Rev. James Meeks

Rev. James Meeks

James T. Meeks comes to the Illinois State Board of Education with a background in public service and a deep commitment to the fact that every child deserves a high quality education. He successfully ran as an Independent for the Illinois State Senate for the 15th Legislative District in 2002, and retired from the Illinois General Assembly in 2013 after serving three terms. During his Senate tenure, Meeks served as Chairman of the Senate’s Education Committee, Chairman of the Housing and Community Affairs Committee and Vice Chairman of the Commerce and Economic Development Committee. Mr. Meeks also served as the Illinois Legislative Black Caucus Chair. He briefly campaigned for Mayor of Chicago in 2011. Mr. Meeks is known as a staunch advocate for school reform.He has led campaigns for increased school funding, high quality teachers and school choice.In an effort to urge more funding for inner-city schools, he led a boycott of the Chicago Public Schools in 2008. In 2009 and 2010, Meeks formed a bipartisan coalition in support of opportunity scholarships for children in Chicago’s worst-performing public schools. An active voice for the voiceless, Meeks led a rally to “dry up” the Roseland communityby collecting enough votes to close 26 liquor stores in 1998. Mr. Meeks has been a minister in Chicago for 40 years and currently serves as the senior pastor of Salem Baptist Church of Chicago. Mr. Meeks received his B.A. in Religion and Philosophy from Bishop College in Dallas, TX. He was born and raised in Chicago, where he and his wife, Jamell, still reside. They are parents of four children and one grandchild.