Black History Month

LaShanda Taylor Adams received theElyria Catholic 2021 Distinguished Alumni Award for her work as a child advocate attorney and significant contributions to reform the legal system to benefit children. LaShanda graduated summa cum laude from Spelman College with a BA in English. In recognition of her strong academic record and her interest in pursuing a career in public interest law, LaShanda was awarded a Root-Tilden-Kern public interest scholarship to attend New York University School of Law. While in law school, she received several awards, including the Derrick Bell Scholarship for Public Service and the Bergstrom Child Welfare Law Fellowship. She also served on the editorial board of the Review of Law and Social Change and represented parents in New York Family Court as a student attorney in the Family Defense Clinic.

 After graduating from law school, LaShanda was awarded a Skadden Fellowship to develop a project at The Children’s Law Center in the District of Columbia. Since leaving the Center, she has continued to use her law degree to benefit children and families involved in the foster care system. Through her work at the New Jersey Office of the Child Advocate and the American Bar Association Center on Children and the Law, LaShanda has advocated for system reform.

 Currently, LaShanda is the Associate Dean for Academic Affairs and a Professor of Law at the University of the District of Columbia David A. Clarke School of Law. She is the current Vice President of the Board of Directors for the National Association of Counsel for Children (NACC) and serves on the Maryland Citizens Review Board for Children, to which she was appointed by Maryland Governor Larry Hogan. In 2019, LaShanda was named a Fulbright Scholar by the Australian-American Fulbright Commission.  

Alan McKinney ‘85 has fond memories of watching his cousin, John Walker ‘80, playing on Knights of Columbus Field and then attending socials in the cafeteria. He loved and wanted to be a part of the EC camaraderie long before he was able to attend himself. When he arrived on campus for the first time as a student, he knew only two people but as a member of the football team, he was pulled right into the thick of the EC experience immediately. He credits Coach Mike Sheck as being one of the most influential people in his life, driving him to be and do his best, and not to let the words of anyone affect his performance. Al was honored to wear the number 44 jersey his junior and senior year, which he felt represented the community of Elyria Catholic. He said, “When 44 scores, the whole EC community scores!” Al led the Panthers to two consecutive Division III State Championships in 1983 and 1984. He was also a Class AA State Champion in the long jump and the recipient of the Elyria Catholic Lou Rotunda Award for his performance in athletics, academics, and activities. Al received the Lorain County Golden Helmet Award and was eventually inducted into the Elyria Sports Hall of Fame and the Lorain County Track and Field Hall of Fame. Although Al could attend any school, he chose the University of Cincinnati because he wanted to help a team rise from mediocrity to be one of the best in the nation. Although that didn’t come to fruition, he never second-guessed his decision based on the lifelong friendships he has with his former teammates. Al was a recipient of the Brig Owens Award for outstanding back and ranked 5th in the school’s history for all purpose yardage at 4036. Al earned his B.S. in Sociology and signed to play with the Cincinnati Bengals. Shortly thereafter, he decided he wanted to be a part of America’s team and joined the US Army. Al completed nine tours of duty and was deployed in both Operation Iraqi Freedom in Iraq and Operation Enduring Freedom in Afghanistan. His tours included posts all over the world in South Korea, Oklahoma, the Pentagon in Washington, D.C., Germany, Arizona, Kentucky, Colorado, South Korea for a second time, and Washington State. Al earned seventeen medals and awards during his 22 years of service. He retired from the Army to the Tampa area where he attended Keiser University and earned a B.A. in Psychology. Once a Panther, always a Panther (okay, a Bearcat too!) Al moved back to the Elyria area and proposed to his wife on the 50 yard line of Knights of Columbus field. Al is looking forward to spreading positivity to everyone he meets through motivational speaking. 

Jessica Tolbert Lamb has been prowling with pride all across the United States since graduating from Elyria Catholic in 2008. While a student at EC, she stayed busy not only in the classroom but within clubs and activities as a member of the swim team, flag corp, ambassadors and ECHO.

A South Lorain native, Jess had a strong desire to learn Spanish to communicate with her friends' families who were fluent in the language and took several years of Spanish while at EC. Her interest in the language and A.P History class led her to study both History and Spanish at OSU where she received two Bachelor of Arts degrees. 

After leaving OSU with a double major under her belt, she began working for Teach for America, where she taught 3rd grade in the Mississippi Delta.  After moving to New Orleans, Jessica’s love of math and classroom culture led her to become a math instructional coach, math curriculum writer, and classroom culture trainer. 

Jess currently resides in New Orleans, Louisiana and is the Partnership Director for Equal Opportunity Schools where their mission is” to ensure that students of color and low-income students have equitable access to America’s most academically intense high school programs and succeed at the highest levels.” 

Mr. Gaines is a part of the graduating class of 2002. He said that his time at Elyria Catholic was unforgettable and full of incredible memories, with amazing friends. He stated to me, “It is easily one of the best decisions I’ve made. Coming from such a close community in Oberlin, Elyria Catholic ended up becoming my second family.” It is clear how he is bound to the close-knit community we create here at Elyria Catholic and how it carries on with him even after high school. Mr. Gaines believed the community and atmosphere initially drew him to our school. He said, “I remember seeing the school and community pride that was on display at a basketball game that I attended. Instantly, I wanted to be part of it.” When I asked him what distinctly made him wish to attend Elyria Catholic, he told me that it was the tradition and school pride. It amazes me how the plainest sight of community and pride can make any child feel welcomed and accepted. He also said the curriculum was challenging at first. Once his confidence grew, he found the environment created in the classroom fun and nurturing.

While he studied at Elyria Catholic, Mr. Gaines began searching for a possible career outside of college or optimal college majors. He stated he played multiple sports and was involved with numerous extracurricular clubs at Elyria Catholic. At the time, he said he saw himself earning a college scholarship for baseball and eventually having a family of his own. I asked him how Elyria Catholic has built a foundation to reach his current career path. He responded that his education at Elyria Catholic helped keep himself grounded and deep-rooted in his faith. It helped him stay focused and positive, especially during adverse times. He firmly believes that Elyria Catholic played a crucial role in molding his plans, but his foundation remains in Christ and God’s plan for him. He said, “The guidance of my parents, while I was growing up, continues to play a vital role in my success, especially when it comes to leading my family.” It is essential, in my opinion, about how the amount of support from your school and your family can push you to the farthest lengths to achieve more than you thought you could. Elyria Catholic prides itself upon its supportive family and the love and support it gave every one of its students. Mr. Gaines specifically stated that he mainly loved his time as a peer minister. He said, “I experienced incredible witnesses of God’s presence. I learned that I have a heart for service, which has continued today. The service opportunities we were a part of were life-giving to all involved, and being able to participate in those events with some of my best friends was even more special.” His roots in helping people continue to this moment where he assists the needy, the sick, and the ailing each day of his life. He now sacrifices his time and energy to heal those in need.

Mr. Gaines’ time as a peer minister has significantly helped show him the path he meant to follow. He did have some difficulties and indecisiveness about what his true passion was. Initially, he wanted to study to become an athletic trainer. Eventually, this plan evolved into becoming a physician assistant. He said he had many incredible experiences with his athletic trainers at Elyria Catholic. He is immensely grateful for their guidance which helped him navigate the correct career path. What we can learn from Mr. Gaines’ incredible journey is that patience is key to finding your way, as well as undying faith that God’s plan for us will eventually come to light in its own time. We need to believe in ourselves that we can succeed no matter the obstacles we face. As I come to an end, I kindly asked Mr. Gaines if he could leave us all with some important advice, especially for students who are struggling with significant college and career decisions. He said, “My advice is to be patient and give it time. Focus more on finding who you are as a person rather than what you want to be (career). Try to build as many relationships as you can because those are the things you’ll remember most about your time at EC. The prayer of serenity reigns true. I’ve learned to continue to try and control the “controllable.” Control your attitude, your focus, and your effort. Try to learn to control your response(s) to certain things. Most importantly, learn to give God control because it will liberate your spirit.”

Article in Panther Prowl by Diya Saigal '24