Hometown Hillsdale: Jackie Sullivan, ’87

Written by Stephanie Gordon

Jackie Zielinski Sullivan, ’87, devised a clever phrase when she worked for Admissions more than 30 years ago. “Choose your college carefully because you may never leave,” she would say to prospective students. Jackie’s phrase could not be more true for her Hometown Hillsdale story.

In 1983, the Warren, Michigan, native came to Hillsdale College from Fitzgerald High School. After a campus visit, Jackie knew Hillsdale was where she wanted to be. “I was accepted to other colleges complete with scholarships, but after I visited Hillsdale, it just felt right,” said Jackie. “The campus was beautiful, and the people were friendly. I knew Hillsdale was a place where I could get involved and be a leader.”

Jackie did just that. The English major and psychology minor was active in Chi Omega, the Collegian, yearbook, and cheerleading for football and basketball (along with close friend Kelly Lantis, ’86). She was also Panhellenic Council president her sophomore year and a Lamplighter (senior women’s honorary). “I remember that I had fun, loved everything I was involved in, and learned so much,” Jackie smiled. “I really learned how to think at Hillsdale. It made me stronger so I could defend my beliefs, and it also helped me to understand why I think the way I do.”

After graduation, Jackie was recruited to work at the College by former Director of Admissions Tom Conner. “It was a great year of growth focusing on independence, time management, and marketing the college that I loved,” Jackie said of her first year in Admissions. “I never thought I would be here for more than a year, until I met my husband, Tim.”

Jackie went out on a date with Tim, a 1985 alumnus, and six weeks later, Tim started a fundraising job with the College. The two married in 1990 on Hillsdale’s campus and have called Hillsdale home ever since. “I was still giving admissions tours when I was pregnant with our first child,” Jackie recalled. “Then, I stayed at home with our four children, Patrick, Peter, Maeve, and Nolan, until Nolan was in first grade.”

After Nolan went to grade school, Jackie stayed busy with her children and their Hillsdale Academy activities, as well as her career and local government involvement, working as Hillsdale Township clerk until 2016. Currently, Jackie is a district sales manager for Aflac, owns and operates two Airbnbs—one in Hillsdale and one in South Haven, Michigan—and acts as Hillsdale Township supervisor. She also sits on the Chi Omega Alumnae Board and has been a Woman Commissioner for over 15 years.

“I love to give back in this way because the Women Commissioners helped me so much as a student,” said Jackie. “Former Dean of Women CarolAnn Barker, a mentor and role model, assisted me with the different kinds of funding the College offered, and the Women Commissioners Kneen Scholarship made such a difference in my life.”

Betty Kneen invited Jackie to be a Woman Commissioner 15 years ago. “It was a full-circle moment,” Jackie said. “It’s been so fun to work with women from the community like Betty, Jan Brodbeck, ’67, and Louise Worms, ’71. I’ve also really enjoyed being on the Charger Derby steering committee. It’s rewarding to have great relationships with women I admire.”

And now that Jackie and Tim’s children are grown, they have more freedom to experience things like traveling and to settle into their new phase of life. “Hillsdale feels like home, and we always enjoy returning to Hillsdale,” said Jackie. “Our relationships from college have been so important, and we’ve experienced new ones along the way. It’s all been a blessing to us.”

Something special about living in Hillsdale, according to Jackie, is the warmth and concern of the community. “People show up and support you and love you in good times and bad times,” she said. “I am so happy to live here, and we have no plans to live anywhere else.” 

Luckily, Jackie heeded her own advice, chose Hillsdale College carefully, and never left the place that shaped her.

Stephanie Gordon, a lifelong Hillsdale native, is the managing editor of Virtue and Valor: The Official Blog of Hillsdale College. She is married to chiropractor, Dr. Matt Gordon, and has three children – Eloise, Flora, and Jack. When she has a spare moment, she enjoys paleo baking, floating on Baw Beese Lake, and breaking a sweat at the gym.

Published in June 2025