Janet Clark

Janet Clark was born and raised in Los Angeles. Her parents and grandparents were part of the Great Migration from the American South to Los Angeles to escape racial discrimination. Her early childhood was marked by instability and food insecurity before her parents separated and Janet and her brother moved in with her grandparents. Her grandmother cooked for wealthy families before returning to school to earn an Associates degree in Child Development at the newly-integrated Los Angeles Community College. Her grandfather was a WWII Veteran and played the Sousaphone in the Colored Symphony and Orchestral Band. In the early 1950’s, her family moved to a formerly all-white neighborhood north of Washington Boulevard. Janet attended 24 Street Elementary School, which was an integrated school with the first Black principal in the neighborhood, Alma Covington. While the children in her racially and socio-economically diverse school learned to get along, Janet’s family faced racially-motivated hostility in her neighborhood. After divorcing her first husband, Janet earned her Baccalaureate degree from California State University, Los Angeles and a Master’s degree in Public Administration in Health Services and Gerontology from the University of Southern California. She worked at Golden State Mutual Life, Sons of Watts, and her own medical billing company before going into education. It was her experience teaching at a substance abuse center that got her a 90 day assignment at the Watts Skill Center, where she worked with the Maxine Waters Employment Preparation Center for 26 years. Dr. Santiago Jackson, tha assistant superintendent, asked her to expand the campus there and add vocational trade training facilities. She also placed childcare training facilities in Watts including the Ethel Bradley Early Education and Health Careers Center.