Valerie Jarrett, Chief Executive Officer, The Barack Obama Foundation

The Honorable Valerie Jarrett is Chief Executive Officer and a member of the board of directors of The Obama Foundation where she is overseeing the creation of a new world-class cultural and civic institution on Chicago’s south side, and the Foundation’s programs that inspire, empower, and connect people to change their world. Ms. Jarrett is also a Senior Distinguished Fellow at The University of Chicago Law School and the author of the New York Times bestselling book Finding My Voice: My Journey to the West Wing and the Path Forward. Jarrett is the Board Chairman of Civic Nation and serves on the boards of Walgreens Boot Alliance, Inc., Ralph Lauren Corporation, Sweetgreen, Inc., Ariel Investments, The University of Chicago, and the Sesame Street Workshop. Jarrett also serves on the Goldman Sachs One Million Black Women Advisory Board, the Bank of America Enterprise Executive Development Council, and the Microsoft Advisory Council.

Ms. Jarrett was the Senior Advisor to President Barack Obama from 2009-2017, making her the longest-serving senior advisor to a president in history. She oversaw the Offices of Public Engagement and Intergovernmental Affairs and Chaired the White House Council on Women and Girls.

Ms. Jarrett has a background in both the public and private sectors. She served as the Chief Executive Officer of The Habitat Company. During her tenure, Habitat was the largest multi-family housing developer and manager in Chicago. Prior to joining Habitat, Ms. Jarrett was the Commissioner of Planning and Development for the city of Chicago, and Deputy Chief of Staff for Chicago Mayor Richard M. Daley. She practiced law for ten years in the private and public sectors. She previously served as the director of numerous corporate and not-for-profit boards, including leadership roles as Chairman of the Board of the Chicago Stock Exchange, Chairman of the University of Chicago Medical Center Board of Trustees, Vice Chairman of the University of Chicago Board of Trustees, Chair of Chicago Transit Board, and Director of the Federal Reserve Bank of Chicago.

Ms. Jarrett has received numerous awards and honorary degrees, including TIME’s 100 Most Influential People Award and Forbes 50 Over 50. Jarrett received her B.A. from. Stanford University in 1978 and her J.D. from the University of Michigan Law School in 1981.

EXPERIENCE
Brandi Powell is an Emmy award-winning journalist. She anchors the weekday morning newscasts on KSTP 5 Eyewitness News 4:30-5:30am and KSTC 45TV 7-9am. Brandi has been part of the news team since January 2014.

She has served as a fill-in co-host and on-air contributor on KSTP’s lifestyle and political shows: Minnesota Live, Twin Cities Live and At Issue.

Brandi has been a contributing writer for Minnesota Monthly magazine.
She was also chosen to be in the Prince and Mary Tyler Moore REELZ specials, giving on-air perspectives as a journalist and Minnesotan. In 2014, Brandi was selected to do a Voice-Over for part of a Shark Week episode.

In May of 2025, Brandi reported a story and moderated a panel discussion for the news special: George Floyd: 5 Years of Change and Challenge.

In the summer of 2022, Brandi anchored a 5 INVESTIGATES special: Race. Reform. Reality. The hour-long program offered a thoughtful approach to the complex issues facing our community after the murder of George Floyd.

In 2020, Brandi launched and reported an in-depth series: Conversations About Racism and the Road to Equality. The 3-part series included Understanding Racism, The Talk and Youth Activists and Education.

From 2011-2013, Brandi worked as a Reporter/Multi-Media Journalist at the NBC O&O in San Diego (KNSD-TV NBC 7). She covered breaking news, crime and politics. She also served as a regular on-air contributor for Politically Speaking, the station’s weekly political show.

Brandi worked as a Reporter/Video Journalist/Bell County Bureau Chief, from 2008-2009, at News 8 Austin (now Spectrum News -Time Warner Cable). She covered Fort Hood and its surrounding communities.

Her first on-air TV news position was as the Political Reporter at KFYR-TV (NBC Affiliate) in Bismarck, North Dakota. From 2006-2008, she covered statewide elections and legislative sessions. While at KFYR Brandi went on assignment in Guatemala for nearly two weeks covering elections, agriculture and education while following a group of North Dakota teachers doing an intercultural exchange.

Brandi began her career, behind-the-scenes, as a Production Assistant at MSNBC, from 2005-2006. Prior, she was an Intern with The Washington Center, for the 2004 Republican National Convention in New York City. She was also an Intern with Dateline NBC in 2004. Brandi’s first broadcasting experience was announcing the community calendars for a Las Vegas jazz radio station.

EDUCATION
In 2011, Brandi earned her Master of Arts degree in Anthropology from George Washington University in Washington, DC. Her concentration was International Development. She has training in sociocultural anthropology, biological anthropology, linguistic anthropology and archaeology. From 2009-2011, Brandi was a full-time graduate school student. During this time, she served as a graduate school intern at National Geographic Channel.

She earned her Bachelor of Arts degree in Communication Studies from University of Nevada, Las Vegas. She minored in Spanish. Brandi was in the UNLV Honors College. She is also a proud McNair Scholar. She won 1st place in UNLV’s Honors College Public Speaking Contest.

As an undergraduate student, she also studied abroad for a semester in Salamanca, Spain and during a summer in Barcelona, Spain. Brandi is conversational in Spanish and has used her bilingual language skills in her reporting.

PROFESSIONAL ORGANIZATIONS & VOLUNTEERING
She is a member of National Association of Black Journalists (NABJ) and Twin Cities Black Journalists (TCBJ).

Brandi regularly emcees events for a variety of community organizations. She also moderates panel discussions.

Brandi volunteers at local schools and universities to mentor young people and give presentations. She has also volunteered with children in Urban Ventures’ dynamic youth programs.

AWARDS AND HONORS
In 2025, as part of the news special George Floyd: 5 Years of Change and Challenge, Brandi earned an individual regional Emmy nomination for her story Rondo’s Reflections. Along with her colleagues, she also earned a team regional Emmy nomination for the news special.

Brandi has earned individual regional Emmy nominations, including for Anchoring in 2022 and 2020.

Brandi has been a part of multiple team regional Emmy award wins, including in 2022 for Investigative – Multiple Reports, in which she moderated a panel discussion and anchored the hour-long special: Race. Reform. Reality.

She won a Minnesota Society of Professional Journalists Page One Award for Special Project/In-depth Series in 2021, for Conversations on Racism and the Road to Equality.

In 2021, Brandi was an honoree highlighted in the Minnesota African American Heritage Calendar: Pathfinders: Leaders for the Future.

In 2017, Brandi was selected as the Keynote Speaker for the Patricia Adams Lecture Series (PALS) at Heidelberg University in Tiffin, OH. Brandi has also won two North Dakota Associated Press awards.

PERSONAL INTERESTS
Brandi was born in Minnesota. She and her husband have three young children and a rescue dog.