Jordan Hatcher – Alumni Spotlight, Class of 2012
Jordan Hatcher (she/her) has stayed quite busy since graduating with her BA in 2012! Jordan applied her International Studies major and Certificate in Gender and Woman’s Studies in service as a community health volunteer with the Peace Corps in both Senegal and South Africa on HIV, malaria, and maternal health projects. From there, Jordan spent several years in the Washington D.C. area completing her MPH at Johns Hopkins University and working with the United Nations Foundation Family Planning 2020 initiative where she coordinated stakeholders across government, civil society, and philanthropy to advance national family planning goals in 13 countries.
Currently, Jordan is based in Chicago and serves as the Program Director for Implementing Contraceptive Access Now (ICAN!), a nonprofit organization working to de-silo, de-stigmatize, and normalize birth control as basic healthcare. ICAN! uses a systems change approach to ensure on-the-books policies translate to on-the-ground access so no matter where a person lives, who they love, or how much money they make, ensuring access to birth control, and STI and related care without financial barriers. Knowing that reproductive rights and access will face continued attacks in the years ahead, Jordan has prioritized strengthening her leadership skills to meet this moment and is currently an Obama Leader USA 24-25. The Obama Leaders USA program equips 100 U.S. based leaders to expand their impact through pluralism over polarization to help build a strong democratic culture and create lasting change for their communities. In Jordan’s free time, she can be found reading, cooking new vegetarian recipes, running (she finished her first marathon in Chicago in October and will be back this year!), and volunteering with the Chicago Abortion Fund as a Steering Committee Member of their Movement Building Cohort – a dedicated team of volunteers working to build power through political education, public programming and mutual aid, and fundraising for abortion.
Significantly! I was always drawn to women’s health courses so it’s no surprise I went on to pursue a career in public health that focused specifically on reproductive health access and equity. The theory of intersectionality that I learned during my Gender and Women’s Studies coursework also plays a meaningful role in my day-to-day and thinking about how I can bring a Reproductive Justice lens to my work. To me, Reproductive Justice means thinking about the overlapping systems of oppression that prevent people from being able to make decisions on their own bodies, families, and healthcare, especially people of color and those with fewer resources. In the context of contraceptive access this means asking questions like – Is someone’s preferred method of birth control available in a geographic area that allows them to access it? Can they afford it? Do they have paid time off of work to make it to that appointment? What about accessible transportation and childcare? Did their provider counsel them on all birth control options based on what’s important to that patient – or what’s important to the provider? Was the counseling provided in a language that was accessible to the patient? Is the provider really listening to what the patient says they need, including not using birth control at all? Maybe this is really a conversation on beginning or expanding their family, accessing abortion care, or being connected to infertility assistance. This means ensuring providers have been trained on identifying their own bias, understanding the history of reproductive coercion that’s taken place in this country and persists today, to viewing the patient in front of them as an expert and capable decision-maker on what’s best for them based on their unique life needs and circumstances.
How does Gender and Women’s Studies/LGBTQ+ studies matter in the day-to-day of your professional life?
Significantly! I was always drawn to women’s health courses so it’s no surprise I went on to pursue a career in public health that focused specifically on reproductive health access and equity. The theory of intersectionality that I learned during my Gender and Women’s Studies coursework also plays a meaningful role in my day-to-day and thinking about how I can bring a Reproductive Justice lens to my work. To me, Reproductive Justice means thinking about the overlapping systems of oppression that prevent people from being able to make decisions on their own bodies, families, and healthcare, especially people of color and those with fewer resources. In the context of contraceptive access this means asking questions like – Is someone’s preferred method of birth control available in a geographic area that allows them to access it? Can they afford it? Do they have paid time off of work to make it to that appointment? What about accessible transportation and childcare? Did their provider counsel them on all birth control options based on what’s important to that patient – or what’s important to the provider? Was the counseling provided in a language that was accessible to the patient? Is the provider really listening to what the patient says they need, including not using birth control at all? Maybe this is really a conversation on beginning or expanding their family, accessing abortion care, or being connected to infertility assistance. This means ensuring providers have been trained on identifying their own bias, understanding the history of reproductive coercion that’s taken place in this country and persists today, to viewing the patient in front of them as an expert and capable decision-maker on what’s best for them based on their unique life needs and circumstances.