Reverend Gregory G. Groover, Sr., is elected School Committee Chair

BOSTON – The Boston School Committee held its annual organizational meeting on Monday, January 4, electing officers and setting the public meeting schedule for the year ahead.

Rev. Gregory G. Groover, Sr., was elected to his second consecutive term as Chairperson. Rev. Groover is Pastor of the Historic Charles Street AME Church in Roxbury and a Boston Public Schools (BPS) parent. He also serves as Vice-President and Chair of the Education Committee for the Black Ministerial Alliance and is a Charter Board Member of the Boston Ten Point Coalition. Rev. Groover has served on the School Committee since 2007.

Ms. Marchelle Raynor was also elected to her second consecutive term as Vice-Chairperson. Ms. Raynor, of Roxbury, is the program director at the Gertrude E. Townsend Head Start Learning Center.  She has served on the School Committee since 1999 and served as Vice-Chair several times in the past. Ms. Raynor is a licensed clinical social worker and a former director of the Boston Public Schools High School Parent Information Center.

The Committee also approved a 2010 calendar of public meetings and hearings, including three upcoming hearings on the development of the district budget for the 2010-2011 school year. The Committee typically meets on alternating Wednesday evenings at 6:00 p.m. in the Edward Winter Chambers at the Boston Public Schools headquarters, 26 Court Street.

Earlier in the day, Mayor Thomas M. Menino presided over the swearing in of two new Boston School Committee members, Mary Tamer and John Barros, appointed to four-year terms. Ms. Tamer is a freelance writer and BPS parent, while Mr. Barros is the Executive Director of the Dudley Street Neighborhood Initiative. The appointees' family members and colleagues attended the swearing-in ceremony in the Ancient and Honorable Hall in Historic Faneuil Hall, along with members of the Boston City Council, the Boston School Committee and Superintendent Carol R. Johnson.

The Boston School Committee is a seven-member board that governs and sets policy for the Boston Public Schools. Its members are appointed by Mayor Thomas M. Menino, who selects from a list of finalists recommended by a 13-member citizens nominating panel.