Jay R. Keefer is new to his role as Interim Elementary Principal at Cuyahoga Heights Elementary School (CHES), but he is not new to the school. Keefer, who will fill in during Principal Joy Houchens’ absence, taught grades 3-6 at CHES from 1983-1996. “I feel like I am living the dream of returning to what I consider HOME,” said Keefer. He left the district to pursue a career as an elementary principal and served principalships in the Brunswick, Lakewood, and Lorain school districts.
Keefer moved to Florida in 2005 to complete his doctorate coursework in Educational Leadership. While in Florida, he served as a substitute teacher, teacher, and finally Coordinator for Accountability and Testing for Lee County Schools in Fort Myers. He returned to Ohio in 2011 to serve as a director at the Ohio Department of Education. For the past ten years, he has served as a principal and then teacher in the Lorain City Schools. Keefer retired at the end of the 2022 school year.
“We are really fortunate to have someone of Jay Keefer’s calibur to fill in as principal. I am confident of his skills and leadership abilities as we move forward in the school year,” said Evans.