Omar Chapman, executive director of the Bessemer Public Library, was elected the District 5 member of the Bessemer Board of Education in the runoff election Tuesday, Sept. 22.
A resident of Bessemer for more than 30 years, Chapman defeated incumbent Margie Varner 306 votes to 246.
“I want to thank the citizens of Bessemer, specifically those in District 5, for their support and for electing me the District 5 Bessemer School Board member,” Chapman said. “This is a great opportunity to change the narrative for our school system.”
He said he is ready to go to work for the students in the Bessemer school system, and one of his goals is to restore local governance to the authority of the Bessemer school board.
He will be sworn in Monday, Nov. 2.