Reverend Dr. Dwaine A. Jackson is a pastor, community builder,  and lifelong servant who believes the church should do more  than preach hope — it should practice it.

He accepted his call to ministry in 1992 at Bethel AME Church in  Los Angeles, where he began working with youth and young  adults. Early on, he focused on mentoring, faith development,  and helping young people see a future bigger than their  circumstances. That focus has never changed.

Over the years, Reverend Jackson has served the church and the  community side by side. He helped launch low-cost and no-cost  programs for families, including The Genesis Day Camp for  youth in South Los Angeles. He is also the co-founder of Rebirth  Youth and Family Center, which provides mentoring and  housing support for young adults impacted by foster care and  the criminal justice system.

His leadership has always lived at the intersection of faith and  real life.

During the 87th Session of the Southern California Conference of the  African Methodist Episcopal Church, Bishop T. Larry Kirkland  appointed Reverend Jackson to his first pastorate at Bethel AME  Church in Barstow, California. After three years of faithful  service, he was appointed to St. James AME Church in Los  Angeles, where he helped establish a homeless shelter,  supported transitional-age youth during winter months, and led  summer meal programs for neighborhood children.

In 2016, under the leadership of Bishop Clement W. Fugh,  Reverend Jackson was appointed pastor of Bryant Temple AME  Church in Los Angeles.

In 2017, Reverend Jackson cofounded the Bryant Temple  Community Development Corporation and has worked to strengthen both the church and its Community Development Corporation. He serves as the Chief Executive Officer leading a team of more than 60 employees drawn directly from the surrounding community. The work of the CDC  is guided by a simple belief he often shares: “If we are a church,  we should have services for the community that we worship in.”

What began as a winter shelter program housing 140 people  expanded into year-round housing through the B-7 program, which has housed more than 800 individuals, followed by mentoring and intervention initiatives for youth  and families. Through grants and partnerships, the CDC  launched Safe Passage (supported by the Amity grant) to  mentor teenagers, RECAST to serve youth involved in the  juvenile justice system offering mental health services, partnerships with Ceasefire for violence  prevention, RAY for justice-impacted individuals, and LISTOS to  support emergency preparedness. Today, the CDC administers  approximately $2.8 million annually in grants and services,  making Bryant Temple a model of faith-based community  impact.

Reverend Jackson is also a trained clinician and administrator.  He holds a Bachelor of Arts in Social Science from Wilberforce  University, a Master of Arts in Clinical Psychology from Antioch  University, a Master of Divinity and Doctorate of Ministry from Payne Theological  Seminary. He has spent more than  two decades working in social services and currently serves in

leadership with SHIELDS for Families and multiple community  boards.

He is a proud member of Alpha Phi Alpha Fraternity, Inc., and a  firm believer that leadership means showing up — especially  when no one is watching.

Ask him what his greatest accomplishment is, and he won’t list  titles or degrees. He’ll tell you this instead:

He fell in love with Jesus — and then tried to live like it  mattered.