Ms.Hunt has served at the Jackson County Youth Center and has been employed with the State of Michigan since May 2011. She has spent two decades in the trenches with at-risk youth. In July (2021), Hunt resigned from the JCYC to further her career as a State Trainer specifically for new hires. Ms. Hunt currently serves as a Human Resources Developer with the Office of Workforce Development and Training as a Child Welfare Trainer for the State of Michigan, she literally trains the professionals who run our state’s social systems. 

In 2020, Hunt was elected to the Board of Trustees for the Jackson Public Schools and was appointed as a member of the Board of Directors of Jackson County United Way. In 2023 Hunt received the Presidential Appointment for the Michigan Association of School Boards (MASB). Shalanda rose from Trustee to become the President of the Jackson Public Schools Board of Education. Ms. Hunt has managed to facilitate multi-million dollar budgets and led this major public institution through its most complex years and has represented Jackson at National School Board Association conferences, bringing world-class ideas back to our local district. 

She also serves in municipal government where in 2023 out of 8 applicants was appointed to City Council to fill the vacancy for Ward 5 in the City of Jackson. Ms.Hunt finished this term and by way of a process snafu was unable to correct and qualify for the 2024 election. During 2025 Ward 5 was represented by great leadership however Shalanda had unfinished work and therefore following the 2025 election,Ms. Hunt unseated a veteran incumbent with over 60% of the vote. The people of Ward 5 have already said “Yes” to her leadership and Shalanda Hunt is firmly rooted in that mandate. Shalanda’s first priority is fiscally treating Jackson’s most vulnerable. 

On Dec. 18th of 2025 after recently being sworn in, she revitalized and initiated a dormant 2016 City wide volunteer program and named it ‘Clear Paths, Caring Hearts’ program focused to help seniors with winter snow removal. This program has exceeded hopes and the organizers are pivoting to volunteer public safety and summer youth programs.d worker in the Jackson trenches for two decades 

Shalanda continues service at the State Of Michigan as a Licensed Realtor and now a 20-year public servant. Ms. Hunt understands the economy from the ground up—from property taxes and homeownership to the state-level budget training she does for MDHHS. She doesn’t just talk about labor; she has been a dedicated worker in the Jackson grassroots for over two decades. 

From a Ward 5 constituent – 

“To create purpose and change in the world the heart and the mind have to work together”