LISC has named Geoff Jolley to lead its ambitious community investment plans in Kansas City. Jolley, who has spent decades working on the interests of local residents as both a policy expert and community leader, takes the helm of LISC Kansas City this month to oversee work on affordable housing, economic development, health, community safety and jobs.
LISC names Geoff Jolley to lead ambitious community investment plans in KC
Seasoned policy expert is new executive director of LISC Kansas City
KANSAS CITY—The Local Initiatives Support Corporation (LISC) has named a long-time legislative and community leader as the new executive director of LISC Kansas City.
Geoffrey W. Jolley will lead LISC’s local staff, partnerships and community investment efforts, which to date have fueled nearly $1 billion in development activity focused on affordable housing, economic development, health, community safety and jobs. Nationwide, LISC has invested more than $20 billion to catalyze opportunity for residents and communities.
“Geoff will be instrumental in driving investment plans that reflect the character and rich culture of Kansas City’s diverse communities,” said Maurice A. Jones, LISC president and CEO. “Throughout his career, he has been remarkably successful in representing the interests of local residents on the national stage, while also working on the ground to make communities safe, healthy and strong.”
Before opening his own government affairs consulting firm in 2018, Jolley spent 13 years as district director and general counsel to Rep. Emanuel Cleaver, whose 5th congressional district spans Kansas City, Mo., as well as suburban and rural communities to the East.
Over the years, Jolley shepherded a wide range of policy efforts that proved critical—from a Green Impact Zone that attracted vital capital to the district’s urban core to coordinating housing, transportation and economic development programs with federal agencies to developing budget proposals that elevated the diverse priorities of constituents.
Prior to joining the congressman's inaugural campaign in 2004, Jolley also worked with the Metropolitan Organization to Counter Sexual Assault, on behalf of the University of Missouri’s Family Violence Clinic, and served as a law clerk in the Missouri Attorney General’s Office.
“It is an exciting time in our region, but there is still work to be done,” said Jolley, “I am truly humbled by the opportunity to not only help drive a broadly shared prosperity for local residents—regardless of race, class, or zip code—but to leverage LISC’s national resources and expertise to advance our local plans.”
In addition to his public policy leadership, Jolley has spent more than a decade as a firefighter and EMT in Kansas City. He has responded to numerous natural disasters across the country as a rescue specialist with FEMA's Missouri Task Force One, and had the unique experience of serving on the Antarctic Fire Department at McMurdo Station, a U.S. research hub on the world’s southern-most continent.
A Kansas City native, Jolley earned his law degree from the University of Missouri-Columbia and has a bachelor’s degree in political science and economics from Emory University. Starting September 23rd, Jolley can be reached at gjolley@lisc.org or 816-753-0055.
About LISC
With residents and partners, LISC forges resilient and inclusive communities of opportunity across America – great places to live, work, visit, do business and raise families. Since 1979, LISC has invested more than $20 billion to build or rehab 400,500 affordable homes and apartments and develop 66.8 million square feet of retail, community and educational space.