Photo courtesy of Jason Shelton
Jason Shelton is originally from Ohio and has lived in many major cities throughout his life, but has made Arlington his home for nearly two decades.
From being a professor of sociology and the Director of the Center for African American Studies at UTA to chairing the Arlington Unity Council for five years, Shelton has held many public-facing positions.
He is running for the District 8 at-large seat, which has been held by councilmember Barbara Odom-Wesley since 2019.
Shelton and Melody Fowler, an Arlington ISD Board of Trustees member, are set to face off in a June 13 runoff election. Both candidates failed to surpass the 50% threshold on election night with Shelton receiving 38.27% of the vote.
Early voting ends on Tuesday. Election day is June 13.
This interview has been edited for brevity and clarity.
The Shorthorn: Why are you running for city council in Arlington?
Jason Shelton: Because I’ve done great work helping to move our city forward over the last five years. I served as chair of the Arlington Unity Council and we addressed major issues in our city, from economic development to transportation to the Arlington Police Department to housing.
I have experience working with many of the major issues that are affecting our city and building coalitions, support, and relationships in City Hall. I know the city management staff. I know the members of the City Council. I have working relationships with all these people, and that doesn’t count all my other experience in the city, being at UTA and getting to know our students, staff and faculty, and just building relationships across the city.
The Shorthorn: Why did you decide to run for District 8, and how will you lead with the city as a whole in mind?
Jason Shelton: Barbara Odom-Wesley currently serves in District 8, and she is term-limited. It was actually Barbara who called me and said, ‘Hey, Jason, you should think about running for my seat,’ and I thought, ‘Wow,’ So that’s why I chose District 8, because the council member who currently sits there is supporting me and is putting her time, effort and resources into helping me run.
I want to represent the entire city, and that’s what the Unity Council did. Our work was not just in one district; our work was across the city.
It’s hard to run across a city of 400,000 people, no question about it. It takes more energy, it takes more resources, it takes more of everything.
The Shorthorn: What are some of the main issues that your campaign is focusing on?
Jason Shelton: There are a number of big things that are significantly important to the future of Arlington. First and foremost, we’ve got to make sure that our economic development remains strong.
We want to make sure that people feel like they’re able to get on their feet economically, that there are great jobs in this city, that people can, of course, buy a home. Housing is another important issue. Transportation is another important issue.
All three of these things are interrelated.
The Shorthorn: Can you talk about your career in education and how you will use that experience to lead if elected?
Jason Shelton: In all of my classes, I’ve dealt with very controversial issues, and I’m able to talk about these and share research on these things, and we have great conversations in my class. I never tell you my opinion, but what I do is allow my students to have great conversations and debates. Whether it’s being a teacher or my own research, I’ve written a number of books. I write research articles. To do the research that I do on race, religion and politics, you’ve got to be very open-minded.
It definitely shaped the way that I ran the Unity Council with data and open-minded perspectives, and listening to people, consulting with experts and analyzing. All of these are things that I’ve already brought to city hall for five years, and I’ll do it now as a member of the Arlington City Council.
I think we as educators are in a great place to be able to help move our community forward, as long as we are not ideological and trying to shape everybody. As long as we’re open, listening and consulting with the data and hearing people who know more than we do, I think we’re in a great spot as educators to be leaders in our community.
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