Debbie McClaskey

I have lived in Johnson City for 34 years, raised my daughters here, and have made this my home. It is a beautiful part of the country and the people here have become my friends and colleagues.

Like me, my daughters attended Johnson City public schools and I worked as an administrator at East Tennessee State University. After a 25-year career in administration, I became a full time tenured faculty member teaching classes in leadership and nonprofit leadership.

Initially, my college goals were to be a high school math teacher. Shortly after completing that degree at the University of South Florida, I went on to complete a master’s degree in school counseling, and later a doctorate in educational leadership and policy analysis at ETSU. I am a learner at heart.

My passions have always centered around leadership and civic engagement, empowering the voices of all citizens, and inspiring and enabling others to make choices in line with the core values of integrity, inclusiveness, and human respect and dignity for all. I have acted on those values by serving on the boards of Girls Scouts, Coalition for Kids, and Second Harvest Food Bank. I helped start the first Youth Leadership Program for the Johnson City/Washington County Chamber of Commerce. At the state level I wrote grants and directed the creation of a nine-university partnership in Tennessee for Service Learning Programs. I collaborated with the Tennessee Commission on National and Community Service and local AmeriCorps Programs. Awards I have received for this work include:

LOVE Community Service Award from the TN Board of Regents

• Tennessee Volunteer Hero from the Office of the Governor of TN
• Tennessee Treasure from the TN Higher Education Commission
• Women Who Make a Difference from the Girl Scouts
• ETSU Outstanding Staff Member

Professionally I teach leadership studies at ETSU. I coach and guide individuals and organizations to grow their capacity, build trusting teams, and deliver successful results. In addition to teaching and coaching undergraduates and graduate students, I work with local and regional leaders and organizations to build a culture of collaborative leadership.

I have been a life-long Democrat, volunteering for phone banking and driving voters to the polls since I was in college. I have held many leadership roles in my profession and community initiatives.

Becoming an elected leader in my community is the next step of service for me. Participating in the TN 2018 EMERGE Class was a great experience to ready me for my candidacy to become the next Committeewoman from Senate District 3 to the Tennessee Democratic Party.

Personally, I enjoy spending time with my husband, David, and his and my daughters. We love to travel in our region, our country and in our global community. The trails to hike and bike in NE TN are some of our favorites. I am also a gardener and enjoy the beauty of this region as it transitions through 4 balanced seasons. David and I also enjoy participating in local community festivals and seeing local theater, music, and other arts groups.