Mr. De'Andre A. Barnes

School Board Member

De'Andre A. Barnes

De’Andre Barnes, a native of Portsmouth, attended Portsmouth Public Schools and currently has three children who attend Portsmouth Public Schools.

After graduating from Virginia State University, De’Andre devoted himself to the Portsmouth community, especially those living in low-income neighborhood. De’Andre worked countless hours with students, parents, community leaders, and more to ensure his kids had the resources they needed to succeed. Through his accomplishments in the community, De’Andre learned what it’s going to take to turn around Portsmouth’s schools and give kids a truly high-quality education.

Today, De’Andre runs a successful nonprofit organization, known as the Portsmouth City Sports Club, Incorporated.  The nonprofit has been running for nearly three years now.  Annually, the Portsmouth City Sports Club has served more than 550 children through various programs.  The club also has very strong links to its local community.  This, coupled with De’Andre’s service on many boards of Portsmouth, Virginia, shows his belief in the power of bringing communities together to resolve conflicts and to make progress. De’Andre was elected on November 6th, 2018 as the youngest ever elected to the Portsmouth School Board.

De’Andre was raised in Portsmouth, Virginia by his grandmother, Florence Artis, parents, Janice Barnes and Benny Harvie an Army veteran.  At an early age, his parents instilled in him the importance of public service and a good education.  Those values are the foundation upon which De’Andre serves today.  De’Andre grew up in Dale Homes.  He graduated from the Historic, I.C. Norcom High School, and went on to graduate from Virginia State University with a Bachelors in Political Science and a Master’s in Urban Affairs from Norfolk State University.

While attending Norfolk State, De’Andre started off as an intern for Congressman Robert C. “Bobby” Scott, who is only the 2nd African American Congressman to be elected to Congress from Virginia.  After a year with Congressman Scott, De’Andre became a Legislative Assistant where he worked under that title for almost six years.  He left Congressman Scott office in 2015 to come back to Portsmouth to serve as a Youth Service Coordinator with Portsmouth Redevelopment and Housing Authority.

De’Andre is married to Lisa. De’Andre met Lisa 25 years ago while attending Centennial Baptist Church in Portsmouth.  De’Andre and Lisa are proud residents of Portsmouth.









 
*School Board members are individually elected by a vote of eligible citizens.  Individual members have no authority or duties except as may be assigned to them by the School Board as a whole.  Information provided in the School Board member biographies is provided by the member and does not necessarily represent the position of Portsmouth Public Schools or the School Board as a whole.

Website by SchoolMessenger Presence. © 2024 SchoolMessenger Corporation. All rights reserved.