Dear Alumni:
Staff Spotlight
Posted by John Weyer on June 23, 2009
Every quarter we will highlight a Blandin Foundation Leadership staff in our “Staff Spotlight” section. This quarter we are pleased to shine our Spotlight on Jackson Huntley.
Education: I earned a B.S. from Wisconsin State University, River Falls, an M.A. from Kent State University and a Ph.D. from Michigan State University. I have a strange combination of study areas: biology, English, speech and communication. It gives me an interesting perspective.
Last job prior to joining the leadership team: I left the faculty of the University of Minnesota Duluth in 2000. And actually, I was almost retired before joining the leadership team. However, the invitation to come on board was just too sincere to resist. So here I am.
Role on the leadership team: I was asked to serve as Interim Director of Leadership, June of 2007. With the hire of our new director, I moved to Senior Training and Design Manager, helping evolve the curriculum of our programs and their implementation.
When did you join the leadership team? As a consultant, I have been a member of training and curriculum design teams since 1985. I joined the internal staff in 2007.
I was attracted to leadership as a career choice because: It is only because it is rural and reservation leadership that I was, and am, attracted to this unique field of leadership. Rural and reservation leadership seems more devoted to the concept of selflessly serving others and community. To serve those who serve is a joy.
What is (are) the most gratifying aspect(s) of your job? What could be better than serving rural and reservation leaders, and working with a truly exceptional team of trainers, coaches, and internal staff – all devoted to building healthy community? This has been a capstone experience. When I leave, I would hope the woodpile would be just a bit higher than when I arrived.
Personal information: The center of my life is being a husband, father, grandfather and friend. I love the out-of-doors and our natural environment. A couple of my favorite times have been fishing on the Lake of the Woods with the dearest of friends; canoeing the Wisconsin Brule River with my wife, Jeanette; and being the “Grampa” of Stevie and Tyler. Simple things.
