various capacities.

His parents have spent the last year as visiting resident scholars in the Lowell House Senior Common Room (SCR) and his two sisters are both undergraduates— Katharine E. Jackson ’04 is a Quincy House resident and Caroline E. Jackson ’06 lived in Apley this year.

Ben, a linguistics concentrator in Mather House and the music director of both City Step and the a cappella group the Callbacks, had Harvard to himself for a year before his sister arrived—but it was only this last year that the entire family was reunited in the 02138 zip code.

After all his siblings had earned admission to Harvard, Ben’s parents announced that they too would be following the family into Cambridge.

As music director of the Pro Arte Chamber Orchestra, which performs regularly in Sanders Theater, and a fellow at the W.E.B. DuBois Institute, Isaiah had been a member of the Lowell SCR. The Lowell House masters invited the couple to live in residence as visiting scholars.

Isaiah recalls thinking, “What a wonderful way to move to Boston!”

While they felt that Dayton, Ohio was a great place to raise children it was “not the most enlightening place to spend your middle age,” Ben says.

At first, the arrival of the Jackson parents on campus met with a mixed reaction from their children.

“One of the worst fears that any college student would have, is ‘What if my parents are here and see me doing something I shouldn’t be doing’?” Ben says.

He says he was lucky, however, that he was already 21 and so he had less to worry about.

Caroline was less thrilled, as she “was not too keen on the idea of her parents following her to college,” Ben says.

Kate, who had always harbored the idea of studying abroad, found her parents’ arrival the appropriate time for her departure. She spent her first junior semester in Australia.

The Jackson parents, for their part, say they approached the unique situation with caution—they didn’t want to impose too much.

“They weren’t going to say ‘Hey kids, come over to dinner every week at this time and we’ll hang out.’ They wanted it to be on our terms,” Ben says. “We were certainly welcome whenever we wanted to go.”

Indeed the Jackson family gathered for Wednesday and Sunday showings of the crime drama “Law & Order.”

Despite his initial caution, Ben says he came to enjoy the situation. With his own key to the Lowell House family apartment, Ben had access to a full fridge, comfortable furniture, a fax machine, a car and the occasional home-cooked meal.

“Ben kind of enjoyed it. He loved it because he could watch TV while his laundry was being done for free, and raid the refrigerator and have a bigger space to relax in,” Helen says.

There have been other advantages, too. When the Callbacks found themselves with too many singers and too few beds this year for Commencement, Ben’s parents provided the much-needed housing and much-appreciated food.

The downside—if there is one for the Jackson children—is that their parents have become more involved in their academic lives.

“Our parents keep us on our toes,” Ben says. “They know my professors, they ask me multiple questions about the reading assignments they know I have and the papers they know I am supposed to be writing.”

Overall, though, the Jackson family say they’ve treasured the opportunity for a reunion under one—albeit very large—roof.

“I think they got a big kick out off all being here,” Helen says. “It has been a long time since everyone has been in the same space.”

—Staff writer Faryl W. Ury can be reached at ury@fas.harvard.edu.