LET'S GET REAL:
Healthy Teens, Healthy Families and Responsible Fatherhood
Regional Summit

Marian Loftin Alabama Child Champion Lifetime Achievement Award

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Mary Jolley

 

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Mrs. Mary A. Jolley has enjoyed a remarkable career of public service spanning almost sixty years. She has been a tireless advocate for children and families at the local, state and national levels. Her many accomplishments were recognized in May 2010 with a Doctorate of Humane Letters by the University of Alabama during graduation ceremonies.

Mrs. Jolley taught in Alabama’s public schools upon graduation from the University of Alabama. She went to work in Washington and was directly involved in the passage of the 1958 National Defense Education Act, which has enabled millions of students to enroll in colleges and universities. During the Kennedy and Johnson administrations, Mrs. Jolley worked extensively with national vocational education programs that led to legislation that opened training opportunities for America’s workforce.

Mrs. Jolley became the Director of Economic and Community Affairs for the University of Alabama in 1984. She helped towns and cities develop outreach programs to recruit industry, retain businesses and develop a skilled workforce. Families were able to achieve self-sufficiency as parents received the training they needed to secure meaningful employment.

 

Through her efforts and her commitment to strengthening Alabama’s families, several family resource centers were opened in the early 1990’s. Mrs. Jolley had long embraced family resource centers as an excellent family support model. She saw the importance of comprehensive prevention and early intervention services.

 

Mrs. Jolley continues her work, serving on a volunteer basis as Acting Executive Director of the Alabama Network of Family Resource Centers. Mary Allen Jolley has been a hardworking advocate for children all of her professional life. Her accomplishments are many but she is certainly a person who will never “rest on her laurels.” She is an extraordinary lifetime champion of children and families!