by Abigail  B. Ferrente

A Haitian-born human rights advocate, who is running for the Ward 7 school committee seat was the guest at the March 18 contributors meeting of the The Somerville News held in the backroom of Davis Square’s Diesel Café.

“I love this country,” said Herby Duverne. 

Duverne said he came to the United States in 1981. “In 1993 and 94, I was cleaning bathrooms at Harvard. Now I’m a corporate security manager for a financial company in Boston. That is the kind of opportunity in this country.”

He took advantage of that opportunity by earning a bachelor’s and master’s degree in criminal justice from Northeastern University, he said.

In 1991, Duverne moved to Somerville and has assumed leadership roles in the community, he said. He is the president of the board of the Haitian Coalition and is a member of the Somerville Human Rights Commission.

Duverne proposes to use his tenure on the school committee to address “safety and mental health issues facing kids.” Duverne elaborated by saying, “As a parent and a security profession, I know what is needed.”

His plans for Somerville schools are a two-pronged effort to increase parental involvement and to make Somerville’s public education more inclusive, he said.

The school system cannot improve unless all kids are accounted for,” he said.

Duverne said he plans to host regular offices hours and to implement a bi-monthly forum, using both opportunities to invite parents to talk about important education issues.

In addition, Duverne intends to make Somerville a member of the Minority Achievement Network in order to build up that strength, diversity is a strength, he said.

“I am excited about fighting for the right thing, to make Somerville great,” he said.