Arthur L. Haywood III
| Arthur L. Haywood III | |
|---|---|
| Member of the Pennsylvania Senate from the 4th district | |
|
Assumed office January 6, 2015 | |
| Personal details | |
| Political party | Democratic |
| Spouse(s) | Julie Haywood |
| Children | Three |
| Residence | Cheltenham Township, Pennsylvania |
| Alma mater |
Morehouse College London School of Economics University of Michigan Law School |
Arthur L. "Art" Haywood is a Pennsylvania politician. A Democrat, he is currently the Pennsylvania State Senator for the 4th district. Prior to being elected to the State Senate in the 2014 election, Haywood practiced law and served as a commissioner in Cheltenham Township, Pennsylvania.Haywood was a Marshall Scholar at the London School of Economics.[1] For more than 25 years, Art Haywood devoted his career to public interest law, working to ensure fair and affordable housing in the Philadelphia region, fighting foreclosures and advising non-profits with the goal of revitalizing underserved neighborhoods. Raised by his mother, a public school teacher, Art grew up in Toledo, Ohio, where he attended public schools with his sister, Leslie. From his childhood, Art was instilled with the values of hard work and education.
Art began working at the age of nine as a delivery boy and continued to work through his graduation from Morehouse College, when he received a prestigious Marshall Scholarship to attend the London School of Economics.
After graduating from law school at the University of Michigan, Art began offering legal services to low-income families at Regional Housing Legal Services and Community Legal Services. Later, Art focused his private practice on representing organizations focused on community revitalization through the improvement of education and affordable housing. He also served as legal counsel to Esperanza, a community development organization in the Hunting Park section of North Philadelphia.
“I feel it’s not just enough for me to care: I have to act on that caring. And I’ve seen what power there is in leveraging the collective caring of residents willing to join me in making change. I continue to harness the power of collective caring in our community to take actions that will lead to the quality public education, fair wages, and safety our families deserve.” Art has served on the boards of a number of organizations, including the Tenant Union Representative Network and Cheltenham Achievers Network. He has provided pro-bono services to the National Association of Katrina Evacuees and many other organizations.
As a result of his work in the community, Art has been recognized by the Pennsylvania Human Relations Commission, Christian Legal Aid Society, U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development and John Marshall Fair Housing Institute.
Through his work with NAACP legal Defense Fund, Art met his wife, Julie Billingslea, married in 1989, and moved from Germantown to Cheltenham in 1994, in order to ensure their children received a better quality public school education. The experience of being forced to move to give his children a better education, and the housing discrimination he experienced in the process, reinforced Art’s will to work towards a Pennsylvania where a quality education and fair housing is available to everyone.
Most recently, Art served as a Cheltenham Township commissioner. Julie currently serves as Vice President of the Cheltenham Township school board.
Haywood became the first elected official from Pennsylvania to endorse Senator Bernie Sanders for President of the United States.
References
- ↑ "PA. 4TH SENATE DIST.: Contender Art Haywood". Philadelphia Public Record. Retrieved 22 December 2014.
External links
- Art Haywood for State Senate campaign website