Activist Nominated To Fill Spot Vacated After Teen Sex Case

Council Could Vote by Mid-August

A longtime community activist from Hyattsville was nominated from a field of 39 candidates to fill a vacant at-large seat on the Prince George's County Board of Education, County Executive Jack B. Johnson announced yesterday.

Johnson chose Amber Waller, a former member of the county's Democratic Central Committee and president of the 8th Precinct Civic Association in Hyattsville, for what he described as her "tireless devotion" and ability to be a "unifying force," according to a statement issued yesterday. The County Council must act on the nomination, a vote that could come as soon as mid-August.

Waller, 55, sounded ecstatic at the news and said she was eager to begin working with the eight other board members and Superintendent John E. Deasy.

Waller has been in contention for the office since June, when Nathaniel B. Thomas resigned the post after being indicted by a grand jury in connection with an alleged sexual relationship with a 15-year-old boy he once taught. Thomas, 26, was a rising star in Prince George's politics, defeating several more experienced candidates in last fall's election.

Alex Rodriguez, a member of the Prince George's Democratic Central Committee, noted the stark difference between Waller, with decades of community service, and Thomas, the political newcomer.

"The county can see a clear difference between the predecessor and the successor," said Rodriguez, who endorsed Waller in September's primary election. "I'm sure that was part of the calculus in the selection process."

R. Owen Johnson Jr., chairman of the school board, said he was "looking forward to getting her on the board and getting her up to speed and putting all this behind us."

Waller, who works as the executive director of Maryland Black Mayors Inc., said her commitment to education has been shaped by her parents and her experiences during the civil rights era. In an interview before last year's election, she unearthed a newspaper clipping listing her among a handful of African American students to be integrated into a school in Roanoke. She graduated from high school in 1966.

"They would not allow me into the band because they feared for my safety. I remember being ostracized," she said. She recalled being deeply moved at her 40th reunion, when her classmates apologized for the indignities to which they had subjected her.

Summing up her educational philosophy, she said: "Every member of the community shares responsibility for the success of our schools."

In September, Waller won the school board primary in District 2, which encompasses the College Park and Hyattsville areas. But in Prince George's, the school board race has an unusual rule: District-level candidates who make it to the general election are voted on by the entire county. That gave an advantage to Waller's opponent, Heather Iliff, who won the support of the county's Democratic Party. Waller lost the election, with 46 percent of the vote to Iliff's 54 percent.

But Waller did not give up. After Thomas's seat came open, she sat through two interviews with the county executive and a panel of county officials and was eventually chosen from among 10 finalists.

"I didn't know what the outcome was going to be," she said yesterday. "I trusted Mr. Johnson to make the best decision for what was needed for our county. It's children first -- it has to be. We only have one chance to educate our children. We have to do it right the first time. We can't erase mistakes."

Staff writer Rosalind S. Helderman contributed to this report.