Elise L . Wolff

Elise Lenora Wolff was born in New York City on July 16, 1935. She attended elementary schools P.S. 28 and P.S. 117, and William H. Taft High School in the Bronx, New York. In August of 1953, Elise enrolled at the University of Bridgeport, Connecticut, and graduated in the Spring of 1957 with a Bachelor of Science degree. Elise embarked upon her teaching career as a third grade teacher in Fairfield, Connecticut, at the Nathan Hale Elementary School in the Fall of 1957. The following year, she moved to Westchester, New York, where she enjoyed a variety of teaching experiences. This was a time in history when science and technology were progressing rapidly with changes that would affect the world forever.

On April 7, 1968, Elise came west to Las Vegas, Nevada, with her infant son, Joel H. Wolff. Her parents, Betty and Henry L. Wolff, accompanied her. Her first teaching assignment with the Clark County School District was at C.V.T. Gilbert Elementary School. Elise received her Master of Education degree in Administration in January of 1970.

Throughout the four decades that Elise devoted to teaching and educational administration, her vision remained clear: Every child has a right to a free, excellent public education. At local, state, and federal levels, Elise focused her compassion and efforts securing educational services for the children of Nevada.

Described by her peers as tenacious and assertive, possessing a "Mother Earth" attitude, Elise has been the recipient of numerous accolades. The following honors are among them: first woman President in the southwest of Phi Delta Kappa, founder of the Nevada Federal Programs Administrators' Association, founder of the Coalition of Jewish Clark County School District Employees, and recipient of the National Frank Stepanek Award for Federal Programs.