Kamara First To Seek New Worcester School Committee District Seat

WORCESTER, MA — Incumbent Worcester School Committee member Jermoh Kamara will run for a district seat in 2023, the first candidate to seek one of the newly created seats.

Kamara first won a school committee seat in the 2021 election and serves at-large. Over the last two years, Worcester has created a district representation system for the school committee following a 2021 lawsuit led by the Worcester NAACP and Worcester Interfaith. The suit charged that the city'a all at-large election scheme for the school committee led to a board dominated by white members.

In 2023, voters will select two at-large school committee members and six district members — similar to how city councilors are chosen.

In an announcement Wednesday, Kamara said she'll run for the new District C seat covering parts of the east side including Grafton Hill — where she lives — Green Hill and along Lake Quinsigamond south to the Shrewsbury line. The district includes about 36,000 Worcester residents.

Kamara said she's running again to build on recent school committee accomplishments like the hiring of Superintendent Rachel Monarrez, moving transportation inside the district and negotiating a new arrangement with Worcester police over the duties of school resource officers.

"Serving on the Worcester School Committee, I have a greater insight into the inner workings of our local systems, its key stakeholders, fundings, programs and structure and I want to continue to build on being an essential voice for what we have done these past few months," Kamara said Wednesday. "We did it once and, we can do it again!"

Kamara is the third school committee incumbent to announce 2023 plans. Incumbents Tracy Novick and Sue Mailman will run for at-large seats. Members Jermaine Johnson, Molly McCullough and Laura Clancey have said they will announce plans soon.

RELATED: Worcester Mayor Petty Will Seek Reelection In 2023