Chandley Jackson

LETTER: Dr. Dennis Jackson of the SHC turns 80

Dr. Dennis Jackson, otherwise known as Den, worked at the University of New Mexico Student Health Center for 40 years. That being the case, he’s somewhat of a legend around Albuquerque; many have visited him for medical advice and know his characteristic look from seeing him on and around campus. Den was born on May 6, 1941 and raised in Montgomery, Alabama. He has five brothers, as he’ll sing-songily tell you the order: Biff, Den, Steve, Robert and Randy. His father, Frank, was also a physician (as was his father before him), and his mother Kathleen a nutritionist. They met at Bellevue in New York City while studying in their respective fields. He can recall historic moments growing up, like the civil rights marches in Montgomery with Martin Luther King Jr. and play dates at his friend’s house whose nanny was Rosa Parks. Den attended Vanderbilt University for medical school then eventually made his way west to find more progressive culture after a lifetime of witnessing much racism in the south.