Martha G Scott

Early life and career

Martha Scott is a South Carolina native and graduate of Highland Park (Michigan) Public Schools and Highland Park (Michigan) Junior College. In 1990, she received an honorary Doctorate of Law degree from the Urban Bible Institute of Detroit, and an honorary Doctorate of Humanities from the Tennessee School of Religion in 1994. Scott retired in 1986 from Michigan Bell after 26 years of service.

Family

Scott has a son, Marion Scott, and a daughter, Deborah Scott. She has two granddaughters, Simone Gilmore and Cristina Tice, both children of Deborah.

Political career

Scott began her public service career in 1972 as a Precinct Delegate. In 1977, she was appointed to the Wayne County Board of Commissioners. In 1979, she served as Vice-Chair of the Wayne County Civil Service Commission. From 1984 to 1987, she was President of the Highland Park City Council. In 1988, she was elected the first woman Mayor of Highland Park, making her the first African American woman elected mayor of a Michigan city.

In 1994, Scott was elected State Representative of the 6th House District, representing Highland Park, Hamtramck and portions of Detroit. She was re-elected to her second and third House terms in November 1996 and 1998, respectively. During her tenure as State Representative, Scott served on the House Education and Insurance committees and on Task Force committees for Corrections, Education, Higher Education, and Transportation.

She led the charge and fought for many issues that were beneficial to her district, such as restoration of the Davison Freeway (project repair and reconstruction); and for funding to be restored to Highland Park Community College.

As a Michigan Senator, Scott authored Senate Bill 384 of 2005 (Public Act 48), which established the third Saturday of every June as Juneteenth National Freedom Day in Michigan, celebrating the end of slavery in the United States, and which designated November 26 of every year as Sojourner Truth Day, in honor of the Underground Railroad and emancipation leader of the 1800s. She also authored Senate Bill 736 of 2001, which provides for domestic violence training for Friend of the Court employees; Senate Bill 753 of 2003 (Public Act 431), which established the Childhood Lead Poisoning Prevention and Control Commission; and Senate Bill 1198 of 2006 (Public Act 286), which requires all children enrolled in the WIC supplemental food program to be tested for lead poisoning. Most recent, she authored Senate Bill 1125 of 2006 (Public Act 508), which prohibits imposter groups from performing as established musical groups when there are no original members remaining in the group.

Scott presently is the sponsor of bills that would reform Michigan’s insurance laws, and she remains dedicated to bringing affordable automobile and home insurance to the citizens of Michigan, particularly in our urban areas. To this end, she has established a website, www.insuranceredlining.com, that provides a source of information sharing on Michigan insurance rates.

Scott currently serves on the Senate Appropriations Committee. Her subcommittee assignments include: Vice Chairperson of the Department of Human Services, Agriculture, and Commerce, Labor & Economic Development subcommittees; and a member of the Capital Outlay subcommittee.

In 2000, State Senator Virgil Smith resigned his seat to take a position in the Wayne County Prosecutor's office. Scott ran for and won Smith's former seat in the 2001 special election. She was re-elected in 2002 and 2006. Under the term limits provisions of Michigan's Constitution, Scott is barred from seeking another Senate term in 2010.

In 2008, at age 72, Scott entered the Democratic primary race for Congress against incumbent U.S. Rep. Carolyn Cheeks Kilpatrick. However, Scott did not live in the 13th Congressional District and came in third behind the favored challenger, former state representative Mary Waters.

Public service

Scott is the Founder and President of the M.G. Scott Foundation. In conjunction with her Senate office, the Foundation hosts an annual health fair for the citizens of the 2nd Senate district, providing them with valuable, free information and testing. The Foundation also has provided scholarships to high school students to participate in the Youth in Government program, has assisted with a national cervical cancer awareness program, and hosts an annual Sojourner Truth Essay Contest for high school students.

Scott is Past President of the National Council on Alcoholism and Drug Dependence-Greater Detroit. She is Vice-Chair of the Committee on Insurance for the National Black Caucus of State Legislators; Michigan State Director for the National Foundation for Women Legislators; Michigan State Director for Women in Government; and Executive Vice Chair of the Michigan Legislative Black Caucus. Scott is a member of the Citizens for Better Care Board of Directors; the Citizens for Better Government Executive Board; Gamma Phi Delta Sorority, Beta Alpha Chapter; the Highland Park Early Childhood Task Force; Horizon Health System Osteopathic Founder’s Council; the Michigan Children’s Trust Fund Advisory Committee; the Michigan Policy Academy Team on Homeless Families and Children; the National Council of Negro Women Legislators; the National Organization of Black Elected Legislators-Women; the National Order of Women Legislators; the Southeast Michigan Council of Governments Executive Committee; the Youth in Government Board of Directors; and many other organizations. Scott is also a 1998 Fellow at the Bowhay Institute for Legislative Leadership Development.

Scott is the recipient of Michigan NOW’s Legislator of the Year Award-Senate (2005); the Michigan Prevention Association's Legislator of the Year Award (2006); Spectrum Human Services' Public Partnership Award (2006); Women's Justice Center's Leadership Award (2006); the Michigan Fatherhood Coalition’s Child Advocacy Award (2006); the Michigan After-School Partnership's Legislative Hero Award (2006 & 2007); the Hamtramck Public Library's Hall of Honor Award (2006); the Women’s Institute for Spiritual Enrichment, St. John Christian Methodist Episcopal Church’s Woman of Excellence Award (2005); Fight Crime: Invest in Kids’ Crime Fighters Award (2006 and 2004); the Michigan Democratic Women’s Caucus Eleanor Roosevelt Award (2004); Michigan’s Children’s Do Something Wonderful for Children Award (2002); and the National Association of Negro Business & Professional Women’s Club-Detroit’s Sojourner Truth Award (2002). While she was a member of the Michigan House of Representatives, constituents in Hamtramck presented her with an Outstanding Leadership Award for her continued work on Bilingual Education at Eastern Michigan University.

Scott is an active member of the Russell Street Missionary Baptist Church in Detroit.

Electoral history