A Message from Dr. Jeff Graham, New CEO of Lorain City Schools
The Lorain City Schools welcome Dr. Jeff Graham as their new CEO, a position he started mid-June. Dr. Graham began his career in education as a Physics teacher before being tapped as an assistant principal and then principal of Medina High School. He has served as a superintendent since 2003, leading improvement in Woodridge Local Schools, Parma City Schools, Lorain City Schools, Cleveland Metropolitan School District, and Canton City Schools. Dr. Graham's collaborative leadership style has helped recreate school districts by bringing people together to pass levies, build critical community partnerships, expand wraparound services, improve communication and engagement, and increase opportunities for students to achieve. His commitment to transparency and open communication can be seen through his regularly scheduled listening sessions with various student groups, staff luncheons, parent forums, and open dialogue sessions throughout the community. Jeff and his wife Erin recently purchased a home in Lorain. Together they have five children: AJ (27), Paige (25), Taryn (15), Cooper (12), and Calvin (9) and two very large, very fluffy dogs. You can learn more about Dr. Graham at jeffgraham.org and jeffgrahamblogs.com. Dr. Graham – who insists we call him "just Jeff" – shared the following blog with us about the role our public schools play in the fight for equity:
Photos provided by Lorain City Schools
I almost never get on social media, but I needed to experience how our children are learning about and experiencing current events. It is difficult to imagine what it must be like for children right now - quarantined in their homes with little social interaction beyond their families, and their phones.
"It's OK," she said in a reassuring way that was beyond her years. "We're watching it all on social media, and signing petitions. We know there's not much we can do yet. We're always being told that Generation Z is going to change the world, but really, every generation changes the world." Then she raised her eyebrows as if to question why the generations before her chose to change the world - or not change the world - in quite this way. As an educator, my deep wish is that school could be in session right now. Not the "school of hard knocks" the year 2020 seems so desperate to enroll us in -- I'm talking about the purity of a classroom filled with young minds representing different backgrounds and unique influences, all present with a common understanding: we are here to learn from one another.
Lorain Local Magazine | page 39
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This subject came up earlier today with my 15-year-old daughter, who, when asked how she and her friends were doing right now, simply shrugged her shoulders in that way that teenagers do.
