The Democrat representing New York’s 115th district, Assemblyman D. Billy Jones, announced on July 29th he was resigning his elected position to pursue an opportunity that would align with his passions and give him more time with his family. The following week, on August 5th, Clinton Community College announced Jones would become the college’s Vice President for Strategic Initiatives and Workforce Development, leading its Institute for Advanced Manufacturing.
Jones spoke recently with WAMC North County Bureau Chief Pat Bradley and said he has some bittersweet feelings about the upcoming changes in his life:
There's sadness because anytime you have dedicated basically your life to a job. I hate to call it a job. It's a passion. But anytime you have dedicated to that, and you could probably see when I was announcing, for some reason reading those words, I got a little overwhelmed. And having my daughter there and having my staff there and supporters, it's just, it was a culmination of work that we have done through the years and I just went back to when I first ran. All the work. I was actually working a full-time job and I was chair of the county legislature and then campaigning full time. I still don't know how we pulled it off doing all that. But anytime you put in basically your life into something and you realize how much work it took to get you there and to continue to be there. Yeah, it's, it's, it's a bit, it's a bit emotional. It all hit me when we were having the little presser. It's going to be an adjustment for sure. I will miss this job dearly. But at the same time, I realize an opportunity came up as well, as and I sincerely mean this, what's best for my family and myself at this critical time in my life. I have made the right choice, and it wasn't an easy choice, but it was the right one for me now.
Billy Jones, you will be working at the Institute for Advanced Manufacturing at Clinton Community College to kind of promote getting businesses to participate in the educational programs there and also to get the students to come in or workers who want to train for new jobs and stuff. Do you have any sort of educational background?
I think the background that I have suits me perfect for this job, honestly, and I believe Clinton Community College does as well and many people in the area. I've spent my career working with businesses, making connections, working with students, working with people. I think it's all about relationship building. I think it's about forming connections. And I think it's a perfect fit. And I believe in education. I believe in getting somebody the tools in their toolbox that allows them to perform at their careers, to give them a career pathway. We want to promote the institution there as a place where people can come to enhance their skills and/or find a career path that suits them and also suits the industry or the business or the organization that they'll be going to. I think that that is extremely important. And, you know, connecting the dots. I've always been pretty good at doing that, so I think it's a good fit for sure.
Billy, when the announcement was made that you would be the Vice President for Strategic Investment and Workforce Development one of the things that they mentioned was that you would be working on a strategic plan for the Institute of Advanced Manufacturing. That Institute's been around since 2017. Why doesn't it have a strategic plan by now?
It does have a strategic plan. You know, manufacturing and business and industry is evolving month to month, year to year it's evolving. So our first initiative is to come up with a plan that suits the businesses, the industries and the workers, the employees. That's where I come in. We have to figure out what the cutting-edge technology is that manufacturing and the industries are using. Finding out what industries and businesses need from a workforce right now. That's what I meant about we have to have a strategic plan. We have to go out there find out what is needed. Also for businesses coming into the area, I think they want to see that. And you know, the Institute for Advanced Manufacturing was there nine years ago when I got to this job. I think it was one of the first quote-unquote ribbon cuttings that I went to. We just want to enhance what is there. We want that facility used 24/7 if it can be. And we want to make sure that our industries and businesses needs are fulfilled and more importantly that our students and our individuals and workers their needs are fulfilled as well.
Billy Jones, as you leave the Assembly is there any issue, any item, that you feel regret that you didn't get a chance to complete?
Well, anyone that tells you in this position that they have accomplished everything that they wanted to or that they don't have some unfinished business, so to speak, would definitely be lying to you. Pat, if I were in this job for another 10 years there would be always something. And I think that's what keeps you motivated. That's what keeps you hungry. There is always something out there that you want to see accomplished or wanted to see accomplished or something you were working on. There's projects that I've been involved in and gotten funding and resources for that I will continue to follow along that I want to see brought through. But for the most part I'm leaving knowing that, you know, we worked hard. We worked every single day, 24/7, to help people in this area.
Well, Billy Jones, you've been there for nine years. As you've been reflecting on this nearly decade in office, what have you thought have been the most significant, the biggest, bills that you've managed to pass that helped the region?
Well, I will say there have been some significant bills. I can't point out. I mean, we did the EMS cost recovery, which was a major state bill to help out our local fire departments. A bill that I just got through, that hasn't been signed yet this year, to help manufactured home owners and sellers to have it considered not an asset, but real property. That's a bill that's been around for a long time. We finally got it through. I can go back to my first couple of years in office. You know, you get that first bill through and you feel great. But overall, I think what I'm most proud of is trying to get the resources here that our veterans and our farmers and our businesses and our workers need. Our seniors. We've done a lot of work getting seniors the resources they need. There's a lot and I you know sometimes you sit in your office and you take meeting after meeting, but you see the needs, the needs out there. And oftentimes, like, whoo, that's another one. And certainly we didn't get everything for everyone. There's needs every single day, but we provided a lot. We provide a lot for, for, for people.
Billy Jones, regardless of party, regardless of who it is, what advice would you give to your successor?
Whoo. It's a lot of work if you do it right. Count on a lot of time away from family and friends. Count on missing, you know, functions and vacations and everything else that you would maybe normally be at. Get out and actually talk to the people. Figure out their concerns. You're not always going to get a friendly welcome. People are anxious and nervous and angry at times. It's not always directed at you, but it's directed at maybe the system, or a system. I would actually give them the advice of maybe take a little time for yourself, recharge, reboot a little bit. Maybe that's something more that, or something I should have done a little bit more of. But give it your all and actually talk and listen to the people. Make yourself accessible. I think you know, my first year in office, and even before I got in this office, when I was in the county legislature in Franklin (County), I should say. One of the biggest compliments I would get is, you know, you're so accessible. You're here. People can talk to you. And that's one of the bigger compliments I get, I would get. And I would say, pay attention to the constituents themselves. Constituent Services. Politicians love ribbon cuttings and they love the headlines and they love the good stories, but the real work is done behind the scenes and in answering people. And my staff can tell you we do a lot of that. And I think that is what people appreciate the most. The real work is done behind the scenes and talking to people. You know my staff, to their credit, they said you know what, we liked it. We liked helping people. And that, it just got me right here. And then they said you know we like doing it. We had the satisfaction of knowing that we helped someone. I was, I was surprised by that but pleasantly surprised by that, by that remark. But I'm not going away. I'll still be involved in the community. And with the next chapter of my life, I'll still be, you'll still see me around.
D. Billy Jones will relinquish his Assembly seat at the end of August after 9 years in office and assume his new role leading the Institute for Advanced Manufacturing in early September. A special election is expected to be called to fill the Assembly seat.
