I am writing in support of Evan Mandery’s campaign for a seat on the Manhasset School Board. I believe that Evan is an exceptional candidate who will be dedicated to the educational needs of the students in Manhasset and will be an effective leader in these trying times.
I have known Evan since the summer of 1984 when we both attended the Michigan State University High School Honors Science Program. Over the next few decades I have followed him both physically and philosophically, first to Harvard College and most recently to Manhasset where both of us have put down deep roots. Through my myriad interactions with him and his delightful family, I believe that I can attest to his ability to bring the Manhasset School District to the forefront of both in-person and distance learning.
The most impressive part of Evan’s personality is his dedication and intensity of fortitude once he latches on to a cause. I saw this aspect of his personality when he was a rising senior in high school about to embark on higher education. He impressed me with his thrive for excellence in all his academic and extracurricular endeavors. He excelled throughout high school and was admitted to Harvard College. He then excelled in Harvard College, elected to become the chair of the Harvard Undergraduate Council. During his tenure as president he constantly strove to represent the needs of the undergraduate student population in discussion with the Harvard administration and fought for better educational opportunities.
Evan’s career since his undergraduate days have continued to revolve around education. He graduated from Harvard Law School with a J.D, then first embarked on a career as a corporate lawyer and is now currently a full professor and chair of the Department of Criminal Justice at John Jay College of Criminal Justice. He has continued to fight for excellence in education throughout all his academic endeavors while at the same time fighting for a level playing field in educational opportunities. Evan feels no greater pleasure than having his students and mentees succeed academically and in life.
Evan’s family is full of educators and professionals. His father was the principal of Brooklyn Technical High School and superintendent of the Jericho School System. His wife, Valli Rajah, is an associate professor of sociology at CUNY John Jay College of Criminal Justice. His oldest child is at Middlebury College, his second and third children are students in the Manhasset School District.
Evan has experience in leading educational endeavors throughout his career and is responsible for a large department in CUNY. He has the wherewithal to help make Manhasset a leader in the new educational environment of the 21st century.
I strongly support Evan Mandery in his quest to become a member of the Manhasset School Board and urge my friends and neighbors to elect him this year.
George Juang
Manhasset
