Councilwoman Stephanie D. Howse-Jones

public service Honoree 2025

Councilwoman Stephanie D. Howse-Jones is the Cleveland City Council representative of Ward 7, which includes Asia Town, Downtown, Hough, and the St. Clair-Superior neighborhoods. Councilwoman Howse-Jones is a champion of racial and environmental justice, gender equality, and uses her platform to advocate for those who are often overlooked. She serves as Vice Chair of the Workforce, Education, Training & Youth Development Committee and is also a member of the Development, Planning & Sustainability Committee; Health, Human Services & the Arts Committee; and the Safety Committee.

Prior to joining Cleveland City Council, Stephanie served as an Ohio State Representative, Educator, Consultant, and Engineer. Stephanie earned her B.S. in Civil (Environmental) Engineering from Florida A&M University and her M.A. in Environmental Studies from Cleveland State University.

Councilwoman Howse-Jones attended Rainey Institute between 1986 and 1996. She studied Dance, Drama, and Art, and also played the piano and harp. She went on to supervise teens in Rainey’s Teens in Training Program. She also attended high school at Cleveland School of the Arts. As a forever “Rainey Kid,” she says the arts prepared her to accept people for who they are, and be open to exploring new ideas and welcome to new experiences. For her enduring commitment to our community, we are thrilled to honor Councilwoman Howse-Jones at Glissando 2025 as our Public Service Honoree.

Jonai Agee

“Rainey Kid” Alumni Honoree

Jonai Agee has been involved with art in some way since she was a young child, but in middle school is when she really found her passion for creating. Jonai began studying visual arts at Rainey Institute as a student in our Saturday Arts Program in 2021 where she learned many valuable lessons and techniques from her teachers. She used several of the ceramic and printmaking artwork that she created at Rainey to apply and get accepted to Cleveland School of the Arts, where she currently attends high school. Since starting high school in 2022, she has continued to work at Rainey as a Teaching Assistant in the Visual Arts Program where she supports students in Intergalactic ARTS in both 2D and 3D media including Painting, Printmaking, Sculpture, Ceramics, and Digital Art.

She credits her time both as a student and Teaching Assistant at Rainey with helping her grow and develop as both an artist and a person. It has helped her become more comfortable talking to others. She loves Rainey both because of the energy and the people who make it great:

“The presence and feeling at Rainey is just a very welcoming space. I knew when I experienced my first Tea Time at Rainey during the Summer Camp that this was my dream job and never knew how fun a job could be. I also have so much respect for [the Teaching Artists] considering I was even able to work by their side as a coworker. I was fortunate enough to spend four long and happy years at Rainey and build good relationships that will most definitely last a lifetime.”

Next school year, Jonai will begin studying Fashion Design at Kent State University. She hopes to someday come back to work at Rainey. It is Jonai’s skill and passion that earns her recognition as Rainey Institute’s “Rainey Kid” Alumni Honoree. As such, Jonai will receive a $1,000 scholarship toward her education as she pursues her degree.