Ayesha Wilson
She/Her
- Currently
- School Committee Member; Teacher-Counselor for the Work Force Program
- Election history
- 1st time running for council; served 2 terms on school committee
She/Her
Ayesha Wilson grew up in Cambridge public housing. After graduating from Cambridge Rindge and Latin and after getting a Master's in Social Work, she was a Mental Health Clinician. She now continues her social work as Senior Teacher-Counselor for Cambridge Housing Authority's Work Force Program, an after-school educational enrichment and work-readiness program for low-income teens in Cambridge public housing.
She is currently serving her second term on school committee.
If elected, Ayesha would not only be the only active union member on the council, she would also be only the 3rd Black woman to serve.
In general, Ayesha's housing position is "yes" - she supports the Affordable Housing Overlay amendments, talks about allowing multi-family housing across Cambridge, and states how most people in Cambridge live in market-rate housing.
She's also written and spoken in favor of rent stabilization or control.
I grew up in public housing in Cambridge. I have rented in Cambridge, and I currently pay my rent by providing live-in support at a home for disabled adults. After I graduated from the Work Force program (a career development program for CHA residents), I chose to devote my life to serving Cambridge youth, and that path led me to become a social worker working at the Cambridge Housing Authority and to the School Committee.
The recent AHO annual report showed that it has been successful so far, but there are also too many projects like 2072 Mass Ave that are not covered. These amendments are reasonable and necessary to build more affordable housing.
| Organization | Cambridge? | Union? | View |
|---|---|---|---|
| Run for Something | this cycle | ||
| Cambridge Residents Alliance | on Sept. 30, 2023 | ||
| Massachusetts Sierra Club | this cycle | ||
| Save Mass Ave | this cycle | ||
| Cambridge Citizens Coalition | on Sept. 14, 2023 | ||
| A Better Cambridge | on Sept. 15, 2023 | ||
| Massachusetts Women's Political Caucus | this cycle | ||
| Greater Boston Labor Council | this cycle |
Housing policy, development, governance questions
Housing policy, development, governance questions
Distribution of funds, non-profits and their position in Cambridge
Distribution of funds, non-profits and their position in Cambridge
General. Note: only distributed in downloadable word or pdf documents.
General. Note: only distributed in downloadable word or pdf documents.
"questions about the issues that most impact Cambridge’s low-income populations" (available in several languages)
"questions about the issues that most impact Cambridge’s low-income populations" (available in several languages)
Cambridge is one of the greenest places in the country to live based on per-person carbon emissions, and one of the most important things we can do is make sure that more people who want to live the low-carbon lifestyle that is available here can do so.
As lifelong Cambridge resident, who grew up in the Jefferson Park housing development, was a Section 8 voucher holder, and work with youth and families of Cambridge Housing Authority, I know firsthand the various challenges facing housing amongst my peers and many more who live in either low income housing or those living in a middle to moderate income housing or those like myself single parent, middle income, who cannot afford childcare and housing in Cambridge. I look forward to centering the voices of those who are faced to make the decision to leave Cambridge because they can no longer afford to live here.
“I spent so much of my childhood in the towers,” Wilson said of Cambridge’s affordable housing developments. “You can’t tell me that there isn’t culture in those buildings, that there isn’t family, and love, and community and all of that in those buildings, because there is. I’ve experienced it firsthand.”
“The people is what makes up the character of our community,” she added. “So if we’re not building and creating opportunities for more and more people to be able to have homes here, to call Cambridge home, then what exactly are we doing?”
Oct. 26, 2023 — Samuel P. Goldston“I spent so much of my childhood in the towers,” Wilson said of Cambridge’s affordable housing developments. “You can’t tell me that there isn’t culture in those buildings, that there isn’t family, and love, and community and all of that in those buildings, because there is. I’ve experienced it firsthand.”
“The people is what makes up the character of our community,” she added. “So if we’re not building and creating opportunities for more and more people to be able to have homes here, to call Cambridge home, then what exactly are we doing?”
“Too often, living in Cambridge means seeing your friends and community get priced out year after year. I’ve had to work multiple jobs throughout my career in order to be able to stay in the city I love, and Cambridge can only work when our firefighters, teachers, small-business owners and union members like me can afford to live here,” Wilson said. “As a parent of a 1-year-old, I know how hard it is to make ends meet here even with a middle-class income, and it’s almost impossible for many people who grew up in a single-parent first-generation immigrant household like I did.”
July 10, 2023 — Marc Levy“Too often, living in Cambridge means seeing your friends and community get priced out year after year. I’ve had to work multiple jobs throughout my career in order to be able to stay in the city I love, and Cambridge can only work when our firefighters, teachers, small-business owners and union members like me can afford to live here,” Wilson said. “As a parent of a 1-year-old, I know how hard it is to make ends meet here even with a middle-class income, and it’s almost impossible for many people who grew up in a single-parent first-generation immigrant household like I did.”
School Committee member Ayesha M. Wilson — whose campaign platform called for the implementation of universal pre-K for the 2023-24 school year — said universal pre-K may help close the achievement gap between students of diverse backgrounds.
“To delay this any further is basically denying all families that ability to have that equity and access,” Wilson said in an interview.
Feb. 18, 2022 — Katerina V. Corr, Elias J. SchisgallSchool Committee member Ayesha M. Wilson — whose campaign platform called for the implementation of universal pre-K for the 2023-24 school year — said universal pre-K may help close the achievement gap between students of diverse backgrounds.
“To delay this any further is basically denying all families that ability to have that equity and access,” Wilson said in an interview.