A Pittsburgh Public Schools board first-vice president cruised to a second term Tuesday, while three newcomers secured board spots following uncontested races.
Democrat Devon Taliaferro, who was first elected in 2019, will sit on the board in 2024 alongside newly elected Democrats Emma Yourd and Dwayne Barker. Board member-elect Yael Silk ran on both the Democratic and Republican tickets.
Taliaferro, of the North Side, won reelection with nearly 80 percent of District 2 votes cast — a total of 9,344 votes, county election officials reported. Republican Ron Sofo received 2,387 votes.
Taliaferro, a community engagement coordinator for The Midwife Center for Birth & Women’s Health in the Strip District, currently serves as the school board’s first-vice president.
Her district includes Lawrenceville, Highland Park, the Strip District and parts of East Liberty and Bloomfield, as well as North Side neighborhoods Spring Hill and East Allegheny, according to the school system’s website.
PPS board members are elected officials who do not earn a salary.
Yael Silk, of Squirrel Hill, ran as both a Democrat and Republican, and won 98% of the vote — a total of 8,655 votes — in District 4, county election officials reported. There were 149 write-in votes.
Silk succeeds board member Pam Harbin, a Point Breeze woman who co-founded a group promoting student-centered education in Pittsburgh. Harbin didn’t seek reelection after one term.
Silk, who has lived in Pittsburgh for 11 years, is the executive director of an arts education group, according to her website. She has called for a financial audit of the school district to ensure funds are being spent equitably.
Her district includes Squirrel Hill, Point Breeze and parts of Shadyside and North Oakland.
Democrat Emma Yourd, of Beechview, won 96% of the vote — a total of 7,404 votes — in District 6, county election officials reported. There were 304 write-in votes.
Yourd succeeds outgoing board member William “Bill” Gallagher, a retired Pittsburgh Public Schools teacher and football coach. He didn’t seek reelection.
Yourd, a workforce development manager whose candidacy was endorsed by the Pittsburgh Federation of Teachers, said Pittsburgh Public Schools needs to desegregate the district by allocating resources equitably, according to the website Vote School Board First!
Her district includes Mt. Washington, Brookline, Beechview and parts of Overbrook.
Democrat Dwayne Barker, of the North Side, won 98% of the vote — a total of 5,559 votes — in District 8, county election officials reported. There were 122 write-in votes.
Barker succeeds outgoing board member Kevin Carter, an entrepreneur and former CEO of the Adonai Center in California-Kirkbride, who didn’t seek reelection. Carter was the youngest person to ever be elected to the school board when he took office in December 2015.
Barker, a former community outreach manager for the Pittsburgh Project and board president of Perry Hilltop Citizens Council, said he hopes to tackle a lack of equity in the district that fuels “the growing achievement and opportunity gap” there.
His district includes the North Side, the Hill District, Downtown, Beltzhoover and parts of Knoxville.
