Valerie Jarrett
Encyclopedia
Valerie Bowman Jarrett is a senior advisor and assistant to the president for Public Engagement and Intergovernmental Affairs
for the Obama administration. She is a Chicago lawyer, businesswoman, and civic leader. Prior to that she served as a co-chairperson of the Obama-Biden Transition Project.
to American parents James E. Bowman
and Barbara Taylor Bowman
. Her father, a pathologist and geneticist, ran a hospital for children in Shiraz, as part of a program where American doctors and agricultural experts sought to help jump-start developing countries' health and farming efforts. When she was five, the family moved to London for one year, returning to Chicago in 1963.
In 1966 her mother, Barbara T. Bowman
, was one of four child advocates that created the Erikson Institute
. The Institute was established to provide advanced knowledge in child development for teachers and other professionals working with young children.
As a child she spoke Persian
and French
.
Jarrett graduated from Northfield Mount Hermon
in 1974. She earned a B.A.
in Psychology from Stanford University
in 1978, and a Juris Doctor
(J.D.) from the University of Michigan Law School
in 1981.
In 1983 Jarrett married Dr. William Robert Jarrett, son of famed Chicago Sun-Times
reporter Vernon Jarrett
. She attributes her switch from a private to a public career to their daughter Laura's birth and her own desire to do something that would make the daughter proud.
To one reporter's e-mailed question about her divorce, she replied, "Married in 1983, separated in 1987, and divorced in 1988. Enough said." In a Vogue
profile, she further explained "We grew up together. We were friends since childhood. In a sense, he was the boy next door
. I married without really appreciating how hard divorce would be." William Jarrett died of a sudden heart attack in 1993.
Harold Washington
as Deputy Corporation Counsel for Finance and Development.
Jarrett continued to work in the mayor's office in the 1990s. She was Deputy Chief of Staff for Mayor Richard Daley
, during which time (1991) she hired Michelle Robinson
, then engaged to Barack Obama, away from a private law firm. Jarrett served as Commissioner of the Department of Planning and Development from 1992 through 1995, and was Chair of the Chicago Transit Board from 1995 to 2005.
(2000–2007, as Chairman, 2004–2007).
She is also the Chairman of the Board of Trustees of the University of Chicago Medical Center, Vice Chairman of the Board of Trustees of the University of Chicago
and a Trustee of Chicago's Museum of Science and Industry
. Jarrett serves on the board of directors of USG Corporation, a Chicago based building materials corporation.
Jarrett's previous year's income, in a 2009 report, was a $300,000 salary and $550,000 in deferred compensation from The Habitat Executive Services, Inc. The Wall Street Journal also reported she disclosed payments of more than $346,000 for service on boards of directors that reflect her political ties, and work in Chicago real estate and community development. She was paid $76,000 for service as a director of Navigant Consulting
, Inc. a Chicago-based global consulting group with governmental clients. She received $146,600 from USG, and $58,000 to serve on the board of Rreef American REIT II, a real estate investment trust based in San Francisco. The Chicago Stock Exchange, Inc., paid her $34,444.
On November 14, 2008, President-elect Obama selected Jarrett to serve as White House Senior Advisor
and Assistant to the President for Intergovernmental Relations and Public Liaison
.
Jarrett is one of three Senior Advisors to President Obama. She holds the retitled position of Assistant to the President for Intergovernmental Affairs and Public Engagement, managing the White House Office of Public Engagement, Office of Intergovernmental Affairs, Office of Urban Affairs, and Chairs the White House Council on Women and Girls, and White House Office of Olympic, Paralympic, and Youth Sport. She said that the 2011 report Women in America
which the administration produced for the Council on Women and Girls would be used to guide policy-making.
The New York Times
said that while there is no evidence of political favoritism, that Gregory Nelson, an aide to Jarrett, met with lobbyists from Solyndra
at least three times. The company's failure could cost taxpayers more than a half-billion dollars.
White House Office of Public Engagement and Intergovernmental Affairs
The Office of Public Engagement and Intergovernmental Affairs is a unit of the White House Office within the Executive Office of the President of the United States...
for the Obama administration. She is a Chicago lawyer, businesswoman, and civic leader. Prior to that she served as a co-chairperson of the Obama-Biden Transition Project.
Personal
Jarrett was born in Shiraz, IranShiraz, Iran
Shiraz is the sixth most populous city in Iran and is the capital of Fars Province, the city's 2009 population was 1,455,073. Shiraz is located in the southwest of Iran on the Roodkhaneye Khoshk seasonal river...
to American parents James E. Bowman
James E. Bowman
James E. Bowman, MD, FASCP, FCAP was an American physician was internationally renowned as a specialist in pathology, hematology, and genetics. He was a professor of pathology and genetics at the Pritzker School of Medicine at the University of Chicago.-Life and career:James Edward Bowman was...
and Barbara Taylor Bowman
Barbara T. Bowman
Barbara Taylor Bowman is an award-winning early childhood education expert/advocate, professor, and author. Her areas of expertise include early childhood care/education, educational equity for minority and low-income children, as well as intergenerational family support and roles...
. Her father, a pathologist and geneticist, ran a hospital for children in Shiraz, as part of a program where American doctors and agricultural experts sought to help jump-start developing countries' health and farming efforts. When she was five, the family moved to London for one year, returning to Chicago in 1963.
In 1966 her mother, Barbara T. Bowman
Barbara T. Bowman
Barbara Taylor Bowman is an award-winning early childhood education expert/advocate, professor, and author. Her areas of expertise include early childhood care/education, educational equity for minority and low-income children, as well as intergenerational family support and roles...
, was one of four child advocates that created the Erikson Institute
Erikson Institute
Erikson Institute is a graduate school in child development located in downtown Chicago, Illinois. It is named for the noted psychoanalyst and developmental psychologist, Erik Erikson.-History and mission:...
. The Institute was established to provide advanced knowledge in child development for teachers and other professionals working with young children.
As a child she spoke Persian
Persian language
Persian is an Iranian language within the Indo-Iranian branch of the Indo-European languages. It is primarily spoken in Iran, Afghanistan, Tajikistan and countries which historically came under Persian influence...
and French
French language
French is a Romance language spoken as a first language in France, the Romandy region in Switzerland, Wallonia and Brussels in Belgium, Monaco, the regions of Quebec and Acadia in Canada, and by various communities elsewhere. Second-language speakers of French are distributed throughout many parts...
.
Jarrett graduated from Northfield Mount Hermon
Northfield Mount Hermon
Northfield Mount Hermon School, commonly referred to as NMH, is a co-educational independent boarding high school for students in grades 9–12...
in 1974. She earned a B.A.
Bachelor of Arts
A Bachelor of Arts , from the Latin artium baccalaureus, is a bachelor's degree awarded for an undergraduate course or program in either the liberal arts, the sciences, or both...
in Psychology from Stanford University
Stanford University
The Leland Stanford Junior University, commonly referred to as Stanford University or Stanford, is a private research university on an campus located near Palo Alto, California. It is situated in the northwestern Santa Clara Valley on the San Francisco Peninsula, approximately northwest of San...
in 1978, and a Juris Doctor
Juris Doctor
Juris Doctor is a professional doctorate and first professional graduate degree in law.The degree was first awarded by Harvard University in the United States in the late 19th century and was created as a modern version of the old European doctor of law degree Juris Doctor (see etymology and...
(J.D.) from the University of Michigan Law School
University of Michigan Law School
The University of Michigan Law School is the law school of the University of Michigan, in Ann Arbor. Founded in 1859, the school has an enrollment of about 1,200 students, most of whom are seeking Juris Doctor or Master of Laws degrees, although the school also offers a Doctor of Juridical...
in 1981.
In 1983 Jarrett married Dr. William Robert Jarrett, son of famed Chicago Sun-Times
Chicago Sun-Times
The Chicago Sun-Times is an American daily newspaper published in Chicago, Illinois. It is the flagship paper of the Sun-Times Media Group.-History:The Chicago Sun-Times is the oldest continuously published daily newspaper in the city...
reporter Vernon Jarrett
Vernon Jarrett
Vernon Jarrett was an African American journalist who worked in newspaper, television and radio and was an influential commentator on race relations, politics, and African American history....
. She attributes her switch from a private to a public career to their daughter Laura's birth and her own desire to do something that would make the daughter proud.
To one reporter's e-mailed question about her divorce, she replied, "Married in 1983, separated in 1987, and divorced in 1988. Enough said." In a Vogue
Vogue (magazine)
Vogue is a fashion and lifestyle magazine that is published monthly in 18 national and one regional edition by Condé Nast.-History:In 1892 Arthur Turnure founded Vogue as a weekly publication in the United States. When he died in 1909, Condé Montrose Nast picked up the magazine and slowly began...
profile, she further explained "We grew up together. We were friends since childhood. In a sense, he was the boy next door
Boy next door
The boy next door is an archetype of storytelling. He is often invoked in Western contexts to indicate wholesome, unassuming, or "average" masculinity. He is a young man with a sweet, shy demeanor who is just discovering his physical and spiritual strengths. The boy next door maintains his innocent...
. I married without really appreciating how hard divorce would be." William Jarrett died of a sudden heart attack in 1993.
Chicago politics
Jarrett got her start in Chicago politics in 1987 working for MayorMayor of Chicago
The Mayor of Chicago is the chief executive of Chicago, Illinois, the third largest city in the United States. He or she is charged with directing city departments and agencies, and with the advice and consent of the Chicago City Council, appoints department and agency leaders.-Appointment...
Harold Washington
Harold Washington
Harold Lee Washington was an American lawyer and politician who became the first African-American Mayor of Chicago, serving from 1983 until his death in 1987.- Early years and military service :...
as Deputy Corporation Counsel for Finance and Development.
Jarrett continued to work in the mayor's office in the 1990s. She was Deputy Chief of Staff for Mayor Richard Daley
Richard M. Daley
Richard Michael Daley is a United States politician, member of the national and local Democratic Party, and former Mayor of Chicago, Illinois. He was elected mayor in 1989 and reelected in 1991, 1995, 1999, 2003, and 2007. He was the longest serving Chicago mayor, surpassing the tenure of his...
, during which time (1991) she hired Michelle Robinson
Michelle Obama
Michelle LaVaughn Robinson Obama is the wife of the 44th and incumbent President of the United States, Barack Obama, and is the first African-American First Lady of the United States...
, then engaged to Barack Obama, away from a private law firm. Jarrett served as Commissioner of the Department of Planning and Development from 1992 through 1995, and was Chair of the Chicago Transit Board from 1995 to 2005.
Business administration
Until joining the Obama Administration, Jarrett was the CEO of The Habitat Company, a real estate development and management company which she joined in 1995. She has been replaced by Mark Segal, a lawyer who joined the company in 2002, as CEO. Daniel E. Levin is the Chairman of Habitat, which was formed in 1971. Jarrett was a member of the board of Chicago Stock ExchangeChicago Stock Exchange
The Chicago Stock Exchange is a stock exchange in Chicago, Illinois, USA. The exchange is a national securities exchange and self-regulated organization, which operates under the oversight of the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission . The Chicago Stock Exchange is the third most active stock...
(2000–2007, as Chairman, 2004–2007).
She is also the Chairman of the Board of Trustees of the University of Chicago Medical Center, Vice Chairman of the Board of Trustees of the University of Chicago
University of Chicago
The University of Chicago is a private research university in Chicago, Illinois, USA. It was founded by the American Baptist Education Society with a donation from oil magnate and philanthropist John D. Rockefeller and incorporated in 1890...
and a Trustee of Chicago's Museum of Science and Industry
Museum of Science and Industry (Chicago)
The Museum of Science and Industry is located in Chicago, Illinois, USA in Jackson Park, in the Hyde Park neighborhood adjacent to Lake Michigan. It is housed in the former Palace of Fine Arts from the 1893 World's Columbian Exposition...
. Jarrett serves on the board of directors of USG Corporation, a Chicago based building materials corporation.
Jarrett's previous year's income, in a 2009 report, was a $300,000 salary and $550,000 in deferred compensation from The Habitat Executive Services, Inc. The Wall Street Journal also reported she disclosed payments of more than $346,000 for service on boards of directors that reflect her political ties, and work in Chicago real estate and community development. She was paid $76,000 for service as a director of Navigant Consulting
Navigant Consulting
Navigant is a specialized, global expert services firm dedicated to assisting clients in creating and protecting value in the face of critical business risks and opportunities...
, Inc. a Chicago-based global consulting group with governmental clients. She received $146,600 from USG, and $58,000 to serve on the board of Rreef American REIT II, a real estate investment trust based in San Francisco. The Chicago Stock Exchange, Inc., paid her $34,444.
Advisor to Barack Obama
Jarrett is one of President Obama's longest serving advisors and confidantes and was "widely tipped for a high-profile position in an Obama administration."On November 14, 2008, President-elect Obama selected Jarrett to serve as White House Senior Advisor
White House Office
The White House Office is an entity within the Executive Office of the President of the United States. The White House Office is headed by the White House Chief of Staff, which was temporarily Pete Rouse, replaced on January 6, 2010 with the permanent appointment of William M. Daley, who is also...
and Assistant to the President for Intergovernmental Relations and Public Liaison
White House Office of Public Engagement and Intergovernmental Affairs
The Office of Public Engagement and Intergovernmental Affairs is a unit of the White House Office within the Executive Office of the President of the United States...
.
Jarrett is one of three Senior Advisors to President Obama. She holds the retitled position of Assistant to the President for Intergovernmental Affairs and Public Engagement, managing the White House Office of Public Engagement, Office of Intergovernmental Affairs, Office of Urban Affairs, and Chairs the White House Council on Women and Girls, and White House Office of Olympic, Paralympic, and Youth Sport. She said that the 2011 report Women in America
Women in America
Women in America: Indicators of Social and Economic Well-Being is a report issued in 2011 by the United States Department of Commerce Economics and Statistics Administration and the Executive Office of the President Office of Management and Budget for the White House Council on Women and Girls,...
which the administration produced for the Council on Women and Girls would be used to guide policy-making.
The New York Times
The New York Times
The New York Times is an American daily newspaper founded and continuously published in New York City since 1851. The New York Times has won 106 Pulitzer Prizes, the most of any news organization...
said that while there is no evidence of political favoritism, that Gregory Nelson, an aide to Jarrett, met with lobbyists from Solyndra
Solyndra
Solyndra was a manufacturer of cylindrical panels of CIGS thin-film solar cells based in Fremont, California. Although the company was once touted for its unusual technology, plummeting silicon prices led to the company being unable to compete with more conventional solar panels...
at least three times. The company's failure could cost taxpayers more than a half-billion dollars.
Relationship with President Obama
In 1991 Miss Jarrett, as Deputy Chief of Staff to Mayor Richard Daley, interviewed Michelle Robinson for an opening in the mayor’s office, and offered her the job immediately. Ms. Robinson asked for time to think and also asked Jarrett to meet her fiancé, Barack Obama. The three ended up meeting for dinner. After the dinner, Michelle took the job with the mayor's office, and Valerie Jarrett reportedly took the couple under her wing and “introduced them to a wealthier and better-connected Chicago than their own,” and taking Michelle with her when she left the mayor's office to head Chicago’s Department of Planning and Development.http://www.nmhschool.org/valerie-jarrett-%E2%80%9974External links
- Valerie Jarrett at Whitehouse.govWhitehouse.govWhitehouse.gov is the official website of the White House and is owned by the United States government. Launched in October 1994, it contains general American history information, as well as current news pertaining to the President, press briefings, proclamations, executive orders, and any speeches...
- Valerie Jarrett at the Notable Names Database
- Obama's keeper: Valerie Jarrett, The IndependentThe IndependentThe Independent is a British national morning newspaper published in London by Independent Print Limited, owned by Alexander Lebedev since 2010. It is nicknamed the Indy, while the Sunday edition, The Independent on Sunday, is the Sindy. Launched in 1986, it is one of the youngest UK national daily...
, 10 August 2009