She was not a hippie, but she loved peace, and she made sure to stand up for it.

Activism for justice and fairness were a part of both the personal and professional life of Lila Jacobs, professor of educational leadership and president of the Sacramento State chapter of the California Faculty Association.

Jacobs, who died of cancer on June 27, had been teaching at Sac State since 1990.

“She really was a tireless worker and you could always count on her to get things done and make sure that everything was followed through on,” said Kevin Wehr, professor of sociology and CFA chapter president who served under Jacobs. “She was dedicated to her students and making a difference through her students and through her community.”

Jacobs founded the Urban Leadership Program in 1996, which is devoted in training and graduating leaders who can improve urban schools and communities, and was actively involved with the program as the coordinator until her death.

“It was exciting and challenging in a positive way working with her,” said Francisco Reveles, educational leadership and policy studies department chair. “She did not tolerate mediocrity and challenged everyone who worked around her.”

Through the Urban Leadership Program, Jacobs was not only involved with the Sac State community, but she reached out to the communities outside of the campus, working with students and community residents from different backgrounds and classes.

“She had students all over campus and spread out in the community doing work for K through 12 education,” Wehr said. “Everywhere you went, all the school districts and schools, you could find her old mentees and students doing the work making lives better for other people.”

To Reveles, Jacobs was a “spiritual and intellectual” leader who he knew was not afraid to mix things up or work for a cause.

“I told her that if I ever got incarcerated for my views, she would be the first one with a bull horn organizing the street masses to release me,” he said.

Jacobs was easy going and got along with everyone well, Wehr said, but she knew when to take a stand.

“(Jacobs) was always the one to stand up. She had very strong ethical principal and she was also a strong union activist,” he said.

Whether she agreed with them or not, Jacobs reached out to others.

“One of the things she always did and insisted at union meetings and events was that we take good care of our activists and our student participants,” Wehr said. “She always insisted on having chocolate there.”

Through her classes and the Urban Leadership Program, she emphasized to her students and colleagues that activism could not be done sitting still.

“She really wanted to walk our talk,” Reveles said. “When we talked about diversity and equality, she was the one who held us accountable.”

As an activist who enjoyed others with different views, she let her students lead class discussions and debates on issues of justice and fairness.

“Her classes were very inspirational,” said Patricia Holmes, administrative support coordinator for the Sac State social work division and former student of Jacobs. “Her desire to change urban communities was the inspiration for us to bring positive changes.”

During her classes, Jacobs had discussions about peace, justice and fairness.

“She had discussions about the issues in front of us and mattered to us,” Holmes said.

Jacobs’ commitment to her students and programs, Holmes said, was motivating to those around her.

Along with being an educator, Jacobs enjoyed and shared her knowledge and experience by being a mentor to students and colleagues.

Jacobs was “one of the best mentors” he ever had, Reveles said, and he owes his success as the department chair in part to her.

“She appealed to higher sense of purpose in the programs with students,” Reveles said.

While Jacobs made clear of her views to those around her, she welcomed diversity and invited others to speak up.

“She was a relentless pursuer of justice. She was very passionate about equality and justice,” said Cecil Canton, professor of criminal justice and associate vice president of the statewide CFA.

Jacobs set high standards, Canton said, she wanted to challenge her students.

“She was consistently challenging people to be better than they want to be,” he said.

As an educator, Jacobs insisted on teaching students more than just textbook material.

“(Jacobs) knew that life was hard. So she wanted people to be ready for the struggles,” Reveles said. “I think that led to her higher expectation in classrooms.”

While she spoke passionately for activism and justice, Jacobs also taught students to be compassionate.

“She wanted her students to be understanding of those who may not have had the same privilege as they did,” Canton said. “She was a person who really fought to understand others.”

With the CFA, which represents faculty members of the California State University system, Jacobs led the group by not giving in to conformity.

“She got us out of the intellectual model that things are either this or that,” Canton said. “She consistently reminded us that things didn’t have to be either or; that they could be ‘and.'”

At the July 9 celebration of Jacobs’ life in the Redwood Room in the University Union, attendees were encouraged to donate to the Dr. Lila Jacobs Urban Leadership Scholarship Fund instead of flowers.

“Lila was an extraordinary person; she was a great activist and educator,” Wehr said.

Her colleagues agree that Jacobs brought attention to the students and faculty the equality and civil rights issues that are important to a diverse campus community such as Sac State’s.

“I think she raised the level of consciousness about issues of justice and equality on campus,” Canton said. “She was an advocate. She was definitely a fighter.”

Miyu Kataoka can be reached at [email protected].