President and CEO, JCCI — Jacksonville Community Council Inc.
Mission
JCCI — Jacksonville Community Council Inc. — is a nonpartisan civic organization that engages diverse citizens in open dialogue, research, consensus-building, advocacy and leadership development to improve the quality of life and build a better community in Northeast Florida and beyond.
Serving Jacksonville
Since 1975. Jacksonville-based.
Those served
Every day, JCCI is driven by the bold idea that together we can build a better community. We bring people together to learn about our community, engage in problem-solving and act to make positive change. We provide learning, engagement and action opportunities for all of Northeast Florida. Every year, more than 1,000 volunteers engage with us on one of our many projects.
Biggest challenge
Helping people value the role of participatory democracy: that civic engagement in a shared learning process creates insights that incite change. Too often in our country we substitute activity for thoughtful action, which must always be preceded by both learning and listening. Taking the time to plan an approach, including understanding multiple viewpoints and identifying measurable benchmarks, allows for the kind of community improvement that is accountability-based, not project- or program-centered.
Biggest satisfaction
I’ve been with JCCI in various capacities since 1998 and have seen both the good work we do as well as the transformative impact this organization has made in the community. Since stepping into the CEO role, I’m most excited about the caliber of staff and volunteers who together put the good of the entire Northeast Florida community above their personal interests.
I was introduced to a new word last week, “extrospection,” which is the analysis of matters outside oneself (the opposite of introspection.) For sustainable forward movement, honest inquiry must address both “the unexamined life” and our surroundings, which are too often the “unexamined community.”
Hometown
I grew up in many cities across the country, including Provo, Utah; Miami; Bloomington, Ind.; Bowling Green, Ohio; Baltimore, Md.; Oklahoma City, Okla.; and Brasilia, Brazil. It wasn’t until I moved to Jacksonville that I stayed put long enough to have a “hometown.” I’ve been here 20 years now and think of it as my hometown.
First experience with community service
I grew up with parents who believed strongly in community service, and was active from childhood serving others. My first solo effort was at age 12, when I volunteered for two summers as a “Reader Leader” in our local public library.
Your job before JCCI
I worked with Community Connections here in Jacksonville, and then for Community Opportunities Inc., where I supervised three-day treatment programs statewide for dually diagnosed individuals (people diagnosed both with mental illness and developmental disabilities).
Upcoming events
April 10-11: The Great Give, a 38-hour online giving event to support JCCI’s projects and programs in honor of JCCI’s 38th birthday. The Great Give will run from 7 a.m. April 10 through 9 p.m. April 11.
June 22: 11:30 a.m.-1 p.m., the Schultz Center for Teaching and Leadership. We will release the results of our 71st community inquiry, “Children: 1-2-3,” focusing on helping children succeed from their earliest years. The results reflect input from experts around the country and our volunteers’ best ideas on how Jacksonville can prepare children from birth through age 3 for lifelong success.
Contact information
www.jcci.org
396-3052
[email protected]