Official Biography
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| Helen
M. Marshall |
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Helen M. Marshall,
President of the Borough of Queens
Helen Marshall was overwhelmingly re-elected Queens
Borough President in November 2005, winning 74 percent
of the vote. She was elected to her first term as
Borough President in November 2001 with 68 percent of the
vote.
She is the 18th Borough
President of Queens and the first African American and
second woman to hold the post of highest-ranking elected
official in a borough with a population of more than 2.2
million residents.
Since becoming Queens Borough President, Ms. Marshall
has allocated more than $75 million to the Department of
Parks and Recreation. Ms. Marshall has also allocated
more than $44 million for new libraries, expansions, additions
and technological improvements. In 2005, she was
the recipient of the statewide Daniel Casey Library Advocacy
Award. She has also helped to fund the expansions
of cultural institutions across the borough and provided
$60 million in funding to improve neighborhood parks and
playgrounds. The Borough President’s “War
Room” meetings with education officials have also
helped to ensure the timely construction of 30 new schools
with more than 17,800 seats. Marshall also provided
$6 million in capital funding and spearheaded the historic
effort that will result in the first CUNY presence on the
Rockaway Peninsula in a newly converted former courthouse.
Marshall, a founder of the Langston Hughes Library
in Corona, has been a lifelong advocate for public libraries,
job training programs and economic development. She
was a parent activist in the public school system for 15
years and a member of Community Board 3 for 13 years. She
was also a founder of the Queens County Overall Economic
Development Corporation.
The Borough President‘s Zoning Task Force
has been largely responsible for the rezoning of more than
two dozen neighborhoods, protecting many of them from over
development. Concurrently,
she also created the Commercial Corridor Program that improves
commercial strips with landscaping and increased lighting. She
also was successful in restoring millions of dollars in
funding for services for senior citizens and fought to
save a hot meals program that delivers meals to homebound
seniors.
Prior to becoming Queens Borough President, Ms.
Marshall represented the 21st District
in the City Council for 10 years, beginning in 1991, when
she secured 91 percent of the vote. She was the founding
Chair of the Higher Education Committee and fought against
the privatization of remedial programs of CUNY. She also
served as a member of the Housing & Buildings, Environmental
Protection and Women’s Issues Committees, and co-chaired
the Council’s Black and Latino Caucus. While
a member of the City Council, she supported the expansions
and upgrades of every library in her district, restored
funding to rebuild a free children’s dental clinic
in Corona, led the fight to prevent the sale of Elmhurst
and the Queens Hospital Center and provided funding for
two new senior centers and for vans to transport seniors. She
was also the prime sponsor of legislation to relieve senior
citizens’ contributions to Medicare Part B.
Before her election to the City Council, Marshall,
a native New Yorker, served five terms, beginning in 1982,
the New York State Assembly, where she chaired the Rules
Committee and served on the Leland Commission. Prior
to joining the Assembly, Ms. Marshall was an early childhood
teacher for eight years. She left the teaching profession
in 1969 to become the first Director of the Langston Hughes
Library. A post she held for five years. She
was also Director of the EMCOR Testing Assessment and Placement
Program for eight years, placing hundreds of residents
in meaningful employment positions.
Ms. Marshall is a graduate of the City’s public
school system and holds a Bachelor’s Degree in Education
from Queens College. She has also taken graduate
courses at the Bank Street College and Long Island University. She
is a recipient of the President’s Medal from Hunter
College, LaGuardia Community College and St. John’s
University. She was also awarded an Honorary Doctorate
Degree in Science from the College of Aeronautics.
She has been married to Donald Marshall for more
than 50 years and has two children, Donald Jr. and Agnes
Marie. Ms. Marshall is also the proud grandmother
of Chandler and Chasen, the children of Donald and Charlena.
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