Exploring Life & Business with Jashell Mitchell-Cross of Invisible Giants Legacy & Leadership Foundation

Today we’d like to introduce you to Jashell Mitchell-Cross

Hi Jashell , so excited to have you on the platform. So before we get into questions about your work-life, maybe you can bring our readers up to speed on your story and how you got to where you are today?
Started playing basketball at Bunche elementary school. Went on to play at Longfellow Middle School, then to Flint Northern HS where we became the back to back Girls Basketball State Champions in 1944-1995. I went on to play Division I college basketball at Bethune-Cookman University in Daytona Beach, FL. I started my professional career at the University of Arizona as Director of Women’s Basketball Operations. I then went back to BCU as Athletic Academic Advisor, then to University of Memphis as Athletic Administration, then to NC Central University as the Director of Football Operations. At the time I was one of no more than ten women who held the position at the Division I level. While at NC Central I was invited to the NFL Womens Careers in Football Forum by Sam Rapoport and the Football Operations staff. In 2018, I was hired at the NFL League office to oversee our HBCU Relations depart and the NFL Experienceship program that allowed HBCU students to get career experience at the Super Bowl, Pro Bowl, Draft, and Combine. After my time at the NFL, I returned home to Michigan to take care of my dad during COVID. I worked at Rocket Companies as the Senior University Relations Manager. I provided HBCU students paid internships with paid housing in Detroit, MI. After Rocket I became the Chief of Staff at Jackson State University Football.

December of 2023, I married my husband Mario Cross a veteran from Flint, MI that works for the State of Michigan. We had to pivot my career and I came home to become a Development Officer at the Community Foundation of Greater Flint. I currently work as the foundation, as a few of my responsibilities are the Flint Promise program, the Floyd McCree Legacy Fund, Gen Forward Network, and working on a CFGF Sports Philanthropy Fund.

I’m sure it wasn’t obstacle-free, but would you say the journey has been fairly smooth so far?
It has not been a smooth road. There has been many pivots in my education and career. Being a woman in male dominated areas has been a testimony to my perseverance. I have a love for sports and the student-athlete experience but it definitely stretch you mentally and physically. Throughout my career I had to make choices, living far away from family, missing holidays, etc. But overall it helped my education and career, which led to lasting relationships and friends for life.

As you know, we’re big fans of Invisible Giants Legacy & Leadership Foundation. For our readers who might not be as familiar what can you tell them about the brand?
Invisible Giants Legacy & Leadership Foundation is an organization that assist the Flint community with resources in the areas of education, recreation, and sports. We assist with items such as sports equipment for athletic teams, educational assistance such as college readiness, recruitment to sports teams, and Name Image Likeness information. What sets us apart is our board has a variety of experience in areas of health/wellness, arts culture and entertainment, as well as higher ed administration and community impact. We would love for the community to know that we are working hard behind the scenes to assist the Flint community in various ways. We are park adopters at Iroquois Park, and we take pride in our community. Our website is invisiblegiantsflint.com there you can view who we are, what we do, and how you can donate to our organization to continue the work in the Flint community.

Any big plans?
Plans for the future are to acquire a community building to continue our work through Invisible Giants Legacy & Leadership Foundation. We have an exciting 2025 planned for community activation and collaboration with community groups to offer Flint much need community resources in education, recreation, and sports.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://invisiblegiantsflint.com
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/groups/735413787369130