Linda Washington Cropp (born October 5, 1947) is an American

politician A politician is a person active in party politics, or a person holding or seeking an elected office in government. Politicians propose, support, reject and create laws that govern the land and by an extension of its people. Broadly speaking, a ...

from

Washington, D.C. ) , image_skyline = , image_caption = Clockwise from top left: the Washington Monument and Lincoln Memorial on the National Mall, United States Capitol, Logan Circle, Jefferson Memorial, White House, Adams Morgan, ...

, the

capital Capital may refer to: Common uses * Capital city, a municipality of primary status ** List of national capital cities * Capital letter, an upper-case letter Economics and social sciences * Capital (economics), the durable produced goods used f ...

of the

United States The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territorie ...

. She was a Democratic member of the

Council of the District of Columbia The Council of the District of Columbia is the legislative branch of the local government of the District of Columbia, the capital of the United States. As permitted in the United States Constitution, the district is not part of any U.S. state ...

, where she was the first woman to serve as the elected Council Chairman. On September 12, 2006, she lost the Democratic Primary for Mayor (57% to 31%) to

Adrian Fenty Adrian Malik Fenty (born December 6, 1970) is an American politician who served as the sixth mayor of the District of Columbia. He served one term, from 2007 to 2011, losing his bid for reelection at the primary level to Democrat Vincent C. Gra ...

. This loss came in spite of the fact that Cropp had been endorsed by outgoing mayor Anthony A. Williams. She was succeeded as Council Chairman by

Vincent C. Gray Vincent Condol Gray (born November 8, 1942) is an American politician who served as the mayor of the District of Columbia from 2011 to 2015. He served for one term, losing his bid for reelection in the Democratic primary to D.C. Council member ...

Early life and education

Cropp received a bachelor's degree in government from

Howard University Howard University (Howard) is a private, federally chartered historically black research university in Washington, D.C. It is classified among "R2: Doctoral Universities – High research activity" and accredited by the Middle States Commissi ...

in 1969. In 1971, she received a Master of Education degree in guidance and counseling from Howard University. She was a student-teacher at Eastern Senior High School, where she met her husband. In 2002, Cropp received an Honorary Doctor of Humane Letters degree from the

University of the District of Columbia The University of the District of Columbia (UDC) is a public historically black land-grant university in Washington, D.C. It was established in 1851 and is the only public university in the city. UDC is a member school of the Thurgood Marshall ...

and was awarded an Honorary Doctorate in Philosophy from the

George Washington University , mottoeng = "God is Our Trust" , established = , type = Private federally chartered research university , academic_affiliations = , endowment = $2.8 billion (2022) , preside ...

in 2007.

Career

From 1970 to 1978, Cropp worked as a teacher and a counselor with the

District of Columbia Public Schools The District of Columbia Public Schools (DCPS) is the local public school system for the District of Columbia, in the United States. It is distinct from the District of Columbia Public Charter Schools (DCPCS), which governs public charter ...

. In 1979, she ran for the District of Columbia Board of Education to represent Ward 4. At the time, she was a

guidance counselor A school counselor is a professional who works in primary (elementary and middle) schools or secondary schools to provide academic, career, college access/affordability/admission, and social-emotional competencies to all students through a school ...

at Roosevelt Senior High School. Her candidacy was supported by then-

Mayor In many countries, a mayor is the highest-ranking official in a municipal government such as that of a city or a town. Worldwide, there is a wide variance in local laws and customs regarding the powers and responsibilities of a mayor as well a ...

Marion Barry Marion Shepilov Barry (born Marion Barry Jr.; March 6, 1936 – November 23, 2014) was an American politician who served as the second and fourth mayor of the District of Columbia from 1979 to 1991 and 1995 to 1999. A Democrat, Barry had served ...

. Cropp won the election, defeating opponent Victoria T. Street. Linda Cropp by David King

Cropp started her first term representing Ward 4 on the D.C. Board of Education in 1980.Linda Cropp papers
Special Collections Research Center, Estelle and Melvin Gelman Library, The George Washington University. She was elected vice president of the Board of Education in December 1984, and then president in January 1989. In 1988, Cropp ran to represent Ward 4 on the

. Cropp criticized incumbent

Charlene Drew Jarvis Charlene Drew Jarvis (born July 31, 1941, in Washington, D.C.Georgia Avenue Georgia Avenue is a major north-south artery in Northwest Washington, D.C. and Montgomery County, Maryland. Within the District of Columbia and a short distance in Silver Spring, Maryland, Georgia Avenue is also U.S. Route 29. Both Howard Univers ...

. Jarvis criticized Cropp for the disappointing results of public schools under Cropp's leadership of the Board of Education. The editorial board of

The Washington Post ''The Washington Post'' (also known as the ''Post'' and, informally, ''WaPo'') is an American daily newspaper published in Washington, D.C. It is the most widely circulated newspaper within the Washington metropolitan area and has a large nati ...

endorsed Jarvis' reelection. Cropp was defeated by Jarvis in the Democratic Party Primary Election, 47% to 52%. When Council Member

Betty Ann Kane Betty Ann Kane is a former American politician who served as an at-large member of the Council of the District of Columbia from 1979 to 1991. Kane later served as a commissioner on the District of Columbia Public Service Commission. Kane was a no ...

decided not to run for reelection to her at-large seat in 1990, Cropp ran to replace her. The editorial board of the Washington Post endorsed the campaign of her opponent, Johnny Barnes. Cropp won the Democratic Party primary election, receiving 51 percent of the vote; Johnny Barnes received 27 percent, and Terry Lynch received 22 percent. Cropp went on to win the general election with 38 percent of the vote. * 1992 elected as chair of the Councilors Committee on Human Services * 1994 re-elected at-large member of D.C. Council * 1997 named acting Chairman of D.C. Council, following the death of David Clarke * 1997 elected D.C. Council Chairman in a special election * 1998 re-elected D.C. Council Chairman * 2002 re-elected D.C. Council Chairman * 2006 entered race for Mayor After her 2006 loss, Cropp retired from politics. Cropp joined the board of two not-for-profit companies, the Community Preservation and Development Corp. and CareFirst

BlueCross BlueShield Blue Cross Blue Shield Association (BCBS, BCBSA) is a federation, or supraorganization, of, in 2022, 34 independent and locally operated BCBSA companies that provide health insurance in the United States to more than 106 million people. It was ...

, and also volunteered for two other local charities, Capital City Links and the D.C. chapter of Boys Townbr>
In 2013 CareFirst BlueCross BlueShield promoted her to

chairman of the board The chairperson, also chairman, chairwoman or chair, is the presiding officer of an organized group such as a board, committee, or deliberative assembly. The person holding the office, who is typically elected or appointed by members of the grou ...

br>

Personal life

Cropp is married to Dwight S. Cropp, a doctor of public policy with a Ph.D. from

. She has two children, Allison and Christopher, and a grandson, Christian Alexander. She lives in Crestwood (Washington, D.C.), Crestwood in

References

External links

Biography

''Metro Weekly'' interview
{{DEFAULTSORT:Cropp, Linda Members of the Council of the District of Columbia Members of the District of Columbia Board of Education Living people Howard University alumni African-American people in Washington, D.C., politics African-American women in politics Politicians from Atlanta 1947 births 2004 United States presidential electors Delta Sigma Theta members Women city councillors in the District of Columbia 21st-century American women politicians 21st-century American politicians 20th-century American women politicians 20th-century American politicians African-American city council members 20th-century African-American women 20th-century African-American politicians 21st-century African-American women 21st-century African-American politicians