a community engagement initiative of Waverly Community Unit District #6
As an ambulance services operations manager and fire chief, Jason Schumaker is no stranger to a full schedule filled with challenging yet rewarding work. Despite his busy schedule, Jason prioritizes serving on the Waverly School Board. He shares that a dozen years away from his town made him eager to return. Born and raised in Waverly, Jason graduated from Waverly High School in 1995. Reflecting, he adds that it was a year of transition and that he attended high school at the grade school campus. At the time, the old high school was in the process of being torn down, and the current high school was being constructed.
Values and Service
The secret to our success is the same as it was when I was a kid. It’s the community. And this community is behind us one hundred percent.
After graduating, Jason ended up in the Jerseyville area, working for the sheriff’s department and multiple hospitals. At first, he worked as an EMT but eventually completed the coursework and certification necessary to become a paramedic. After several years away, Jason chose to return to the town that raised him, bringing his wife and two children along.
At the time, he thinks his son was in seventh grade, and his daughter was in fifth grade but admits he could be off by a year. His children were equal parts excited and hesitant about the move. “Overall,” he says, “the transition went very well for them.”
A man who loves his work, his community, and his kids, Jason quickly realized that he wanted to get involved, choosing to focus on the high school where his children were attending. He joined the school board with the hopes of gaining a better understanding of the inner workings of the school system and hoping to influence the school’s values. He says he wanted to ensure that the values instilled in him going to school in Waverly remained prominent and stayed strong for future generations.
His goal of instilling strong values has paid off closer to home than he initially anticipated. Jason proudly shares that his daughter now works as a central 911 dispatcher and an emergency dispatcher. He adds that while she primarily works for another district, she occasionally runs with her father’s squad when she’s in the area. He pivots to talking about his son, sharing that he’s a corrections officer for the Morgan County Sheriff’s Office. Jason adds that his son is the third generation of Schumaker’s to work there. “Both me and my father worked there at one point,” he explains, pausing in a moment of well-deserved fatherly pride.
Jason recently started his second, four-year term on the school board. His goal in service is simple but not easy. “I hope these kids coming up have the same opportunities I did and then some,” shares Jason.
He adds, “We’ve accomplished many good things, even though COVID and everything else, to make things just a little better. We’ve had our issues along the way, but it’s hard to make things better without a few issues coming up along the way. The secret to our success is the same as it was when I was a kid. It’s the community. And this community is behind us one hundred percent.”
