Jim McElrath Sr.
Many are mourning the loss of former Jamestown High School Principal and former City Council member at large James McElrath Sr. who died July 25.
McElrath was 89.
He was served the Jamestown Public Schools district for 26 years, most notably spending 18 years leading JHS prior to his retirement in 1994.
JPS Superintendent Dr. Kevin Whitaker said, “Anyone who chooses to spend their career in education aspires to leave the type of legacy that Mr. McElrath left on the Jamestown community. His service as an educator, administrator, and school board member reflected a lifelong commitment to students, families, and the betterment of our schools. The naming of the JHS ‘new gym’ in his honor in 1994 is a testament to the impact that he made. We are deeply saddened by his passing and our hearts are with his family and loved ones.”
The Jamestown School Board held a moment of silence in honor of McElrath prior to the July 28 meeting.
McElrath arrived in Chautauqua County in 1957, spending 10 years at Panama Central School before becoming an English teacher at Washington Junior High School. After spending a year as an administrator at Cassadaga Valley Central School, he returned to JPS in 1970 as principal of Jefferson Junior High School. He became the principal of Jamestown High School in 1976.
In his 18 years as the building’s leader, McElrath helped bolster the school’s academic, athletics, and arts programs. During his tenure, he helped the high school earn accreditation by the Middle States Association of Colleges and Schools, supported the national and world travels of the JHS Marching Band and A Cappella Choir programs, worked with former JHS athletic director Komo Tane to bring Jamestown into the Erie County Interscholastic Conference, collaborated with the Chautauqua Striders to develop Strider Field, and assisted in the development of the “new gym” in 1986.
Upon his retirement in 1994, a student-led effort helped rename the building “McElrath Gymnasium.” Following his retirement, he spent three years as a member of the Jamestown School Board and eight years as an at-large member of the Jamestown City Council.
Jamestown City Council also held a moment of silence as part of their monthly voting session on Monday. Council President Tony Dolce had McElrath both as his Principal while attending JHS and then later when he began teaching at the high school in 1989, “I had the pleasure of working with him for several years in the early 90s and then again as a colleague here on City Council. I always viewed Jim as a mentor, a friend, and as a northside neighbor.. living down the street. He was highly respected and revered by his former students. And again, as was mentioned, always remembering their names and the year they graduated. He had an uncanny ability.”
The family will have calling hours from 4:00 to 7:00 p.m., Thursday, July 31 at the Lind Funeral Home located at 805 West Third Street in Jamestown.
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