Sara Richardson Thomas (born April 21, 1941) is an
American
American(s) may refer to:
* American, something of, from, or related to the United States of America, commonly known as the "United States" or "America"
** Americans, citizens and nationals of the United States of America
** American ancestry, pe ...
educator and politician from
Indianola Indianola may refer to:
Places in the United States
* Indianola, California (disambiguation)
** Indianola (Eureka), California
* Indianola, Florida
* Indianola, Georgia
* Indianola, Illinois
* Indianola, Iowa
* Indianola, Kansas, a former settleme ...
,
Mississippi
Mississippi () is a state in the Southeastern region of the United States, bordered to the north by Tennessee; to the east by Alabama; to the south by the Gulf of Mexico; to the southwest by Louisiana; and to the northwest by Arkansas. Miss ...
. She was a member of the
Mississippi House of Representatives
The Mississippi House of Representatives is the lower house of the Mississippi Legislature, the lawmaking body of the U.S. state of Mississippi. According to the state constitution of 1890, it is to comprise no more than 122 members elected fo ...
from the 31st District, having first been elected in 1998 to succeed her nephew,
Bill Richardson, who had died in office, and having retired in June 2018. She is a member of the
Democratic Party Democratic Party most often refers to:
*Democratic Party (United States)
Democratic Party and similar terms may also refer to:
Active parties Africa
*Botswana Democratic Party
*Democratic Party of Equatorial Guinea
*Gabonese Democratic Party
*Demo ...
.
Background
Thomas, the daughter of
sharecroppers
Sharecropping is a legal arrangement with regard to agricultural land in which a landowner allows a tenant to use the land in return for a share of the crops produced on that land.
Sharecropping has a long history and there are a wide range ...
, attended
Mississippi Valley State University and
Delta State University
Delta State University (DSU) is a public university in Cleveland, Mississippi
Cleveland is a city in Bolivar County, Mississippi, United States. The population was 11,199 as of the 2020 United States Census.
Cleveland has a large commercia ...
. She taught
language arts in the public
elementary school
A primary school (in Ireland, the United Kingdom, Australia, Trinidad and Tobago, Jamaica, and South Africa), junior school (in Australia), elementary school or grade school (in North America and the Philippines) is a school for primary ed ...
s of
Sunflower County, Mississippi
Sunflower County is a county located in the U.S. state of Mississippi. As of the 2010 census, the population was 29,450. Its largest city and county seat is Indianola.
Sunflower County comprises the Indianola, MS Micropolitan Statistical Are ...
for 21 years before becoming a
principal. She is married to Arthur Lee Thomas.
Legislative service
In 1997, her nephew Bill Richardson, who represented the 31st district, died of cancer. Thomas was elected to fill the vacancy in 1998, and would serve in that office for 21 years. In late June 2018, it was announced that she had resigned, effective from June 30. At that time, she was serving on the House committees on
Agriculture
Agriculture or farming is the practice of cultivating plants and livestock. Agriculture was the key development in the rise of sedentary human civilization, whereby farming of domesticated species created food surpluses that enabled people to ...
,
Education
Education is a purposeful activity directed at achieving certain aims, such as transmitting knowledge or fostering skills and character traits. These aims may include the development of understanding, rationality, kindness, and honesty. Va ...
,
Ethics
Ethics or moral philosophy is a branch of philosophy that "involves systematizing, defending, and recommending concepts of right and wrong behavior".''Internet Encyclopedia of Philosophy'' The field of ethics, along with aesthetics, concerns m ...
, Investigating State Offices,
Public Property and Youth and Family Affairs.
Fowler, Sarah. "Longtime Mississippi lawmaker Sara Richardson Thomas retiring" ''Mississippi Clarion Ledger'' June 29, 2018
/ref>
References
Further reading
*
{{DEFAULTSORT:Thomas, Sara
1941 births
African-American state legislators in Mississippi
Living people
Democratic Party members of the Mississippi House of Representatives
Women state legislators in Mississippi
People from Indianola, Mississippi
20th-century American politicians
20th-century American women politicians
21st-century American politicians
21st-century American women politicians
African-American schoolteachers
American women educators
Schoolteachers from Mississippi
Mississippi Valley State University alumni
Delta State University alumni
American school principals
Women school principals and headteachers
20th-century African-American women
20th-century African-American politicians
21st-century African-American women
21st-century African-American politicians