The Greater Cleveland Reentry Leadership Coalition was formed in 2007 as a reentry task force consisting of city and county government officials, the heads of local government agencies, corrections, service providers, faith-based organizations, and behavioral health, employment and housing specialists. It was first established, prior to the inception of the Office of Reentry, to provide structured oversight and leadership to the many institutions and organizations that provide services to returning citizens. Overall, its mission is to guarantee successful reintegration of formerly incarcerated people, reduce recidivism, and increase public safety.

Greater Cleveland Leadership Coalition 2021 Meeting Dates *All meetings are on the Second Friday at 10 a.m. April 16, 2021 (Microsoft Teams meeting*) August 20, 2021 (TBD) December 17, 2021 (Tentatively at the ADAMHS Board) *To join the Microsoft Teams meeting please send an email to Donnette.Lewis@jfs.ohio.gov.
Data Subcommittee Chairs: Dr. Leon Harris, III, Cuyahoga County Health & Human Services Dr. David Hussey, Case Western Reserve University	Economic & Workforce Development Chairs: Mary Kelley, OhioMeansJobs Nicole Liatos, ECDI	Policy & Advocacy Chairs: Bishara Addison, Towards Employment Maria Smith, Legal Aid Society	Community Development Chairs: Erika Anthony, Ohio Transformation Fund Elizabeth Richards, Enterprise Community Partners	Service Coordination Chairs: Illya McGee, Oriana House Marcus Bell, Oriana House/ North Star Reentry Resource Center
January 15 March 19 May 21 *All meetings are from 9 to 10 a.m.	January 14 February 11 March 11 April 8 May 13 June 10 July 8 August 12 September 9 October 14 November 11 December 9 *All meetings are scheduled from 11 a.m. – 12 p.m.	January 15 February 12 March 12 April 9 May 14 June 11 July 9 August 13 September 10 October 8 November 12 December 10	January 21 February 28 March 18 April 15 May 20 June 17 July 15 August 19 Sept 16 October 21 November 18 December 16 *All meetings are on Thursdays from 9:00 - 10:30 a.m.	February 4 March 4 April 1 May 6 June 3 July (no committee meeting) August 5 September 2 October 7 November 4 December (no committee meeting) *All meetings are held the first Thursday of the month at 12 p.m., unless otherwise noted by the Committee Chair or Co-Chair.

Ward 6 Councilman Blaine Griffin, Leadership Coalition Chair Ward 6 Councilman Blaine A. Griffin represents one of Cleveland's most diverse wards, encompassing the East Side neighborhoods of Fairfax, Larchmere, Little Italy, Woodland Hills, and parts of Buckeye-Shaker, University Circle, North Broadway, Slavic Village and Union-Miles. Councilman Griffin was elected to City Council in November of 2017, after being appointed in May of 2017, to fill a seat vacated by Mamie Mitchell.  Prior to serving on council, Councilman Griffin had been executive director of the city's Community Relation's Board for 11 years. He led a staff and board trustees in efforts to improve cross-culture relations throughout the city and police/community relations and youth initiatives.  Councilman Griffin is a graduate of the Cleveland State University Maxine Goodman Levine College of Urban Affairs Leadership Academy and the Cleveland Leadership Center’s Leadership Cleveland; Class of 2014, as well as a German Marshall Memorial Fellow. He is originally from Youngstown but moved to Cleveland in 1993. He and his wife of 20 years, Jeanette, and their three sons live in the Larchmere neighborhood of Ward 6. He graduated from Malone College in Canton, Ohio, with a Bachelor of Arts degree in communications.

David Merriman, Vice-Chairman, Cuyahoga County Health & Human Services Assistant Director David Merriman is the assistant director of Cuyahoga County’s Department of Health and Human Services. He is managing the department’s strategic initiatives and leading efforts to integrate human service and workforce efforts. He previously oversaw the County’s Medicaid, TANF, child care, food assistance, and child support programs as the Administrator of Cuyahoga Job and Family Services. He has also worked as the county’s Deputy Chief of Staff of Health and Human Services where he lead the County development of Pay for Success programming and supported the budget and policy development for human services. David’s professional career began as an Americorp volunteer, and he has worked in child welfare as a case worker as well as in public health on infant mortality prevention programming and HIV/STI prevention and housing services.

Damian Calvert, Leadership Coalition Chair Damian Calvert currently serves as Project Coordinator/Outreach Manager for the City of Cleveland’s Community Relations Board, where he helps facilitate the implementation of the City’s Violent Reduction Model and coordinates the activities of multiple city-supported grassroots organizations focused on violence and gang interruption and redirection, as well as other safety initiatives. Prior to joining the City of Cleveland and working with various other organizations, Damian served 18 and one half years in several Ohio prison institutions. His drive and self-narrative is drawn from his true-life experiences while being incarcerated. Others may shy away from revealing their criminal history, but Damian highlights it as a lesson learned for those in or on the cusp of facing the same fate. Over the arc of his incarceration, Damian founded and served as the Inaugural President of Grafton’s NAACP Branch Unit 34AB; became a Certified American Red Cross Instructor; served as Management Director of the Junior Chamber of Commerce; facilitated various educational workshops; mentored at-risk adolescents who came into the facility from surrounding counties through the Heart-to-Heart Program; and, most notably, wrote, proposed and received authorization to facilitate the Reentry Premier Program which helped men prepare for successful transition back into their respective communities. Since his release, Damian has taken courses at Cleveland State University and served as a Movement Builder Organizer for the Ohio Organizing Campaign (OOC).