Vickie Mendes-Branch says she is Phillipsburg's first black resident elected to a governing body.
One of three new members sworn-in Tuesday night to the Phillipsburg School Board says she has broken new ground, as the town's first black resident elected to a governing body.
Vickie Mendes-Branch is one of three people sworn in to the Phillipsburg School Board on Jan. 3, 2017. (Courtesy photo | For lehighvalleylive.com) Vickie Mendes-Branch was scheduled to take the oath of office alongside Peter J. Marino and Sandra S. Morrisette.
The three were elected in November to three-year terms on the school board, besting incumbent board members Richard Turdo, Cathy Morgan and Paul Rummerfield.
Mendes-Branch said she ran with the full support of her husband, Reggie Branch, and their children. Justyce, 16, and Javyn, 8, are both students in the Phillipsburg School District.
She wanted to serve on the board to further her advocacy for children with autism, like Javyn.
"In the district we have about 800 special needs children," Mendes-Branch said Tuesday. "I felt there were things that weren't being done for them. I wanted to sit on the board and at least be a representative and a voice for those children and the parents that are impacted."
Mendes-Branch in 2015 founded the Branching Out Foundation, a nonprofit dedicated to raising money for people affected by autism in the Phillipsburg area.
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On the school board, she plans to push for more training of faculty and staff in caring for students with autism. The lack of training goes beyond Phillipsburg and is a statewide issue, she said.
"This was just a good way of furthering my reach and lending my knowledge to the community," she said.
Mendes-Branch said she joins her friend Bianca Flowers Scerbo, appointed by town Mayor Stephen Ellis to the Phillipsburg Housing Authority Board of Commissioners, as the only black residents serving on governing boards in town. But she made it clear during her campaign for the school board that she wanted voters' support because of her qualifications and knowledge.
"I'm very honored and blessed to even be able to do this and to represent the African-American culture out here," said Mendes-Branch, who uses her maiden name with her husband's last name to honor the Puerto Rican heritage of her grandfather.
Phillipsburg has grown more diverse in her 10 years living in town.
"I think that this was the right time for me to run and for this to happen," she said.
Kurt Bresswein may be reached at kbresswein@lehighvalleylive.com. Follow him on Twitter @KurtBresswein. Find lehighvalleylive.com on Facebook.