Rev. Dr. Gregory G. Groover Sr.
Doctor of Public Service
The Reverend Dr. Gregory G. Groover Sr. is a powerful and steady voice for the people of Boston in his roles as chair of the Boston School Committee and pastor of the Historic Charles Street AME Church.
He is particularly dedicated to serving the city’s children. Appointed to the Boston School Committee in 2007, Dr. Groover was elected vice chair later that year and chair in 2009, in acknowledgment of his unwavering commitment to education, his energy, and his innovative ideas for school reform.
These qualities are also evident in his activities as chairman of the Education Committee of the Black Ministerial Alliance (BMA) in Boston. In this position, he has been instrumental in bringing together public-school officials, teachers, community leaders, parents, and the clergy to plan and develop the BMA After-School Program, a $1.5 million initiative. He recently drafted and proposed Ten Action Steps Toward Becoming an Education-Conscious Congregation, which was unanimously adopted by the BMA and will be implemented in its 60 congregations. Dr. Groover, who serves as president of the BMA, is also president of the board at the Roxbury Renaissance Center and a charter board member of the Boston TenPoint Coalition.
As pastor of the Historic Charles Street AME Church since 1994, Dr. Groover has increased participation and diversity, and established new ministries aimed at building congregational life.
A native of Freeport, New York, Dr. Groover graduated Phi Beta Kappa from Morehouse College, in Atlanta. He received his Master of Divinity and Master of Social Work from Union Theological Seminary and Columbia University School of Social Work, respectively, and completed his Doctor of Ministry degree at the New York Theological Seminary.