The METCO board of directors has elected Darnell Billings, METCO board member and alumnus, to the position of chair of the board.
Billings is a real estate associate broker at Keller Williams Realty Boston. Before transitioning to real estate, he worked for 12 years in hotel management and holds a bachelor’s degree in hotel management from the University of New Haven.
Billings entered first grade as a METCO student in Lexington Public Schools and graduated from Lexington High School in 2001. Inspired by his son, a current METCO student in the Lincoln Public Schools, and his wife, a member of the Lincoln METCO parent board, Billings joined the METCO board of directors in 2017. Billings said his commitment, rooted in personal experience, drives him to collaborate with METCO and other stakeholders to eliminate educational disparities and to promote equitable access to quality education in Massachusetts regardless of zip code, socioeconomic status, and skin color.
“My pledge is simple: to serve our organization and the expansive spectrum of our community with unwavering dedication, foresight, and inclusiveness,” he said. “Our mission—educate, advocate, connect—remains at the forefront of my leadership.”
METCO President and CEO Milly Arbaje-Thomas praised Billings’ commitment to METCO and the communities it serves. “Our METCO leadership and staff are delighted to be working closely with Darnell as we move forward. His commitment to expanding educational opportunity is so needed and appreciated as we continue our mission to foster the opportunity for children from Boston and from the suburbs to develop a deeper understanding of each other, to promote school diversity, to close the achievement gap, and to overcome racial barriers.”
Billings succeeds Patrick A. Kimble, who served as board chair since 2019.
