Takisha Jones is a native Detroiter who was proudly raised on the city's east side and a graduate from the University of Detroit Mercy. Takisha Jones is a passionate social justice advocate and humanitarian who throughout her career has seen how households were impacted because of the effects that generational barriers such as housing insecurity, poverty, addiction, unaddressed mental health needs and access to equitable resources has placed on households. Through her 25 years of working in the human services field, Takisha has used her experiences as her drive to diligently serve communities and stand as an influencer and powerhouse of change.

 

During Takisha’s vast career experience, she has served as a case manager and juvenile probation officer advocating for children and families while strongly promoting family preservation through the juvenile court system. As a manager in the mental health arena Takisha stayed true to her beliefs as she empowered independence and advocated for equality and normalcy for adults with intellectual, developmental, and physical needs. As a shelter Program Director, she was an active advocate for families, singles, survivors of domestic and sexual assault and veteran households who were experiencing housing insecurity to become stably housed and mentored how navigate the local systems of care, while voicing through action that stable housing is the foundation of where all other needs meet success. She was successful in navigating the shelter to “Low Barrier practices”.

 

In both her former role as a Regional Manager and her current role as the Supervisor of the Salvation Army MDHHS Emergency Shelter Program, Takisha continues to advocate for changes in programmatic policies and practices within the homeless systems of care and work alongside with MDHHS, Salvation Army leadership and in collaboration with and Local partners to influence those changes. Takisha believes that it is "Not your start in life that dictates your success, it's how you handle the bumps in the road that you incur getting to the finish line". It is this belief that has cultivated Takisha's passion and drive in her career choices and being an example of how to successfully survive the bumps in the road to make it to the finish line.