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| Inducted: |
2002 |
Gil Folleher became a member of the original JA Company Program in 1955 when he was a high school sophomore in Toledo, Ohio. He became a JA professional in 1961 as program director for the JA office in Toledo, a tenure lasting three years.
In 1964, he was promoted to assistant regional VP in JA’s former Central Region, headquartered in Cleveland. Less than a year later, Folleher was promoted to assistant national program director at the National Headquarters then located in New York City.
After two-and-a-half years in the National Program Department, Folleher began creating the National Training Department. He served as its first director from 1968 to 1971. Folleher’s instructions, guidance, and integrity helped successfully mold many new staff members through the early stages of their JA careers. In tandem with the new training department, Folleher organized the National Personnel Department to meet the needs of the ever-growing organization. In 1971 Folleher established the organization’s first Research and Development Department. As national R & D director, Folleher created the curriculum and initial program materials for a new middle grades program to be offered in school. This was the beginning of JA’s school-based programming, taking the organization in new and exciting directions.
Believing a successful JA career should consist of both national and field experience, Folleher was selected as the chief staff officer for JA in Seattle in 1972. Applying the many lessons he learned while at National and through hard work and relationship building, Gil restored JA in Seattle to a solid financial standing with a growing, vibrant program.
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