Jerry Price

Written By Tim Terrentine

Unstuck 008: From the Neighborhood to the Boardroom — Leading With Your Blueprint

What does it look like when someone builds their entire career — and their entire life — around making sure other people belong?

In this episode of UNSTUCK, Tim Terrentine sits down with Jerry Price, Belonging Partner Advisor for Corewell Health East, to talk about culture, community, leadership, and what it really means to see people — not just as workers or stakeholders, but as whole human beings with stories worth knowing.

Jerry grew up in Benton Harbor, Michigan — a city divided by a bridge, shaped by juxtaposition, and full of people who learned early how to survive, serve, and stay true to who they are. His parents carried the lessons of the Deep South into the Great Lakes, and what they passed down to Jerry became the blueprint he's used in every room he's ever walked into: boardrooms, nonprofits, health systems, and the shores of Lake Michigan where he runs his own jazz festival every summer.

This conversation goes far beyond strategy and systems. It's about roots. It's about fruit. And it's about why the people who know how to see everybody in the room are the ones organizations need most right now.

You’ll hear:

  • Why your lived experience is your leadership blueprint — and how to transfer it to any environment

  • What it means to get through the door, sit at the table, and eventually create the menu

  • Why personal change always precedes professional change — and how Jerry builds from that foundation

  • The difference between DEI as a checkbox and belonging as a daily practice

  • What happens when you stop pre-cooking the meal and start listening to what people actually need

  • How to manage your energy in a moment of cultural chaos — and why calm is strategic

  • The coaching philosophy Jerry is taking into nonprofits, small businesses, and executive teams

  • Why communities who have been silenced are about to sing the loudest

A Key Insight:

"I am not here for your professional growth. I'm here for your personal change. Because when you make a change personally, I never have to worry about you making a change professionally — your personal spirit travels with you everywhere."

Jerry challenges leaders, coaches, HR teams, and community builders to rethink where real transformation starts — and why authenticity is not a soft skill, it's the strategy.

About the Guest:

Jerry Price is the Belonging Partner Advisor for Corewell Health East, where he guides belonging and culture transformation efforts across more than 30,000 team members in Southeast Michigan. A Certified Diversity Professional and nationally recognized facilitator, Jerry brings expertise in inclusive leadership, cultural intelligence, and systems-level change.

He serves on Governor Gretchen Whitmer's Black Leadership Council Health Steering Committee, chairs the Benton Harbor Education Foundation, and serves as a Board Member of Benton Harbor Promise. He is also the co-founder of Lake Breeze at Sunset — a jazz festival held annually on the shores of Lake Michigan.

Connect With Jerry:

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