Opel Jones Biography

Opel Jones, a loving husband and dedicated father of three, was elected to the Howard County Council in 2018, and currently serves as Chair of the County Council. Dedicated to the community, Opel mentors, tutors, and volunteers in his free time through his fraternity. He has a background in mathematics, higher education, computer science, and engineering, and recently became a published author. He served formerly as Second Vice President of the Howard County Democratic Central Committee as well as Human Rights Commissioner for Howard County, appointed by then County Executive, Ken Ulman.

Throughout the years, Opel has worked as an engineer, mathematics lecturer, development officer, and computer scientist, at Lockheed Martin, Hampton University, Bowie State University, and the federal government, respectively. He also served as Director of the Leadership Institute for several years at Hampton University, teaching leadership studies and developing leaders in addition to teaching mathematics and honors seminars. Currently, he is a faculty member at Towson University.

Opel earned the B.S. in mathematics from Hampton University, the M.S. in mathematics from Howard University, and the Ph.D. in mathematics also from Howard University. He is a Life Member of Alpha Phi Alpha Fraternity, Inc., initiated at Hampton University, and past president of the local Howard County chapter.  His professional associations include the American Mathematical Society, the Mathematical Association of America, and the National Association of Mathematicians.  Opel loves music, football, Sudoku, and studies martial arts.  He and his wife, Shaundra, are extremely proud parents of two boys and a girl: Opel II, Ivan, and Whitley!