Emmitt R Jolly

Emmitt R Jolly, Ph.D.  

         Shaker Heights School Board

I have lived in Shaker Heights for almost 11 years and I have two children that have gone through the Shaker Heights school system, Mercer, Woodbury, the Middle School, and the high school. My qualifications to serve Shaker Heights as a School Board member are broad and diverse and include my many years of education at multiple level from middle school to postgraduate education. I have been honored and recognized for my teaching and also for my leadership with a proclamation from the governor of Alabama and an award of leadership from the California State Senate. I campaigned for increased federal funding for graduate education in CA which put me face to face in meetings with Senators Barbara Feinstein and Nancy Pelosi, and then Vice President Al Gore. I have written science curriculum, taught bioentrepreneurship, and represented scientists as the Keynote Speaker for the Cleveland “March for Science,” I have managed millions of dollars of funding either through grants that I have secured from the National Institutes of Health, the Burroughs Wellcome foundation and an education-based not for profit organization I cofounded in 2007. In these leadership roles and others, I am accustomed to making every single dollar count in a practical and fiscally responsible manner.

I have enjoyed serving on the search committee for the current Shaker superintendent, of serving as a chaperone for the SH Band trip to Italy, and on ski trips with the middle school. I have also enjoyed judging science presentations, hosting the parties for the SH drumline and the girls volleyball team, and simply mentoring Shaker students.

Finally, having personally progressed from chopping cotton in Alabama cotton fields to chopping genes in my own Case Western laboratory, I very much understand the importance and the significance of a quality education, a reason I choose to invest wisely in Shaker Schools.

I am proud to serve you as a member of the Shaker Heights School Board and I appreciate all the support I am receiving forms many members of the community. We are working to continue to make Shaker Schools even better.

 

About

I am having an amazing time meeting so many people in the Shaker community. Now that elections are over, let me thank you for your positive support and for sharing your advice and interests in the Shaker Schools. We still have much work to do to ensure our schools remain the national model for an exceptional and diverse educational experience.

My name is Dr Emmitt Jolly. My wife Stacey and I have been  Shaker residents for almost 11 years and we have two students in Shaker schools. While voting for me has ended, I am asking for you to stay engaged with your community and vote to ensure your opinion is heard. It really does matter. (Register to vote here: https://olvr.ohiosos.gov)

As an Educator, Motivational Speaker, Innovative Thinker, and a NIH-funded Scientist,  I have experience interacting with students from primary to postgraduate levels and from a broad spectrum of social, ethnic and economic backgrounds. I have trained tutors, mentors, students and teachers. In addition, I have managed and served as a leader of several nonprofit organizations, been involved in community service and strategic planning, started businesses, managed large accounts, and I have been engaged in positive transformation under challenging conditions.

I believe in working with the community, with teachers and with students. As an Educator, I support a teacher’s academic freedom and experience; as a lifetime Learner, I support every student’s right to equitable education; as a Leader, I understand that complex challenges require innovative and bold solutions;  and as a Tax Payer, I expect transparent, strategic, and  responsible fiscal policy.

I ask for your continued support for me and my colleagues on the Shaker Heights School board, to use our combined  experience and leadership to work for you and the School District.