CHICAGO _ President Barack Obama's former top White House adviser Valerie Jarrett has been appointed to the board of directors of Chicago-based Ariel Investments.
Jarrett was the longest-serving senior adviser to Obama, and Ariel founder and chairman John W. Rogers Jr. is a longtime friend of Obama's. Former Obama administration Secretary of Education Arne Duncan also was appointed to the Ariel board after leaving his position.
Jarrett's father, Dr. James Bowman, was one of the original members of the Ariel board of directors.
Prior to becoming an adviser to Obama, Jarrett had been the chief executive officer of The Habitat Co. of Chicago, which develops and manages market-rate and affordable multifamily housing. She had been chairwoman of the Chicago Transit Board, commissioner of the Chicago Planning and Development Department, and deputy chief of staff and deputy corporation counsel to Chicago Mayor Richard M. Daley.
In the Obama administration she oversaw the offices of Public Engagement and Intergovernmental Affairs and chaired the White House Council on Women and Girls.
She has a bachelor's degree from Stanford University and a law degree from the University of Michigan Law School. She has been on the board of directors of the Chicago Stock Exchange and the Federal Reserve Bank of Chicago and has chaired the University of Chicago Medical Center board of trustees.
