SLS 17RS-1388 ORIGINAL
2017 Regular Session
SENATE RESOLUTION NO. 94
BY SENATOR CARTER
COMMENDATIONS. Commends Harold Clay Jr. on his many accomplishments.
1 A RESOLUTION
2 To commend Harold Clay Jr. on his many accomplishments.
3 WHEREAS, Harold Clay Jr. graduated from Warren Easton High in 1992; and
4 WHEREAS, Harold Clay Jr. graduated in 1998 with a bachelor's degree from Dillard
5 University in New Orleans, Louisiana, and later earned his master's degree from Tulane
6 University; and
7 WHEREAS, Mr. Clay worked for Associated Catholic Charities in two different
8 capacities, serving as the disciplinarian at Hope Haven Center for the on-site Jefferson Parish
9 School and later becoming the clinical manager of two sub-acute units; and
10 WHEREAS, for seven years, Mr. Clay worked in the field of criminal justice as a
11 homicide investigator for the Orleans Parish District Attorney's Office; and
12 WHEREAS, after Hurricane Katrina, he worked as a major case investigator for the
13 Fulton County District Attorney's Office in Atlanta, Georgia; and
14 WHEREAS, as an investigator, Mr. Clay appeared on court television and local news
15 stations in New Orleans, Louisiana, and Atlanta; and
16 WHEREAS, upon returning to New Orleans after Hurricane Katrina, he began
17 working at Florida Parishes Juvenile Detention Center as a forensic social worker; and
18 WHEREAS, Harold Clay Jr. worked as an adjunct instructor for Southern University
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1 at New Orleans, Delgado Community College and Darryl S. Brister Bible College and
2 Theological Seminary; and
3 WHEREAS, Mr. Clay worked as a clinician for Family Services of Greater New
4 Orleans counseling children and families as well as facilitating domestic violence groups;
5 and
6 WHEREAS, in the fall of 2001, Mr. Clay wrote an article featured in the Louisiana
7 Counseling Association Journal explaining the use of his culture-centered approach working
8 with at-risk African-American males; and
9 WHEREAS, in March 2005, Mr. Clay coauthored an article published in the
10 International Journal for the Advancement of Counseling, "African Americans' Perceptions
11 of Mental Health Professions"; and
12 WHEREAS, realizing his passion for wanting to help at-risk youth with educational
13 challenges, Mr. Clay helped reopen Andrew H. Wilson Charter School in 2007, where he
14 served as an administrator for three years; and
15 WHEREAS, Harold Clay Jr. is now in his seventh year at Edna Karr High School,
16 having served as the assistant principal and school operations manager for the first four
17 years; and
18 WHEREAS, Harold Clay Jr. was named Head of School of Edna Karr High School
19 during the 2014-2015 school year making him the first African-American principal in the
20 school's fifty-year history; and
21 WHEREAS, because of his unconventional approaches to educational leadership, he
22 has garnered the attention of Bill Bradley, Ashton Kutcher, and Ellen DeGeneres, just to
23 name a few; and
24 WHEREAS, Mr. Clay has been featured in a number of articles and magazines such
25 as The National Review, StudentsFirst, and Epitome Magazine; and
26 WHEREAS, he has also received numerous awards and accolades both locally and
27 nationally for his leadership at Edna Karr High School; and
28 WHEREAS, Harold Clay's Jr. nontraditional work with youth has been illustrated
29 in three documentaries, "School Choice in New Orleans", "Disconnected Youth", and "Close
30 Ties: Tying on a New Tradition", which provides an intimate look at a rites of passage
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1 ceremony that connects teenage boys with positive male roles models; and
2 WHEREAS, Harold Clay Jr. is a member of the School Leadership Center of Greater
3 New Orleans, the National Association of Secondary School Principals, the Louisiana
4 Association of Principals, the Black Alliance for Educational Options, and the Association
5 for Supervision and Curriculum Development; and
6 WHEREAS, Harold Clay Jr. is a proud member of Kappa Alpha Psi Fraternity, Inc.
7 THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED that the Senate of the Legislature of Louisiana
8 does hereby commend Harold Clay Jr. on his many accomplishments.
9 BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that a copy of this Resolution be transmitted to
10 Harold Clay Jr.
The original instrument and the following digest, which constitutes no part
of the legislative instrument, were prepared by Angela L. De Jean.
DIGEST
SR 94 Original 2017 Regular Session Carter
Commends Harold Clay Jr. on his many accomplishments.
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