| | 1 | Name: | Chief Justice Margaret H. Marshall | | | Institution: | Choate Hall & Stewart LLP; Supreme Judicial Court, Commonwealth of Massachusetts | | | Year Elected: | 2017 | | | Class: | 5. The Arts, Professions, and Leaders in Public & Private Affairs | | | Subdivision: | 502. Physicians, Theologians, Lawyers, Jurists, Architects, and Members of Other Professions | | | Residency: | Resident | | | Living? : |
Living
| | | Birth Date: | 1944 | | | | | | |
Former Chief Justice of the Supreme Judicial Court of Massachusetts, Margaret H. Marshall is Senior Counsel at Choate Hall & Stewart LLP. Appointed Chief Justice in 1999, she was the first woman to serve in that position. She was first appointed to the Court as an Associate Justice in 1996.
Chief Justice Marshall was born and raised in South Africa, obtaining her baccalaureate from the University of the Witwatersrand in Johannesburg. While an undergraduate, she was elected President of the National Union of South African Students, at the time a leading anti-apartheid organization. She came to the United States in 1968 to pursue graduate studies at Harvard. She received a master's degree from Harvard in 1969 and a J.D. from Yale Law School in 1976. Following her graduation she practiced law in Boston and became a partner in Choate, Hall & Stewart. In 1992, she was appointed Vice President and General Counsel of Harvard University.
During her tenure on the Supreme Judicial Court, Chief Justice Marshall authored many opinions, including Goodridge v. Department of Public Health, which declared that the Massachusetts Constitution prohibits the state from denying same-sex couples access to civil marriage. The 2003 ruling made Massachusetts the first state to recognize marriage equality.
Chief Justice Marshall has been involved in numerous professional and community activities. She is a Fellow of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences, and a member of the Council and Executive Committee of the American Law Institute. She served until June 30 2016 as Senior Fellow of the Corporation of Yale University, the governing board and policy-making body for the University. Chief Justice Marshall is the recipient of many awards and honorary degrees, including one from her undergraduate alma mater, the University of the Witwatersrand, and one from her law school alma mater, a 2018 Yale Medal. She received the 2021 Bolch Prize for the Rule of Law. | |
| 2 | Name: | Mr. Edward A. Montgomery | | | Institution: | Curtis Institute of Music, Philadelphia Chamber Music Society, United Way of Greater Philadelphia and Southern New Jersey | | | Year Elected: | 2017 | | | Class: | 5. The Arts, Professions, and Leaders in Public & Private Affairs | | | Subdivision: | 503. Administrators, Bankers and Opinion Leaders from the Public or Private Sectors | | | Residency: | Resident | | | Living? : |
Living
| | | Birth Date: | 1934 | | | | | | |
Edward A. Montgomery, Jr., graduated from Deerfield Academy; he received a BA and LLD from Trinity College, and attended Harvard Business School. He joined Mellon Bank's management training program in 1959, and worked in Data Processing, Cash Management, Credit Policy and Corporate Banking. From 1970 to 1974 he was a Vice President responsible for corporate lending in the New York City division of the Corporate Banking Department. In 1974, he became Manager of the International Banking Department's London Office with responsibility for Europe, the Middle East and Africa. In 1977, he returned to the States to become a Senior Vice President of Mellon Bank, and President and Chief Executive Officer of Mellon National Mortgage Corporation. In 1985, he became Vice Chairman of Mellon Bank Corporation and Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of Mellon Bank (East). On August 1, 1989, he retired from the Bank. Upon retirement, he served as the 1989/1990 Campaign Chairman for the United Way of Southeastern Pennsylvania. He joined the staff of the United Way of Southeastern Pennsylvania in January 1990 as Vice President of Resource Development and a member of the Management Committee. In 1995 he assumed responsibility for the Tocqueville Society (individuals who give over $10,000 annually) and individual leadership donors outside the workplace. At the end of 2010 he retired from United Way. Since 2010 he has been a full time volunteer staff member of United Way of Greater Philadelphia and Southern New Jersey and Honorary Chair, Endowment Campaign and a volunteer consultant to United Way Worldwide, and for not for profits about fundraising, and board roles and responsibilities. He is Vice Chair of the Curtis Institute of Music and Chair of the Philadelphia Chamber Music Society. He is a Trustee of the Isabel Rockefeller Trust, and the Albert M. Greenfield Foundation. He is on the board of the Marlboro Music School and Festival, Philadelphia Chamber of Commerce (past chairman), and the Consortium for History of Science, Technology and Medicine. He is Trustee Emeritus of the Academy of Natural Sciences (past chairman), Opportunities Industrial Center, the Philadelphia Orchestra Association. Russell Byers Charter School. Teach for America and Trinity College (past chairman). He is a retired director of Fisher Scientifics International, Mellon Bank Corporation, Pullman Corporation, and Wheelabrator Technologies Inc. From 1956 to 1958, he served in the US Army's 82nd Airborne Division. He and his wife Susan (who died in January 2015) have two daughters and two grandsons. Awards: 2014 United Way Worldwide Lifetime Service Award 2014 John Haas Regional Champion Award – UWGPSNJ 1986 Community Leader of the Year – Arthritis Foundation Past Affiliations: Elderhostel Board 12 years beginning in 1990-2003 (one year off), Chairman of the Board Ft. Mifflin 1994-1998 Chairman of the Philadelphia Historical Commission 1987-1994 Chairman and Board member Prince Music Theater 1985-2000 | |
| 3 | Name: | President Barack Obama | | | Year Elected: | 2017 | | | Class: | 5. The Arts, Professions, and Leaders in Public & Private Affairs | | | Subdivision: | 503. Administrators, Bankers and Opinion Leaders from the Public or Private Sectors | | | Residency: | Resident | | | Living? : |
Living
| | | Birth Date: | 1961 | | | | | | |
Barack Obama (Barack Hussein Obama II), fourty-fourth president of the United States, was born August 4, 1961, in Honolulu, Hawaii. Though he was largely raised in Hawaii, he also spent time in Indonesia and in Washington State during his childhood.
He attended Occidental College for two years, before transferring to Columbia University. He received a B.A. degree from Columbia in 1983. From 1985-88 Obama worked as a community organizer on the South Side of Chicago. As director of the Developing Communities Project he worked with several area churches to organize job training, create education and employment opportunities for young people, and advocate for tenant rights.
After entering Harvard Law School in 1988 he became the first black president of the Harvard Law Review. He graduated magna cum laude in 1991 with a J.D. degree. Following his graduation Obama began working at University of Chicago Law School, as lecturer from 1992-96 and as senior lecturer from 1996-2004. During this time in Chicago he served on the boards of several Chicago non-profits and in 1992 directed Illinois's Project Vote. He was an attorney with a civil rights law firm from 1993-2004. In 1995 Barack Obama's book Dreams from My Father: A Story of Race and Inheritance was published. The book received great acclaim and was republished in 2004.
He was elected to the Illinois Senate in 1996. He lost a primary campaign for Congress in 2000 but was elected a United States Senator in 2004. During the campaign, in July 2004, he delivered the keynote address at the Democratic National Convention. In 2006 his second book, The Audacity of Hope, was published.
On February 10, 2007 Barack Obama announced his campaign from President. Obama won the Democratic Party nomination and defeated John McCain in the general election held on November 4, 2008. Barack Obama served as President of the United States from January 20, 2009 to January 20, 2017. His administration's oversaw economic recovery and growth following the 2008 financial crisis, including a significant reduction of unemployment. One of Obama's signature domestic policy accomplishments was healthcare reform. In the foreign policy arena, his administration's achievements include the New START nuclear arms reduction treaty with Russia, normalization of diplomatic relations with Cuba, and a renewed focus on America's relationships in the Pacific region. Obama was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize in 2009.
Since leaving office Obama has advocated for climate issues, disaster relief efforts, and civic engagement. His Obama Foundation trains and supports civic leaders through programs like Community Leadership Corps, My Brother's Keeper Alliance, and the Obama Foundation Scholars and Fellowship programs. | |
| 4 | Name: | President Dame Louise Richardson | | | Institution: | Corporation of New York | | | Year Elected: | 2017 | | | Class: | 5. The Arts, Professions, and Leaders in Public & Private Affairs | | | Subdivision: | 503. Administrators, Bankers and Opinion Leaders from the Public or Private Sectors | | | Residency: | International | | | Living? : |
Living
| | | Birth Date: | 1958 | | | | | | |
Dame Louise Richardson DBE is president of Carnegie Corporation of New York, the philanthropic foundation established by Andrew Carnegie in 1911. Previously, she served as vice-chancellor of the University of Oxford and of the University of St. Andrews, and as executive dean of the Radcliffe Institute for Advanced Study.
A native of Ireland, she studied history in Trinity College Dublin before gaining her PhD at Harvard University, where she spent 20 years on the faculty of the Department of Government, teaching courses on international security and foreign policy. She currently sits on numerous advisory boards, while serving as a trustee of, among others, the Booker Prize Foundation and the Sutton Trust. Richardson is also a member of the selection committee of the Aurora Prize for Awakening Humanity. In 2023, the Irish government asked Richardson to serve as the independent chair of its Consultative Forum on International Security Policy.
A political scientist by training, Richardson is recognized internationally as an expert on terrorism and counterterrorism. Today considered a seminal work in the field, her groundbreaking study, What Terrorists Want: Understanding the Enemy, Containing the Threat (2006), was hailed by the New York Times Book Review as an “overdue and essential primer on terrorism and how to tackle it … the book many have been waiting for.” Other publications include Democracy and Counterterrorism: Lessons from the Past (2007), The Roots of Terrorism (2006), and When Allies Differ: Anglo-American Relations during the Suez and Falklands Crises (1996). She has written numerous articles on international terrorism, British foreign and defense policy, security institutions, and international relations; lectured to public, professional, media, and education groups; and served on editorial boards for several journals and presses.
Richardson’s many awards have recognized the excellence of her teaching and scholarship, including the Centennial Medal bestowed on her in 2013 by Harvard’s Graduate School of Arts and Sciences for “having the vision to assess emerging threats, for transformative leadership, and for moving seamlessly between the roles of scholar and teacher.” She has been awarded nine honorary doctorates, including from the universities of Aberdeen, Edinburgh, and St. Andrews in Scotland; Trinity College Dublin and Queen’s University Belfast in Ireland; the University of Notre Dame in the U.S.; the University of the West Indies; Ben Gurion University of the Negev in Israel; and the Moscow State Institute of International Relations (MGIMO) in Russia. Richardson is a member of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences, the American Philosophical Society, and the Academy of Social Sciences in the United Kingdom, as well as an honorary member of the Royal Irish Academy and a fellow of the Royal Society of Edinburgh.
In June 2022, Richardson was appointed a Dame Commander of the Most Excellent Order of the British Empire (DBE) in recognition of her services to higher education. | |
| 5 | Name: | Dr. David Skorton | | | Institution: | Association of American Medical Colleges | | | Year Elected: | 2017 | | | Class: | 5. The Arts, Professions, and Leaders in Public & Private Affairs | | | Subdivision: | 503. Administrators, Bankers and Opinion Leaders from the Public or Private Sectors | | | Residency: | Resident | | | Living? : |
Living
| | | Birth Date: | 1949 | | | | | | |
David J. Skorton was the 13th Secretary of the Smithsonian Institution, overseeing 19 museums, the National Zoo, 21 libraries, several research centers, and numerous education units and centers. Dr. Skorton is a board-certified cardiologist and the first physician to lead the Smithsonian.
Dr. Skorton is currently a Distinguished Professor at Georgetown University and previously served as the president of Cornell University. He was also a professor in the Departments of Medicine and Pediatrics at Weill Cornell Medical College and in Cornell's Department of Biomedical Engineering. Before that, he was president of the University of Iowa and a professor there for 26 years. In 2019 he left the Smithsonian to become president and CEO of the American Association of Medical Colleges.
Dr. Skorton received his bachelor's degree in psychology and his medical degree from Northwestern University. He completed his residency in internal medicine and fellowship in cardiology at the University of California, Los Angeles. | |
| 6 | Name: | Sir Mark Thompson | | | Institution: | Ancestry | | | Year Elected: | 2017 | | | Class: | 5. The Arts, Professions, and Leaders in Public & Private Affairs | | | Subdivision: | 502. Physicians, Theologians, Lawyers, Jurists, Architects, and Members of Other Professions | | | Residency: | Resident | | | Living? : |
Living
| | | Birth Date: | 1957 | | | | | | |
Mark Thompson is currently the Chair of the Board of Directors of Ancestry. Previously, he was president and chief executive officer of The New York Times Company from 2012 to 2020. He was responsible for leading the Company's strategy, operations and business units, and working closely with the chairman to direct the vision of the company.
Mr. Thompson was instrumental in accelerating the pace of The Times's digital transformation. Under his leadership, The Times became the first news organization in the world to pass the one million digital-only subscription mark. The company has also introduced a new era of international growth, launched an industry leading branded content studio and invested in virtual reality, producing some of the most celebrated work in this emerging medium.
Before joining the Times Company, Mr. Thompson served as Director-General of the BBC from 2004, where he reshaped the organization to meet the challenge of the digital age, ensuring that it remained a leading innovator with the launch of services such as the BBC iPlayer. He also oversaw a transformation of the BBC itself, driving productivity and efficiency through the introduction of new technologies and bold organizational redesign.
Mr. Thompson joined the BBC in 1979 as a production trainee. He helped launch Watchdog and Breakfast Time, was an output editor on Newsnight, and was appointed editor of the Nine O'Clock News in 1988 and of Panorama in 1990. He became controller (programming and scheduling chief) for the TV network BBC2 and Director of Television for the BBC before leaving the BBC in 2002 to become CEO of Channel 4 Television Corporation in the United Kingdom.
His book, "Enough Said: What’s Gone Wrong with the Language of Politics?" which is based on lectures he gave as a visiting professor of Rhetoric and the Art of Public Persuasion at the University of Oxford, was published in the UK and US in September 2016. Mark Thompson was educated at Stonyhurst College and Merton College, Oxford. | |
| 7 | Name: | Ms. Billie Tsien | | | Institution: | Tod Williams Billie Tsien Architects | | | Year Elected: | 2017 | | | Class: | 5. The Arts, Professions, and Leaders in Public & Private Affairs | | | Subdivision: | 502. Physicians, Theologians, Lawyers, Jurists, Architects, and Members of Other Professions | | | Residency: | Resident | | | Living? : |
Living
| | | Birth Date: | 1949 | | | | | | |
Billie Tsien and Tod Williams formed their New York-based collaborative practice in 1986. Their studio of about 35 people is known for successfully combining theory and practice, architecture, and the fine arts. The firm’s work emphasizes the importance of place and materials. Williams and Tsien have been the architects for many notable projects including the Barnes Foundation campus in Philadelphia, the Neurosciences Institute in La Jolla, California, the Desert House in Phoenix, Arizona, the David Rubenstein Atrium in New York City, and the Center for Advancement of Public Action at Bennington College in Vermont. The magnificent Barnes Foundation building and grounds honor the legacy of Dr. and Mrs. Barnes and the core educational mission of the Foundation through a series of spaces that maintain the intimate character of the gallery while allowing for greater access to the collections and programs. In June, the Obama Foundation selected Tsien and Williams as the architects for the Obama Presidential Center, a combination library and museum to be built in Chicago. The foundation said that the two architects “stood out in their commitment to explore the best ways of creating an innovative center for action that inspires communities and individuals to take on our biggest challenges.” In 2021 Billie Tsien was appointed to President Biden's Commission on Fine Arts. | |
| 8 | Name: | Mr. Tod Williams | | | Institution: | Tod Williams Billie Tsien Architects | | | Year Elected: | 2017 | | | Class: | 5. The Arts, Professions, and Leaders in Public & Private Affairs | | | Subdivision: | 502. Physicians, Theologians, Lawyers, Jurists, Architects, and Members of Other Professions | | | Residency: | Resident | | | Living? : |
Living
| | | Birth Date: | 1943 | | | | | | |
Billie Tsien and Tod Williams formed their New York-based collaborative practice in 1986. Their studio of about 35 people is known for successfully combining theory and practice, architecture, and the fine arts. The firm’s work emphasizes the importance of place and materials. Williams and Tsien have been the architects for many notable projects including the Barnes Foundation campus in Philadelphia, the Neurosciences Institute in La Jolla, California, the Desert House in Phoenix, Arizona, the David Rubenstein Atrium in New York City, and the Center for Advancement of Public Action at Bennington College in Vermont. The magnificent Barnes Foundation building and grounds honor the legacy of Dr. and Mrs. Barnes and the core educational mission of the Foundation through a series of spaces that maintain the intimate character of the gallery while allowing for greater access to the collections and programs. In June, the Obama Foundation selected Tsien and Williams as the architects for the Obama Presidential Center, a combination library and museum to be built in Chicago. The foundation said that the two architects stood out in their commitment to explore the best ways of creating an innovative center for action that inspires communities and individuals to take on our biggest challenges. | |
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