Biography
State Representative Tracy Maxwell Heard (D-26) is a full-time legislator and serves in the 128th General Assembly as the Majority Floor Leader.
Holding a Bachelor of Arts in Communications with a minor in Business, her professional experience is vast and varied.
Upon graduation, she broke all boundaries and became a news anchor with an ABC affiliate in less than six months.
She followed that with a launch into politics working for Clinton-Gore in 1996. That led her to the State Capital where she served as a Legislative Aide in the Ohio Senate.
Heard quickly parlayed that experience and the contacts made into an opportunity to do what she had been waiting to do – work for herself. Millennium Solutions, Inc. was born in 1998 along with a career as a political and public relations consultant.
That effort continued even as she accepted a position as Executive Director of the Livingston Avenue Collaborative for Community Development (LACCD) – a non-profit community development corporation.
Tracy Maxwell Heard serves on numerous community and civic boards as well as a member of Deaconess Board at Smyrna Missionary Baptist Church.
As a former ballet dancer, she has a strong interest in the arts and enjoys playing tennis.
She is the proud wife of Howard D. Heard and daughter of Mrs. Annie L. Maxwell and the late Robert S. Maxwell, Jr.
Her life philosophy is, "Seek ye first the kingdom of God and His righteousness and all these things shall be added unto you." Matthew 6:33
Education
B.A. in Communications, University of Akron
Honors/Awards
African-American Role-Model Award, Phi Beta Sigma Fraternity Inc. (2007); Outstanding Service Award of the Decade, Public Safety Committee, Driving Park Area Commission (2007); YMCA Policy Innovation Award (2008); Challenge Coin Award, Fraternal Order of Police (2008); Friend of Agriculture Award (2009); Legislative Champion for Children, Voices for Ohio's Children (2009); "Afterschool Champion" National Award, National Afterschool Alliance; Health Care Hero, Columbus Neighborhood Health Centers
Memberships/Affiliations
Smyrna Missionary Baptist Church - Deaconess Board; Ohio Legislative Black Caucus - President of the Foundation; Advisory Council for the Women's Legislative Network of the National Conference of State Legislators; United Way of Central Ohio Pubic Policy Committee; United Way of Central Ohio Building Vibrant Neighborhoods Committee; IMPACT Community Action Executive Board Member; Alvis House; Livingston Avenue Collaborative for Community Development (LACD); Central Ohio Coalition for Safe Kids; Lifetime Member of the NAACP; Member of Delta Sigma Theta Sorority, Inc.; OESSP Scholarship Chair; African Immigrants Commission Interagency Council; Franklin Country Conservatory Park Commission; Ohio Cultural Facilities Commission
Responsibilities
A State Representative is an elected official whose job is to serve as a direct link between those Ohioans he or she was elected to represent and state government. In order to best fulfill this role, a representative responds to constituent concerns and works to provide solutions through legislative action. In order to best serve their constituents, a state representative attends meetings of their local civic, social and business groups in addition to responding to mail, email and telephone correspondence from constituents in their district.
The Majority Floor Leader is elected by all members of the House and is responsible for the development and implementation of the agenda for the party in the majority.
