True Carolina Blue: Jessica Banks Gilmour Aylor
by Jean Coble, MPA External Relations Coordinator
Three days before graduation, I sat down to have coffee with Jess Aylor. The time flew by, as Jess shared the story of how
she got to UNC’s MPA Program.
Jess was born in Charlotte and later moved to South Carolina, before settling in Henderson, North Carolina, which she calls home. She describes Henderson as a supportive community. When asked what led her to public service, she points to her family. “I grew up hearing stories of my grandfather as mayor of Sanford, North Carolina,” she explains. “My family has always taken an interest in local government and volunteered on nonprofit boards and community service projects. My mom has kept that up.”
Jess received her undergraduate degree in music from the University of Virginia.
She studied ethnomusicology, the study of music in different cultures. Her field of interest was India. Jess came to the MPA Program with nine years of work experience. “My first job out of undergraduate school was really four jobs—two paid, two volunteer. I wasn’t ready to leave Charlottesville. I worked in a jewelry shop and played violin in a summer music festival at James Monroe’s Ash Lawn-Highland Plantation. I was also the unpaid media intern for the festival, which sparked my interest in arts administration. My second unpaid job was co-founding and managing a chamber symphony. I handled personnel, bookings,
and promotion. My first full-time paid job was as marketing assistant with Theater IV, a nonprofit, professional theater for young audiences in Richmond.”
Jess later worked for the Richmond Symphony and Wolf Trap National Park for the Performing Arts in the greater Washington area. When asked how she got back to North Carolina, Jess said she wanted to move closer to family, so she
took a position in the development office at NC State University. “Working there
was an incredible experience that broadened my horizons,” she explains. “I got
to see how universities play an economic development role in our state. I could also see the ceiling I was going to hit without more education, and knew I needed to return to school.” Jess happened to work in the same building as Andy Willis ’94, who became a mentor to her.
The MPA experience has been a good one for Jess. “My cohort is full of personality,” she says. “We worked hard, but we have had a lot of fun and created great memories. For example, my local government productivity class did the wave in the computer lab before our final exam, much to the surprise of David Ammons!” During the summer before her second year in the program, Jess got married. “For that reason too, I will always remember my MPA time with special fondness,” she says.
Jess was able to use work experience and class projects to her advantage. “UNC’s MPA Program was a great fit. I liked the small cohort size and knew I needed to be a full-time student to immerse myself in the education process. When I came here I planned to focus on nonprofit management and didn’t see a role for me in local government. I can now see how cultural resources fit into both. My productivity class project focused on the artist relocation program in a city’s planning department. I have gotten a lot of mileage from this experience in job interviews. Through my Capstone, I examined how cultural districts have developed in North Carolina. I focused on
lessons from three cities: Wilson, Winston-Salem, and Charlotte. This project has
also received great interest from towns, arts councils, and downtown development corporations across the state.”
The adjustment to school after years of work was significant for Jess. “Returning
to school meant I would lose a good income, so the combination of scholarships
and work study was critical to my decision. In my first year in the program, I
received a Nanette Mengel Scholarship and worked in the School’s Development Office with Ann Simpson, the associate dean. My summer internship was with Regional Technology Strategies, an economic and workforce development research firm in Carrboro.” Jess continued working for the same firm during her second year, and she received a Nanette Mengel Scholarship that year as well. “Without scholarships and work study opportunities, I might not have returned to school.”
Jess received her MPA degree on May 13. What are her plans now? “I’m looking
for the right job that will tap both my work experience and public administration
studies,” she says. “I am particularly interested in the role of cultural resources
and creativity in building healthy, vibrant communities in North Carolina.”
This profile was first published in the Spring 2007 issue of Impact newsletter.
