Yvonne M. Spicer

Dr. Yvonne Michelle Spicer (born June 30, 1962) is an American educator, democratic politician, and a former mayor from Framingham, Massachusetts. She was inaugurated on January 1, 2018, becoming the first African-American woman to be popularly elected mayor in Massachusetts, and served until January 1, 2022.[1] She was previously the Vice President for Advocacy and Educational Partnerships at the Museum of Science in Boston, Massachusetts.[2]

Yvonne Spicer
Mayor of Framingham, Massachusetts
In office
January 1, 2018 – January 1, 2022
Preceded byposition established
Succeeded byCharlie Sisitsky
Personal details
Born (1962-06-30) June 30, 1962
New York
NationalityAmerican
Political partyDemocratic
SpouseDivorced
Alma mater
ProfessionEducator

Early life and education

Yvonne Spicer grew up in Brooklyn, New York, the third of four children of Willie and Dorothy Spicer.[3] When she was six years old, a visit to her class by Shirley Chisholm left a lasting impression of the importance of leadership and public service.[4] Spicer's father died when she was ten.[5] She was 13 years old when she got her first job running errands, peeling potatoes and stocking shelves for a Brooklyn restaurant, and her first official job was working for McDonald's.[5] During the summers, she also helped her mother clean houses on the Upper East Side.[3] Spicer attended Catholic middle school and graduated from Brooklyn Technical High School, then earned a B.S. in industrial arts & technology in 1984, followed by an M.S. in technology education in 1985, both from the State University of New York at Oswego, from which she was the first African-American woman to graduate.[6] She earned her doctorate in Educational Leadership from the University of Massachusetts Boston in 2004.[2]

Career

Education

After graduating from college, Spicer moved to Framingham, Massachusetts in 1985 for a job as a woodworking instructor.[6] She worked in the Framingham Public Schools for 16 years, also teaching drafting, architecture, graphic arts, and photography,[7] and eventually becoming Chair of Technology Education,[2] the first woman to fill that position.[5] During that period she also worked part-time as a realtor.[3] She spent two years as Statewide Technology and Engineering Coordinator at the Massachusetts Department of Education, then five years as Director of Career and Technical Education in the Newton Public Schools.[2] In 2006, Spicer was hired as associate director of the Museum of Science (Boston)'s National Center for Technological Literacy,[8] where she rose to vice president for Advocacy and Educational Partnerships,[2] a division she created and led.[9]

Politics

Spicer served on the Framingham Human Relations Commission and the Democratic Town Committee.[10] She was elected to Framingham's representative Town Meeting in 2016,[11] where she served as vice-chair for Precinct 6, and on the Standing Committee on Ways and Means.[4] Spicer was elected Framingham's first mayor in November 2017, following town's decision to change the format of the local government from a Board of Selectmen to a mayor and City Council.[12] Senator Elizabeth Warren held the bible for Spicer's swearing in on January 1, 2018.[13][12]

She was appointed by Governor Deval Patrick to the Massachusetts Governor's STEM Advisory Council in 2010, and reappointed to the council in 2017 by Governor Charlie Baker.[2]

On November 2, 2021, Spicer lost her bid for re-election. Her term ended on January 1, 2022, with the inauguration of new mayor Charlie Sisitsky.[14]

Honors
  • Selected by the National Aeronautics & Space Administration in 2000 to participate in an aerospace engineering program for technology educators[2]
  • Named Framingham State University's Global Education Teacher of the Year in 1993[2]
  • Received the Anti-Defamation League's 1995 "A World of Difference" Teacher Incentive Award[2]
  • Named one of 2009's ten "Women to Watch" by Mass High Tech: the Journal of New England Technology[15]
  • 2017 President-Elect to the International Technology Engineering Education Association (ITEEA)[16]

References
  1. Herz, Mark (2018-01-01). "In A Day Of Firsts, Framingham Becomes A City And Yvonne Spicer Becomes Mayor". WGBH News. Retrieved 2018-02-02.
  2. "About Mayor Yvonne M. Spicer | City of Framingham, MA Official Website". framinghamma.gov. Retrieved 2018-02-02.
  3. Hilliard, John. "Yvonne Spicer's next challenge: Leading a brand new city". BostonGlobe.com. Retrieved 2018-02-02.
  4. Haddadin, Jim. "Spicer: Ready to lead Framingham's new city government". MetroWest Daily News, Framingham, MA. Retrieved 2018-02-02.
  5. Dame, Jonathan. "From Brooklyn to Framingham, Spicer pursues a life without limits". MetroWest Daily News, Framingham, MA. Retrieved 2018-02-02.
  6. Sullivan, Jack (2018-01-09). "Mayor of firsts - CommonWealth Magazine". CommonWealth Magazine. Retrieved 2018-02-02.
  7. "Yvonne M. Spicer: Executive Profile & Biography - Bloomberg". www.bloomberg.com. Retrieved 2018-02-02.
  8. "Museum of Science Announces Leadership for National Center for Technological Literacy (NCTL)". Business Wire. Retrieved 2018-02-02.
  9. "Maria's List State Candidates". www.mariaslist.net. Retrieved 2018-02-02.
  10. "Framingham Mayoral Candidate Yvonne Spicer". Framingham Source. Retrieved 2018-02-02.
  11. "OUR VIEW: Spicer for mayor". Milford Daily News. Retrieved 2018-02-02.
  12. Moskowitz, Eric (January 2, 2018). "Yvonne Spicer sworn in as Framingham's first mayor - The Boston Globe". BostonGlobe.com. Retrieved February 4, 2018.
  13. Benson, Brian. "Spicer inaugurated as Framingham's first mayor". MetroWest Daily News, Framingham, MA. Retrieved 2018-02-02.
  14. "Mayor Yvonne Spicer concedes Framingham race to Charlie Sisitsky". MetroWest Daily News. Retrieved 2021-12-07.
  15. "Mass High Tech honors 2009 Women to Watch". www.bizjournals.com. January 18, 2006. Retrieved 2018-02-02.
  16. "ITEEA - Yvonne Spicer, DTE". www.iteea.org. Retrieved 2018-02-02.
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