Zachary Parker is an educator and American politician, currently serving as a member of the Council of the District of Columbia, representing Ward 5 since January 2023.[1]
Zachary Parker | |
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Member for the Council of the District of Columbia from Ward 5 | |
Assumed office January 2, 2023 | |
Preceded by | Kenyan McDuffie |
Personal details | |
Born | Chicago, Illinois, U.S. |
Political party | Democratic |
Education | Northwestern University (BA) Columbia University (MEd) |
Website | Campaign website |
Early life and education
editParker was born in Chicago.[2] He received a BS in Speech and Language Pathology from Northwestern University and a MA in Education Policy and Leadership from Columbia University.[2]
Career
editParker worked as a math teacher with Teach for America and won his first election to the State Board of Education Ward 5 seat in 2018.[2] In 2021, Parker served as president of the State Board of Education.[2]
Council of the District of Columbia
editParker was elected to the Council of the District of Columbia during the 2022 election cycle, besting a field of six other candidates which included former councilman Vincent Orange.[3] Parker eventually succeeded Kenyan McDuffie, who was elected to the At-Large council seat.[4]
Personal life
editIn 2022, Parker came out publicly as gay (in his video statement, he suggested that this was already fairly well known within his community).[5]
References
edit- ^ Weil, Julie (June 23, 2022). "A reshaped D.C. Council will take on education, policing, elections". Washington Post. Washington DC. Retrieved October 21, 2022.
- ^ a b c d Weil, Julie (August 31, 2021). "Board of Education president plans run for D.C. Council". Washington Post. Washington DC. Retrieved October 21, 2022.
- ^ "Incumbents Win Their D.C. Primaries, Progressives Clinch Open Races". DCist. Retrieved June 9, 2024.
- ^ Riley, John (November 9, 2022). "D.C. Elects Gay Councilmember Amid Pro-LGBTQ Wave". Metro Weekly. Retrieved June 9, 2024.
- ^ Parker, Zachary (March 30, 2022). "Unapologetically me. 🖤". twitter.com.