CHAMPAIGN -- A goal for Jamar Brown in his run for the Champaign school board was to encourage people who felt left out of the school system to become involved.

He said Tuesday night that many have already done so simply by voting.

"So many people who haven't voted before or haven't voted in years are sending me text messages and emails saying, 'I just voted,'" Brown said. "Knowing how many people are engaged in the process is much better than a win. That was well worth it."

But he got the win too.

Brown will be the lone newcomer to the school board. He received 5,033 votes Tuesday, according to unofficial vote totals, and will join the board, along with three incumbents who were re-elected Tuesday.

Incumbents Sue Grey, Greg Novak and Kristine Chalifoux received 6,227, 6,064 and 5,465 votes, respectively.

The fifth candidate for one of the four open seats, Lynn Stuckey, received 3,851 votes.

Brown said having a son in elementary school will affect his service as a school board member, because he knows his decisions will affect his child, a third-grader.

"I want my son to get the best possible education. I want the best for him in a school setting," Brown said.

And other students will benefit from that. "Every other child in the district essentially gets the same love and care that my son does," he said.

Brown credited his victory with the time he spent knocking on doors, talking to people and handing out literature.

"It was getting in the living rooms with families, talking with grandmothers, grandchildren, nieces, nephews, uncles," he said.

He said he "saturated" the Douglass Park and Garden Hills areas, but he had supporters all over the city, talking with voters.

Brown said his first priorities will be getting familiar with the job and building communication and getting more people involved with the district.