With great joy and gratitude, Georgina Sakyi, a graduate of Calhoun High School in Port Lavaca, Texas, graduates with her doctoral degree in School Psychology from the University of Houston in Houston in August 2024. Sakyi grew up in both Cuero and Port Lavaca under the guidance and support of her grandparents – Johnal and Viola Holman, Lois McFadden – and her parents – Paul and Taberoha (Tab) Jackson. Growing up, Sakyi was known for her voice, performing in school and church choirs, as well as her academic accomplishments as a member of the National Junior Honor Society at Travis Middle School and the National Honor Society at Calhoun.
Graduating from high school in the top 6% of her class, Sakyi completed a bachelor’s degree in psychology with a minor in addictive disorders and recovery studies from Texas Tech University in Lubbock, Texas. There, Sakyi developed a passion for working with families raising children with autism spectrum disorder and other neurodevelopmental disabilities. Sakyi went directly into her doctoral program at the University of Houston, where along the way she earned her master’s degree in counseling. In Houston, Sakyi had the privilege of training in public school districts, a community behavioral health pediatric feeding disorders clinic, and an integrated primary care clinic at Texas Children’s Hospital, currently the No. 3 pediatric hospital in the country.
Sakyi also became an accomplished researcher and published author of peer-reviewed articles. Her research largely centers around health disparities and other family experiences for children with developmental disabilities from socioeconomically, culturally, and linguistically diverse backgrounds.
