David Jernigan, diagnosed with ALS, leaving BGCMA on May 1 

It was Nov. 21, 2024. David Jernigan bravely posted on LinkedIn that he had made the “difficult decision” to transition out of his role as president and CEO of the Boys & Girls Clubs of Metro Atlanta (BGCMA), a job he’s held for five years.

He wrote:

For several months, I’ve been experiencing challenges with my balance and mobility. After much testing, I was diagnosed with Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis (ALS), a progressive disease that affects the nervous system, leading to muscle weakness and loss of muscle control. While ALS currently has no cure, I am fortunate to be in the early stages of the disease, and I am optimistic about the time I have left to spend with loved ones. Yet, as I come to terms with this new reality, I have also had to reflect on what is best for both my health and the future of BGCMA.

That post received 405 comments and thousands of reactions — everyone expressing their love and support of Jernigan — an educational leader who has spent a 25-year career in Atlanta. Jernigan’s last day as BGCMA’s CEO will be May 1. 

In an exclusive interview, Jernigan shared his reflections about BGCMA, its mission, his impact on Atlanta and his own personal journey. 

Jernigan has always been into fitness, going to the gym every day and running numerous road races. During the 2023 Peachtree Road Race, Jernigan realized he was having difficulty running as well as he had in previous years. In addition to doing more physical therapy, Jernigan told his doctors: “My legs just won’t run anymore.”

Still, Jernigan persisted — signing up to run the 2024 Peachtree Road Race and completing it by walking the whole way. When he saw an 80-year-old man running the race, Jernigan realized he couldn’t blame his lack of mobility on just getting older. He knew something was wrong, but he didn’t think it was neurological. 

Then after several months of tests and through the process of elimination, Jernigan was diagnosed with ALS on Oct. 7, 2024.

“You are not prepared for it,” Jernigan said on April 9 while sitting in his office at BGCMA’s headquarters in Chamblee. “It rocks your world.”

Jernigan, 47, showed amazing strength during the interview — sharing the ups and downs of his illness as well as pride in the organization he has led since May 2020.

“Back in July, I walked six miles. Now it’s a struggle to walk a couple of blocks,” Jernigan stated matter-of-factly. “I have very little muscle mass left. There’s really not much you can do to treat it.”

Later, in the interview, Jernigan stated: “Life expectancy with ALS is somewhere between two to five years.” But he quickly added his doctor told him to ignore what was on the internet. Jernigan is being treated at Emory’s ALS Center, and he’s in the care of the world-renowned Dr. Jonathan Glass.

“Being in this role for the last five to six months has been a good distraction for me,” said Jernigan, who reflected on his five-year tenure at BGCMA.

It was announced in January 2020 that Jernigan was the pick to lead BGCMA. At the time, Jernigan was serving as the deputy superintendent of Atlanta Public Schools. He decided he would join the organization in May 2020 so there would be ample time for a transition. But in between those two bookends, the Covid pandemic hit.

“I walked into a totally different situation,” Jernigan said. “We had closed all of our clubs. We had laid off all our part-time staff. We quickly pivoted to open virtual learning hubs. We pivoted our entire programming model.”

By the fall of 2020, BGCMA had reopened all its clubs with smaller ratios and more distancing.

“We were trying to balance the health of the staff and kids, and yet we wanted to serve the community,” Jernigan said. “It took us a couple of years to get the numbers back. We had to restaff.”

BGCMA also worked on a new strategic plan and launched a $27.5 million capital campaign.

“I was able to help stabilize the organization during a tumultuous time,” Jernigan said. “We had a goal of $27.5 million, and we raised $28.1 million. We exceeded our goal, and we did it in record time — two years.”

Now BGCMA is serving about the same number of young people as it was before the pandemic – about 7,000 students. It also has opened eight new club sites and closed a couple. Jernigan said some clubs still aren’t back to full capacity. But BGCMA has adjusted its model by emphasizing partnerships and becoming “less dependent on bricks and mortar and more dependent on partners” – such as school systems already in various communities. “It is a far more efficient way to grow our impact,” Jernigan said.

Missy Dugan called Jernigan “the perfect person” to lead BGCMA. Dugan served as CEO of BGCMA from 2007 to 2020, when she became a senior vice president with The National Boys & Girls Clubs of America, which is headquartered in Atlanta.

“Now sitting here five years later, David has done even more than just grow it; he has continued to build this organization into such a stronghold for the metro Atlanta community and the amazing young people who walk through the blue doors every day,” Dugan wrote in a text. “David is such an amazing man with such a courageous spirit. I have loved getting to know him, becoming a friend, and watching him lead this great organization.”

Meria Carstarphen, former superintendent of Atlanta Public Schools, spoke of hiring Jernigan to be her deputy back in 2014.

“David’s leap of faith and relentless commitment to putting children first has always been a beacon of hope and motivation for me,” Carstarphen wrote in a text. “David has been a trusted right-hand and thought partner whose unwavering dedication has shaped the lives of hundreds of thousands of students, their families and our Atlanta community.”

Jernigan grew up in North Carolina, attending UNC-Chapel Hill and becoming a business major. He kept resisting a career in education, but the calling to teach was just too strong.

He moved to Atlanta in 2000 to be one of the city’s first Teach for American teachers –assigned to M. Agnes Jones Elementary School on the Westside.

“I fell in love with Atlanta at the gate,” Jernigan said. “I felt a connection to the community where I was teaching. It felt like home to me. I was a white dude in a mostly Black community, but I felt right at home. There was something about the energy of this city that was appealing to me.”

Jernigan quickly became fascinated with the KIPP public charter schools after seeing a special on 60 Minutes. Little did he know that then-Gov. Roy Barnes also saw the program and urged then-APS Superintendent Beverly Hall to welcome KIPP to Atlanta.

“I have zero regrets about going into education. After two years in the classroom, the next logical step was to open my own school,” Jernigan said sarcastically. “At 25 years old, I opened KIPP WAYs Academy.”

Jernigan helped grow and lead the KIPP Academy in Atlanta. When Jernigan joined APS in 2014, there were eight KIPP schools, including the KIPP Atlanta Collegiate High School. Today, KIPP has 11 schools here, and Jernigan serves on KIPP’s Atlanta board.

“David’s influence has shaped not only our schools but also the hearts of every life he has touched,” Carstarphen said. “It is why I love and respect him immensely.”

Jernigan has purposefully not focused on his future after May 1, wanting to concentrate on his duties running BGCMA, a job he described as “really fun.”

“It’s allowed me to continue to serve the kids in Atlanta,” Jernigan said. “Being able to pivot into a nonprofit space has given me more autonomy and less bureaucracy than working in the public K-12 space.”

As for the future, Jernigan said: “I will have the energy and mental capacity to think about my future on May 2.” 

Jernigan has made plans to go on a Mediterranean cruise this summer with a college friend, and he’s trying to figure out the other items on his bucket list. 

After reading each one of the 405 LinkedIn comments, Jernigan responded with another personal note:

As I navigate this new chapter in my life, I look forward to spending more time with family and friends, but I will always carry the memories and achievements of BGCMA with me. 

BGCMA currently is in the search for a successor, and Jernigan said he plans to help in the transition by being a dedicated volunteer. He also has served the community in several other ways, including Leadership Atlanta and Hands On Atlanta.

“While I know David’s diagnosis and the path ahead is unimaginably hard and heartbreaking, I also know the legacy he leaves behind is one of inspiration, strength, and empowerment,” Carstarphen said. “David’s contributions are a gift. His legacy will inspire us always.”