Linda Dorcena Forry

Born and raised in Dorchester, State Representative Linda Dorcena Forry is a native Bostonian.  For over 15 years, Representative Forry has dedicated her professional life to a career in public service, working in various capacities in state and local government.  Having grown up in the Uphams Corner neighborhood of Dorchester, Representative Forry recognized the value of civic engagement from an early age.  As a first generation Haitian American, she learned from her parents a strong work ethic and the importance of a quality education.  Representative Forry holds a Bachelor of Science degree from the Boston College Carroll School of Management and is currently a Masters Degree Candidate in Public Administration at the Harvard Kennedy School of Government.

Elected to the Massachusetts House of Representatives in 2005, Representative Forry represents the Commonwealth’s 12th Suffolk district, a diverse and thriving cross-section that includes parts of Milton, Dorchester, Hyde Park and Mattapan.  As a State Representative, she has championed improvements to the state’s education system, economic growth, job creation and business development efforts.  Representative Forry has also remained committed to community development efforts across the state, access to high quality healthcare and social services, safe and affordable housing, effective public safety practices and policies, growth of emerging technologies and preservation of the state’s precious natural resources.

In 2009, Representative was appointed Chairman of the Joint Committee on Community Development and Small Businesses.  Previous to that appointment, Representative Forry served as Vice Chairman of the Joint Committee on Public Service, where she took a leadership role in drafting pension reform legislation.   Representative Forry has also served on the Joint Committee on Telecommunications, Utilities and Energy and the Joint Committee on Public Safety and Homeland Security.  Representative Forry is the current president of the Massachusetts Legislators Association and the former Chair of the Massachusetts Black and Latino Legislative Caucus.

Representative Forry has also served on a number of boards including the Boys and Girls Clubs of Dorchester, the Milton Library Foundation, Friends for Children, College Bound Dorchester, Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center Board of Overseers, the Boston Foundation Haiti Relief and Reconstruction Fund Advisory Council, the National Haitian American Elected Officials Network (NAEHON) and the Massachusetts Democratic State Committee.

Representative Forry and her husband Bill are the proud parents of three children and live in the Lower Mills neighborhood of Dorchester.