The Programs Team partners with schools, community centers, businesses, other nonprofits, and community leaders to ensure JAG programs and resources are accessible for young people aged 13-21. The team also supports coordinators in their respective JAG programs with data collection, assistance programs, event planning, and coordinating guest speakers/field trips/other career exploration activities with our volunteers and Employer Partners.
Shiya “Shi” Pillars (she/her) joined JAG in 2016 as a coordinator for Sierra Linda HS and is now bringing her wealth of knowledge and passion for JAG to fulfilling the role of programs manager for high school JAG programs.
Born and raised in Chicago, IL, Shi and her family relocated to Arizona in 2016. Pillars has a Bachelor’s in Business Administration with a concentration in Management from Robert Morris University and a Master of Science in Education with a concentration in Special Education and Reading Specialist from Quincy University.
She believes in the power of learning—she enjoys learning new things and considers herself a lifelong learner. During the pandemic, she became a licensed Real Estate agent, a Commissioned Notary Public, and Certified Grant Writer.
Pillars began her career in education in 2004, working with special needs students. Shortly after relocating to Arizona, she became a JAG Program Coordinator for Sierra Linda HS, where she received the Outstanding Coordinator Award and the 5-of-5 Award for multiple years.
Under her tutelage, the Sierra Linda JAG program won multiple awards yearly, including 1st Runner-Up for Program of the Year and 1st Place Career Association of the Year. Seeing the positive impact that JAG has on students (including her own son) and the happiness that the program brings to coordinators, Pillars decided to join the Central Office team as a program manager.
She and her husband are affectionately called “JAG Mom and JAG Dad” by her students. Outside of JAG, they are parents to one son, two daughters, and a sassy fur pup.
Pillars’ favorite JAG theme is “Bring Your Passion, Discover Your Purpose.” She is committed to helping every student discover their purpose by believing in their ideas and supporting their programs and coordinators.
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