Consistent with the FY 08/09 budget ordinance, Mayor John Peyton and Council President Ronnie Fussell have jointly appointed nine local citizens (see below) to serve on the Jacksonville Journey Oversight Committee.  All appointments were confirmed by City Council Dec. 9.  Paul Perez will chair the committee.

As outlined in the budget ordinance, the committee's responsibilities include:

• working in concert with the city's grant making agencies to establish measurement and reporting systems;
• issuing an annual community-wide report card on the progress of the Journey funded programs;
• making annual recommendations on programs to be funded based on the prior year's performance;
• continuing the data gathering and public policy initiated by the Journey for further refinement; and
• advocating for the investment of new public and private dollars as well as state and federal initiatives.

Paul Perez

Paul Perez, recently served as the chair of the Law Enforcement Subcommittee for The Jacksonville Journey.  He is the chief compliance officer for Fidelity National Financial and is responsible for ensuring the company's adherence to federal, state statutes, other regulations and the company's code of conduct throughout the vast Fidelity National title insurance organization.  Previously, Perez was appointed by President George W. Bush as the U.S. Attorney for the Middle District which encompasses 35 counties and is home to 8.3 million Floridians. 

Edyth. A Abdullah

Dr.  Edythe Abdullah is the president of Florida Community College at Jacksonville Downtown Campus.  During her 20-plus years of service to the college, she has served as the associate vice president of workforce development and adult education, an adjunct instructor in continuing education, an adviser in college admissions and in various administrative roles in instruction.  Abdullah serves on the Board of Trustees for University of North Florida, is chairperson of the Duval County Job Opportunity Board, a member of the Boards for the Youth Crisis Center and Florida Construction Institute.

Jeff Chartrand

Jeff Chartrand is the executive director of The Chartrand Foundation, a family foundation launched in 2006 to support public education and early childhood initiatives.  A Jacksonville native, Chartrand graduated magna cum laude from New York University.  In 2003, he became a New York City Teaching Fellow in Bedford-Stuyvesant, Brooklyn where he taught fifth-grade special education. In 2005, Chartrand moved back to Jacksonville to teach and begin work on the establishment of The Chartrand Foundation.  In its first year, the Foundation created, "Inspire.Create.Achieve.," which provides grants to Duval County Public Schools and community partners in the arts, civics and sciences. 

Terrance Freeman

Terrance Freeman is the principal and head baseball coach at Eagle's View Academy, a K-12 faith-based school founded in 1995 by a group of volunteer Christian teachers who were committed to provide students with a complete educational experience.  In this capacity, he is responsible for teachers in grades 7-12, has implemented a discipline plan for boys grades 6-12 and also oversees the athletic program.  Previously, Freeman served as the school's athletic director and an assistant baseball coach.  Freeman was a former college and professional athlete.  He played professional baseball from 1995-2000 for the Oakland A's, Pittsburgh Pirates and Detroit Tigers.

W. C. Gentry

W.C. Gentry recently served as The Jacksonville Journey Education Subcommittee chair.  Before entering law school, he taught and coached high school in Jacksonville.  Gentry has practiced law in Jacksonville for more than 30 years and has handled trials and appeals in complex litigation, including constitutional issues.  He presently devotes much of his time to public interest matters, principally involving education.  He currently on the Board of the Early Learning Coalition of Duval and is a founding director and chair of the Schultz Center for Teaching and Leadership.

Charles Griggs

A Jacksonville native, Charles Griggs serves as the Communications Director for the Duval County Health Department, managing the internal and external marketing and communications.  He currently gives back to the community through mentoring with Take Stock In Children and service to the Jacksonville Urban League. He is also the current president of the Jacksonville Association of Black Journalists, Inc. and an executive committee member of the 100 Black Men of Jacksonville, Inc.  Griggs has contributed as an editorial writer through his column titled BlacKoffee, syndicated and published in the Jacksonville Free Press.  He previously hosted and produced The Next Page and First Coast Focus, radio talk shows that focused on community and social issues. Griggs also has contributed, as a regular panelist, to WJCT's Week In Review broadcast, which aired weekly on Channel 7 and 89.9 FM.

Curtis Hart

Curtis Hart is the vice president of The Collins Group, Inc., where since 2000 he has become one of the largest lot developers in Northeast Florida.  Previously, he was the president of Hart Resources, LLC, a development and lobbying firm.  Hart is a past president of the Northeast Florida Builder's Association, past chairman of the City of Jacksonville Planning Commission, past member of the Mayor's Growth Management Task Force, and served on the city's 2010 Comprehensive Plan Committee. 

Sen. Betty Holzendorf

Sen. Betty Holzendorf recently served as a co-chair of The Jacksonville Journey Steering Committee.  A long-time public servant, Holzendorf's legislative tenure includes 10 years as State Senator and four years as a member of the Florida House of Representatives representing constituents of five Northeast Florida counties--Alachua, Clay, Duval, Putnam and St. Johns.  During this time she served as the Democratic Leader Pro-Tempore; chairperson, Florida Conference of Black State Legislators; and chairperson, Duval Legislative Delegation.  Sen. Holzendorf is currently active in numerous business, community and philanthropic organizations.  An educator, Holzendorf taught in the Duval County Public School system and Edward Waters College before serving in roles in the Department of Transportation, the Office of the Mayor and the City of Jacksonville.  

Susie Wiles

Susie Wiles is a seasoned communications, government relations and special initiatives professional with more than 20 years of experience in government and public affairs. 
Wiles served at the highest levels of local government as a senior appointee of three mayors as chief of staff and communications chief.  In addition to media relations, she oversaw significant initiatives including The Better Jacksonville Plan, Preservation Project Jacksonville, RALLY Jacksonville!, The River Accord and The Jacksonville Journey.  Her political experience spans three Presidential campaigns, White House service in the Executive Office of the President, many local and statewide political campaigns and most recently, the Transition Team of Florida Gov. Charlie Crist and McCain-Palin campaign.  Wiles also serves on the boards of St. Johns Forever board, FreshMinistries, Preservation North Florida, Republicans for Environmental Protection and is a member of the Jacksonville Women's Network. 

Ex-Officio

Michael Hallett

Michael Hallett is Professor and Chairman of the Department of Criminology & Criminal Justice at the University of North Florida. His PhD is in Public Policy from Arizona State University, where he received the Outstanding Alumni Award in 2007. Dr. Hallett's research explores community-based justice programming, prison privatization, and the interest group politics of justice policy.  He served on the Jacksonville Journey's Intervention and Rehabilitation subcommittee.