Josephine Dobbs Clement

{{Infobox officeholder

| name = Josephine Dobbs Clement

| image = Josephine Dobbs Clement Headshot.jpg

| alt = Portrait of Clement

| office1 = Member of the Durham County Board of Commissioners

| term_start1 = 1984

| term_end1 = 1990

| office2 = Member of the Durham City Board of Education

| term_start2 = 1973

| term_end2 = 1983

| birth_name = Josephine Ophelia Dobbs

| birth_date = {{Birth date|mf=yes|1918|2|9}}

| birth_place = {{Nowrap|Atlanta, Georgia, U.S.}}

| death_date = {{Death date and age|mf=yes|1998|3|23|1918|2|9}}

| death_place = {{Nowrap|Atlanta, Georgia, U.S.}}

| party = Democratic

| spouse = {{Marriage|William A. Clement|December 24, 1941}}

| parents = {{Plainlist|

John Wesley Dobbs
Irene Ophelia Thompson

}}

| relatives = {{ubl|Irene Dobbs Jackson (sister)|Mattiwilda Dobbs (sister)}}

| education = {{ubl|Spelman College (BS)|Columbia University (MA)}}

| caption = Clement in 1975

}}

Josephine Ophelia Dobbs Clement ({{nee}} Dobbs; February 9, 1918 – March 23, 1998) was an American politician, teacher, and civil rights activist. She served on the Board of Education of Durham, North Carolina, the first Black woman to do so.

Education and early career

Josephine Ophelia Dobbs was born on February 9, 1918, in Atlanta, Georgia, the fourth of six daughters to civic leader John Wesley Dobbs and Irene Dobbs ({{nee}} Thompson).{{Cite news |last1=Zagier |first1=Alan Scher |title=Durham mourns longtime leader after death at 80 |url=https://www.newspapers.com/newspage/657497993/ |access-date=January 12, 2021 |work=The News & Observer |page=4 |date=March 25, 1998}}{{cite news|last=Mays |first=Benjamin |title=He Gives Flowers 'To The Living;' The J. W. Dobbses are 'Exceptional' |url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/14368853/the-pittsburgh-courier/ |newspaper=Pittsburgh Courier |date=May 16, 1953 |page=6 |via=Newspapers.com |access-date=January 9, 2021}} She graduated from Spelman College in 1937 and later earned a Master of Arts degree in home economics from Teachers College, Columbia University. Dobbs taught at Morris Brown College and Savannah State College in Georgia. She married William A. Clement in 1941 and moved to Durham, North Carolina in 1946, where she taught at North Carolina Central University.{{cite web |title=William A. Clement Papers, 1930-1998 |url=https://finding-aids.lib.unc.edu/04024/ |website=The Southern Historical Collection at the Louis Round Wilson Special Collections Library |publisher=UNC University Libraries |access-date=January 9, 2021}}

In the late 1940s, Josephine and William Clement filed lawsuits challenging racial discrimination in schools.{{cite news |last1=Hoar |first1=Stephen |title=Civil rights advocate never lost sight of family |url=https://greensboro.com/civil-rights-advocate-never-lost-sight-of-family/article_f6211a77-1c45-5c00-86a7-42e0b955e698.html |access-date=January 9, 2021 |work=News & Record |publisher=The News & Observer |date=July 27, 1991}} Clement and 15 other women leaders in the black community chartered the Durham chapter of the Links, a national service organization, in 1958.{{sfn|Anderson|2011|p=365}}

Political career

In 1971, Clement was appointed to a commission that studied the potential consolidation of Durham City and Durham County. The commission's proposed plan for consolidation was rejected in a 1974 referendum.{{sfn|Anderson|2011|p=300}}

The Durham City Council appointed Clement to the Durham City Board of Education in 1973. She was the first black woman to serve on the board.{{sfn|Vann|2017|p=50}} In 1975, the city council asked the North Carolina General Assembly to make the school board an elected body; the legislation was passed in June of the same year. Clement was re-elected to the school board in 1975 and 1979, becoming part of the first black-majority school board in North Carolina.{{sfn|Vann|2017|p=50}}{{cite news |last1=Jordan |first1=Milton |title=Four realize 'dream' with election to Durham school board |page=5 |work=Baltimore Afro-American |date=November 15, 1975}} In 1978, she became the first black woman to chair the board, and remained in that role for five years.{{sfn|Vann|2017|p=50}}

Clement was appointed to the Durham County Board of Commissioners in 1984.{{sfn|Anderson|2011|p=412}} She was elected to the board in November 1984, and served three terms until 1990.{{sfn|Anderson|2011|p=453}}

Electoral history

=Durham City Board of Education=

{{Election box begin no change |date=October 7, 1975 |title=Durham City Board of Education election, 1975{{cite web |title=Municipal Primary City School Board Election |url=http://dcoftp.net/boe-ftp/Election%20Results%20Archive/1975_Elections/1975_municipal_primary.pdf |publisher=Durham County Board of Elections |page=3 |access-date=January 12, 2021}}}}

{{Election box winning candidate with party link no change|

|party = Nonpartisan politician

|candidate = Josephine D. Clement (incumbent)

|votes = 3,647

|percentage = 44.8

}}

{{Election box winning candidate with party link no change|

|party = Nonpartisan politician

|candidate = Theodore R. Speigner (incumbent)

|votes = 3,164

|percentage = 38.9

}}

{{Election box winning candidate with party link no change|

|party = Nonpartisan politician

|candidate = Thomas B. Bass

|votes = 3,131

|percentage = 38.5

}}

{{Election box winning candidate with party link no change|

|party = Nonpartisan politician

|candidate = John D. Lennon

|votes = 2,777

|percentage = 34.1

}}

{{Election box winning candidate with party link no change|

|party = Nonpartisan politician

|candidate = Harry E. Rodenhizer Jr. (incumbent)

|votes = 2,740

|percentage = 33.6

}}

{{Election box candidate with party link no change|

|party = Nonpartisan politician

|candidate = Mildred R. Teer

|votes = 2,738

|percentage = 33.6

}}

{{Election box candidate with party link no change|

|party = Nonpartisan politician

|candidate = James B. Maxwell

|votes = 2,583

|percentage = 31.7

}}

{{Election box candidate with party link no change|

|party = Nonpartisan politician

|candidate = Robert G. "Bob" Ghirardelli

|votes = 2,347

|percentage = 28.8

}}

{{Election box candidate with party link no change|

|party = Nonpartisan politician

|candidate = Trellie L. Jeffers

|votes = 2,342

|percentage = 28.8

}}

{{Election box candidate with party link no change|

|party = Nonpartisan politician

|candidate = Lou Noel

|votes = 1,965

|percentage = 24.1

}}

{{Election box candidate with party link no change|

|party = Nonpartisan politician

|candidate = Elva P. DeJarmon

|votes = 664

|percentage = 8.2

}}

{{Election box total no change

|votes = 8,143{{refn|name=TurnoutGeneral|group=N|The recorded election turnout. Each voter selected up to five candidates and the top five vote getters won the election.}}

|percentage =

}}

{{Election box begin no change |date=October 9, 1979 |title=Durham City Board of Education election, 1979{{cite web |title=Municipal Primary & City School Board |url=http://dcoftp.net/boe-ftp/Election%20Results%20Archive/1979_Elections/1979_Municipal_Primary_City_School_Board.pdf |publisher=Durham County Board of Elections |page=3 |access-date=January 12, 2021}}}}

{{Election box winning candidate with party link no change|

|party = Nonpartisan politician

|candidate = Josephine D. Clement (incumbent)

|votes = 4,762

|percentage = 35.5

}}

{{Election box winning candidate with party link no change|

|party = Nonpartisan politician

|candidate = Robert G. "Bob" Ghirardelli

|votes = 4,123

|percentage = 30.8

}}

{{Election box winning candidate with party link no change|

|party = Nonpartisan politician

|candidate = Beth Perry Upchurch

|votes = 4,108

|percentage = 30.7

}}

{{Election box winning candidate with party link no change|

|party = Nonpartisan politician

|candidate = Thomas B. Bass (incumbent)

|votes = 4,029

|percentage = 30.1

}}

{{Election box winning candidate with party link no change|

|party = Nonpartisan politician

|candidate = John D. Lennon (incumbent)

|votes = 4,021

|percentage = 30.0

}}

{{Election box candidate with party link no change|

|party = Nonpartisan politician

|candidate = Dennis Nicholson

|votes = 3,944

|percentage = 29.4

}}

{{Election box candidate with party link no change|

|party = Nonpartisan politician

|candidate = Marty Pierson

|votes = 3,863

|percentage = 28.8

}}

{{Election box candidate with party link no change|

|party = Nonpartisan politician

|candidate = Trellie L. Jeffers

|votes = 3,516

|percentage = 26.2

}}

{{Election box candidate with party link no change|

|party = Nonpartisan politician

|candidate = James R. Lumley Sr.

|votes = 3,445

|percentage = 25.7

}}

{{Election box candidate with party link no change|

|party = Nonpartisan politician

|candidate = William "Bill" Lawrence

|votes = 1,607

|percentage = 12.0

}}

{{Election box candidate with party link no change|

|party = Nonpartisan politician

|candidate = Betty D. Massenburg

|votes = 1,401

|percentage = 10.5

}}

{{Election box total no change

|votes = 13,402{{refn|name=TurnoutGeneral|group=N}}

|percentage =

}}

=Durham County Board of Commissioners=

{{Election box begin no change | title=Durham County Board of Commissioners Democratic primary election, 1984{{cite web |date=May 8, 1984 |title=Primary |url=http://dcoftp.net/boe-ftp/Election%20Results%20Archive/1984_Elections/1984_Partisian_Primary.pdf |publisher=Durham County Board of Elections |page=9 |access-date=January 12, 2021}}}}

{{Election box winning candidate with party link no change|

|party = Democratic Party (United States)

|candidate = Rebecca "Becky" Heron (incumbent)

|votes = 22,818

|percentage = 59.6

}}

{{Election box winning candidate with party link no change|

|party = Democratic Party (United States)

|candidate = Josephine D. Clement

|votes = 19,435

|percentage = 50.8

}}

{{Election box winning candidate with party link no change|

|party = Democratic Party (United States)

|candidate = William V. "Bill" Bell (incumbent)

|votes = 19,239

|percentage = 50.2

}}

{{Election box candidate with party link no change|

|party = Democratic Party (United States)

|candidate = R. Dillard Teer{{refn|name=Runoff1984|group=N|Advanced to a runoff election in June 1984. Hight and McCutcheon won the runoff and advanced to the general election, while Teer was eliminated from the race.}} (incumbent)

|votes = 11,319

|percentage = 29.6

}}

{{Election box winning candidate with party link no change|

|party = Democratic Party (United States)

|candidate = Louise "Lou" McCutcheon{{refn|name=Runoff1984|group=N}}

|votes = 10,647

|percentage = 27.8

}}

{{Election box winning candidate with party link no change|

|party = Democratic Party (United States)

|candidate = Albert "Al" Hight{{refn|name=Runoff1984|group=N}}

|votes = 9,745

|percentage = 25.4

}}

{{Election box candidate with party link no change|

|party = Democratic Party (United States)

|candidate = Brantley DeLoatche (incumbent)

|votes = 8,629

|percentage = 22.5

}}

{{Election box candidate with party link no change|

|party = Democratic Party (United States)

|candidate = Harlan L. Laws

|votes = 7,767

|percentage = 22.5

}}

{{Election box candidate with party link no change|

|party = Democratic Party (United States)

|candidate = Thomas E. Maddry

|votes = 2,700

|percentage = 7.1

}}

{{Election box candidate with party link no change|

|party = Democratic Party (United States)

|candidate = Charles M. "Charlie" Stancel

|votes = 1,961

|percentage = 5.1

}}

{{Election box candidate with party link no change|

|party = Democratic Party (United States)

|candidate = Dewey A. Davis

|votes = 1,461

|percentage = 3.8

}}

{{Election box total no change

|votes = 38,295{{refn|group=N|name=TurnoutPrimary|The recorded election turnout. Each voter selected up to five candidates and the top five vote getters advanced to the general election.}}

|percentage =

}}

{{Election box begin no change | title=Durham County Board of Commissioners general election, 1984{{cite web |title=General |date=November 6, 1984 |url=http://dcoftp.net/boe-ftp/Election%20Results%20Archive/1984_Elections/1984_General_Election.pdf |publisher=Durham County Board of Elections |page=13 |access-date=January 12, 2021}}}}

{{Election box winning candidate with party link no change|

|party = Democratic Party (United States)

|candidate = Rebecca "Becky" Heron (incumbent)

|votes = 32,141

|percentage = 48.8

}}

{{Election box winning candidate with party link no change|

|party = Democratic Party (United States)

|candidate = Josephine D. Clement (incumbent)

|votes = 30,242

|percentage = 46.0

}}

{{Election box winning candidate with party link no change|

|party = Democratic Party (United States)

|candidate = William V. "Bill" Bell (incumbent)

|votes = 28,364

|percentage = 43.1

}}

{{Election box winning candidate with party link no change|

|party = Democratic Party (United States)

|candidate = Louise "Lou" McCutcheon

|votes = 27,064

|percentage = 41.1

}}

{{Election box winning candidate with party link no change|

|party = Democratic Party (United States)

|candidate = Albert "Al" Hight

|votes = 25,023

|percentage = 38.0

}}

{{Election box candidate with party link no change|

|party = Republican Party (United States)

|candidate = Russell N. Barringer Jr.

|votes = 19,120

|percentage = 29.1

}}

{{Election box total no change

|votes = 65,804{{refn|group=N|name=TurnoutGeneral}}

|percentage =

}}

{{Election box begin no change | title=Durham County Board of Commissioners general election, 1986{{cite web |date=November 4, 1986 |title=General |url=http://dcoftp.net/boe-ftp/Election%20Results%20Archive/1986_Elections/1986_Partisian_General_Election.pdf |publisher=Durham County Board of Elections |page=11 |access-date=January 12, 2021}}}}

{{Election box winning candidate with party link no change|

|party = Democratic Party (United States)

|candidate = Rebecca "Becky" Heron (incumbent)

|votes = 26,813

|percentage = 60.7

}}

{{Election box winning candidate with party link no change|

|party = Democratic Party (United States)

|candidate = Josephine D. Clement (incumbent)

|votes = 25,496

|percentage = 57.7

}}

{{Election box winning candidate with party link no change|

|party = Democratic Party (United States)

|candidate = William V. "Bill" Bell (incumbent)

|votes = 24,781

|percentage = 56.1

}}

{{Election box winning candidate with party link no change|

|party = Democratic Party (United States)

|candidate = Albert "Al" Hight (incumbent)

|votes = 24,600

|percentage = 55.7

}}

{{Election box winning candidate with party link no change|

|party = Democratic Party (United States)

|candidate = Louise "Lou" McCutcheon (incumbent)

|votes = 21,134

|percentage = 47.8

}}

{{Election box candidate with party link no change|

|party = Republican Party (United States)

|candidate = Douglas K. Davidson

|votes = 14,455

|percentage = 32.7

}}

{{Election box total no change

|votes = 44,194{{refn|group=N|name=TurnoutGeneral}}

|percentage =

}}

{{Election box begin no change | title=Durham County Board of Commissioners Democratic primary election, 1988{{cite web |date=May 3, 1988 |title=Party Primary & County School Board Election |url=http://dcoftp.net/boe-ftp/Election%20Results%20Archive/1988_Elections/1988_Party_Primary&School_Board_Election.pdf |publisher=Durham County Board of Elections |page=6 |access-date=January 12, 2021}}}}

{{Election box winning candidate with party link no change|

|party = Democratic Party (United States)

|candidate = Rebecca "Becky" Heron (incumbent)

|votes = 12,754

|percentage = 64.3

}}

{{Election box winning candidate with party link no change|

|party = Democratic Party (United States)

|candidate = William V. "Bill" Bell (incumbent)

|votes = 10,246

|percentage = 51.7

}}

{{Election box winning candidate with party link no change|

|party = Democratic Party (United States)

|candidate = Albert "Al" Hight (incumbent)

|votes = 9,770

|percentage = 49.3

}}

{{Election box winning candidate with party link no change|

|party = Democratic Party (United States)

|candidate = Josephine D. Clement (incumbent)

|votes = 9,663

|percentage = 48.7

}}

{{Election box winning candidate with party link no change|

|party = Democratic Party (United States)

|candidate = Ellen Reckhow

|votes = 8,748

|percentage = 44.1

}}

{{Election box candidate with party link no change|

|party = Democratic Party (United States)

|candidate = Louise "Lou" McCutcheon (incumbent)

|votes = 8,149

|percentage = 41.1

}}

{{Election box candidate with party link no change|

|party = Democratic Party (United States)

|candidate = Harlan Laws

|votes = 5,800

|percentage = 29.2

}}

{{Election box total no change

|votes = 19,833{{refn|group=N|name=TurnoutPrimary}}

|percentage =

}}

Personal life

Josephine Dobbs married William A. Clement on December 24, 1941. William's first wife, Frances, had died of cancer in 1940; they had one daughter, Alexine (born 1936). After they were married, Josephine and William had five children: sons William A. (born 1943), Wesley Dobbs (born 1946), and Arthur John (born 1948), and daughters Kathleen Ophelia (born 1957) and Josephine Millicent.

=Death=

Clement died of Sjögren syndrome at age 80 on March 23, 1998.{{cite news|last=Powell |first=Kay |title=Josephine Dobbs Clement, 80, civic leader |url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/30702323/the-atlanta-constitution/ |newspaper=The Atlanta Constitution |date=March 25, 1998 |page=32 |via=Newspapers.com |access-date=January 9, 2021}}

Legacy

The Durham Public Education Network, a nonprofit group, established the Josephine Dobbs Clement Award in 1995.{{cite news |last=Hower |first=Wendy |title=Volunteer known for getting things done |url=https://www.newspapers.com/newspage/657163155/ |newspaper=The News & Observer |date=May 3, 1998 |page=31 |via=Newspapers.com |access-date=January 9, 2021 |url-access=subscription}} The award is presented annually for "exemplary community leadership in public education".{{cite news |last=Hui |first=T. Keung |title=Broughton principal retiring |url=https://www.newspapers.com/newspage/659281177/ |newspaper=The News & Observer |date=March 2, 2005 |page=21 |via=Newspapers.com |access-date=January 9, 2021 |url-access=subscription}}

Josephine Dobbs Clement Early College High School, a partnership between Durham Public Schools and North Carolina Central University, opened in 2004 and is named in Clement's honor.{{cite news |title=Ammons honored for starting Early College at NCCU |url=https://newspapers.digitalnc.org/lccn/sn85042324/2005-07-21/ed-1/seq-5/ |newspaper=Winston-Salem Chronicle |date=July 21, 2005 |page=5 |via=digitalnc.org |access-date=January 9, 2021}}{{cite news |last1=Hinchcliffe |first1=Kelly |title='We did it. We actually did it': Durham school named one of the best in the nation |url=https://www.wral.com/we-did-it-we-actually-did-it-durham-school-named-one-of-the-best-in-the-nation/18659917/ |access-date=January 9, 2021 |work=WRAL |date=September 27, 2019}} Cecelia Steppe-Jones, former dean of the School of Education at North Carolina Central University, said that in choosing the name of the school, the program's planners "wanted something special—a name of someone who was or had been an advocate for children", and that Clement's name was ultimately selected due to her public education advocacy, social activism, and leadership.{{cite speech |last=Steppe-Jones |first=Cecelia |title=Commencement Speech |event=Josephine Dobbs Clement Early College High School Commencement 2011 |date=June 2011 |location= |publisher=NCCU Teaching Matters |issue=Fall 2011 |url=https://issuu.com/fauconblu/docs/teaching_matters_full_book |page=2 |access-date=January 11, 2021 |language=}}

Notes

References

=Bibliography=

{{cite book |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=4gyxDsR0t7QC |last=Anderson |first=Jean Bradley |title=Durham County: A History of Durham County, North Carolina |publisher=Duke University Press |year=2011 |edition=2nd |isbn=978-0-8223-4983-9}}
{{cite book |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=QnIuDwAAQBAJ |last=Vann |first=Andre D. |title=African Americans of Durham County |publisher=Arcadia Publishing |year=2017 |isbn=978-1-4396-6134-5}}

Category:1918 births

Category:1998 deaths

Category:African-American activists

Category:Activists for African-American civil rights

Category:Activists from Atlanta

Category:African-American people in North Carolina politics

Category:County commissioners in North Carolina

Category:Politicians from Atlanta

Category:Spelman College alumni

Category:Teachers College, Columbia University alumni

Category:School board members in North Carolina

Category:20th-century North Carolina politicians

Category:20th-century American women politicians