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George McKenna, third from left, officially became the seventh member of the LA Unified school board today, representing District 1, after he was sworn in by Rev. Jesse Jackson, left.

Congresswoman Maxine Waters, second from left, and Danny Bakewell, publisher of the LA Sentinel, far right, also participated in the brief ceremony, which preceded the board’s first meeting of the new school year.

Describing the ceremony as “an emotional experience for me,” McKenna said, “I take this oath more seriously than any other oath I’ve taken.”