“Stay true to who you are,” advised Lisa Riley. “Every day is an opportunity to do better than you did yesterday.”
Lisa Riley has always been true to herself and striven to be better each day. Her passion and caring nature can be attributed to her loving family and strong faith she acquired growing up.
“I’m the oldest of four girls, and I’m four years older than my youngest sister. We grew up in a Christian home with my mom and dad,” Lisa remembered. “I grew up at New Hope Baptist Church. Church was an integral part of our family. We sang in the choir, did missions, GAs, and whatever they had. My dad was a deacon, and my mom was on committees. We did showers, weddings, clean up—you name it.”
After attending and graduating from Clarkdale School, she decided to continue her education. Not long after she started college, she decided to make a change to her career path and selected a different program of study.
“I graduated from Clarkdale in 1976, and then I attended Meridian Junior College. I started out in elementary education and then decided that it wasn’t what I really wanted to do,” recalled Lisa. “They had started a new program at MSU Meridian for social work. That pulled my heart there. For a long time, I went to school at Meridian Junior College, worked for the Social Security Administration in the afternoon, and then went to MSU Meridian at night and finished up my degree.”
She was a hard worker and held up jobs while maintaining her grades for the numerous classes she was taking while in college.
“My first paid job was Woolworths in the mall,” stated Lisa. “I babysat for a lady who worked for social security, and she came and asked me if I was interested in coming there to work as a part-time school position. I did and worked there from 1977 until I graduated college in 1981. At that time, there was a government cutback, so I lost my job when I graduated.”
She didn’t let it stop her. Instead, she found a new job while starting a life with the love of her life.
“I went to work at Anderson’s Hospital in the insurance department. At that time, I was engaged to Rob Riley, and he was at Mississippi State during that time,” Lisa reminisced. “We got married on May 14, 1983, so I moved to Starkville. We lived in married student housing, which was a grand adventure all on its own. We had no English speaking neighbors because everybody was from somewhere else. We lived there and eventually moved to some apartments downtown. We bought a house there in 1986, and I was working for Dr. Leonard Brandon at a family practice clinic. I worked for him until after our daughter, Rebecca, was born. Both of our kids, Rebecca and Jacob, were born in Starkville. My husband worked for the university at the time, and I would keep some teacher’s kids so that I had the same hours Rob had with the university.”
Eventually, her husband took a job in Clarke County. Once they moved, she also took on a new job in Quitman. They stayed in Clarke County for a few years before moving again when her husband was transferred to another state park.
“Rob took a job with Clarkco State Park as the assistant manager in May 1992, so we moved. I worked at the Methodist preschool for a little while. I taught the four year olds with Ms. Martha,” remembered Lisa. “In 1996, we moved to Pontotoc, Mississippi. Rob was asked to transfer to Trace State Park in Pontotoc as the manager since he had law enforcement training. We got involved with West Heights Baptist Church there because that was the best way I knew for my kids to make friends—being in church.”
It was while she was in Pontotoc that she got her first big experience working in the public school system.
“I went to drop Jacob off at the lower elementary there one day, and the principal asked me if I needed a job,” explained Lisa. “I told him that I guess so, and he told me that they needed an assistant and asked if I could go home and change clothes and come back. I became an assistant at Pontotoc. I did that, and before we left there I worked for another private practice.”
It was another job change for her husband that brought them back to Clarke County again. This time, she would take on a job with the school that she has been well-known for in the county ever since.
“We moved back here in 2001 because they asked Rob to come back and be the assistant manager again until the manager retired, and then he became the manager,” said Lisa. “That’s when I went to work for Quitman School District. I actually signed my contract with Quitman School District September 11, 2001. I started work the next day. I was hired by Dr. Pam Compton as parent liaison.”
Over the years, her position changed and took on more responsibilities.
“I worked as parent liaison, and then there were some changes. I went to work in the office of special education as a case manager in 2003 and worked in special education for three years and then went back to the parent liaison position. I enjoyed working in special education because I was case manager and handled the paperwork. I liked helping families make the decision about what was best for their child. It’s hard when you have a special needs child. We understood that school can be frightening, but we promised them we would take good care of their children. I’ve seen some of those children graduate, and I’m proud. Then, I went back to parent liaison, and that job has totally evolved in the time I’ve been there. When I first started it was doing things like going to PTA meetings and being there for when parents needed anything. Over time, it became so much more; I became homeless liaison, helped with foster care students, helped with migrant workers, and was the English Language Coordinator for English language learners.”
While she loved her job as parent liaison, Lisa decided the time has come for her to retire. She now plans to spend even more time with her family and grandchildren. She will continue to make a huge impact on everyone around her the same way she has made an impact on the lives of countless students in the school system over the years. While she may not be at the school anymore, the mission statement she created and strove to reach each day will still show vibrantly through her life:
“To make a difference in someone’s life each day so they may find the value in their own life. I will lead others the way that I want to be led: with respect, confidence, and appreciation. I will do this by listening closely, helping in any way I can, and seeing the best in everyone.”
If you would like to nominate someone for Person of the Week, contact Brittney Mangum at 601-776-3726.
