Readout of the President’s Call with Chancellor Merkel of Germany

The President spoke again today with Chancellor Merkel of Germany concerning the ongoing crisis in Ukraine.  The two leaders are very concerned about reports of additional Russian forces in Ukraine.  In view of these developments, both agreed that it will be necessary for the United States and the European Union to consider additional sanctions on Russia.  The two leaders also reiterated their determination to continue to work for a diplomatic solution to the crisis.  The President and the Chancellor also reviewed goals for the NATO Summit next week in Newport, Wales. 

###

President Obama Announces More Key Administration Posts

WASHINGTON, DC – Today, President Barack Obama announced his intent to nominate the following individuals to key Administration posts:

• Michael P. Botticelli – Director,  Office of National Drug Control Policy
• Seth B. Carpenter – Assistant Secretary for Financial Markets, Department of the Treasury
• Gilberto de Jesús – Chief Counsel for Advocacy, Small Business Administration
• Russell C. Deyo - Under Secretary for Management, Department of Homeland Security
• Todd A. Fisher – Member, Board of Directors of the Overseas Private Investment Corporation  
• Deven J. Parekh – Member, Board of Directors of the Overseas Private Investment Corporation  
• Jennifer A. Haverkamp – Assistant Secretary for Oceans and International Environmental and Scientific Affairs, Department of State
• Colette Honorable – Commissioner, Federal Energy Regulatory Commission
• Virginia Lodge – Member, Board of Directors of the Tennessee Valley Authority
• Ronald Walter – Member, Board of Directors of the Tennessee Valley Authority
• Danny Marti – Intellectual Property Enforcement Coordinator, Executive Office of the President
• Carlos Monje, Jr. – Assistant Secretary for Transportation Policy, Department of Transportation
• Ronald Alan Pearlman – Member, Internal Revenue Service Oversight Board
• Sarah R. Saldaña - Assistant Secretary for Immigration and Customs Enforcement, Department of Homeland Security
• Carlos Torres – Deputy Director, Peace Corps
• Sheila Gwaltney – Ambassador to the Kyrgyz Republic, Department of State
• Peter Michael McKinley – Ambassador to the Islamic Republic of Afghanistan, Department of State  
• Nancy Bikoff Pettit – Ambassador to the Republic of Latvia, Department of State  

President Obama also announced his intent to appoint the following individuals to key Administration posts:

• S. Dallas Dance – Member, President’s Advisory Commission on Educational Excellence for African Americans  
• James S. Crown – Member, President’s Intelligence Advisory Board
• Scott Davis – Member, President’s Intelligence Advisory Board
• Jamie Dos Santos – Member, President’s Intelligence Advisory Board
• Julius Genachowski  – Member, President’s Intelligence Advisory Board
• Shirley Ann Jackson – Member, President’s Intelligence Advisory Board
• Neal S. Wolin – Member,  President’s Intelligence Advisory Board

President Obama said, “I am grateful that these impressive individuals have chosen to dedicate their talents to serving the American people at this important time for our country.  I look forward to working with them in the months and years ahead.”

President Obama announced his intent to nominate the following individuals to key Administration posts:

Michael P. Botticelli, Nominee for Director, Office of National Drug Control Policy
Michael P. Botticelli is the Deputy Director of the Office of National Drug Control Policy (ONDCP), a position he has held since 2012.  He has been serving as Acting Director of ONDCP since March 2014.  Previously, he was the Director of the Bureau of Substance Abuse Services in the Massachusetts Department of Health (MDPH).  Since joining MDPH in 1994, Mr. Botticelli has served as Chief of Staff of the MDPH Commissioner’s Office from 2000 to 2003, Assistant Director for Policy and Planning within the HIV/AIDS Bureau from 1996 to 2000, Contract Manager in the HIV/AIDS Bureau from 1995 to 1996, and Alcoholism Program Coordinator within the Bureau of Substance Abuse Services from 1994 to 1995.  Mr. Botticelli received a B.A. from Siena College and an M. ED. from St. Lawrence University.

Dr. Seth B. Carpenter, Nominee for Assistant Secretary for Financial Markets, Department of the Treasury
Dr. Seth B. Carpenter is a Senior Advisor in the Office of Financial Markets at the Department of the Treasury, a position he has held since 2014.  Previously, from 2013 to 2014, Dr. Carpenter served as the Deputy Assistant Secretary for Economic Policy at Treasury.  Prior to serving at Treasury, he served at the Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System from 1999 to 2014.  Dr. Carpenter began his service with the Federal Reserve as a research economist and rose to the rank of Deputy Director of the Division of Monetary Affairs.  Dr. Carpenter has taught undergraduate and graduate courses at Duke University, the College of William and Mary, The George Washington University, and The Johns Hopkins University.  He also served as a Member of the Board of Advisors for the Thomas Jefferson Public Policy Program at the College of William and Mary.  Dr. Carpenter received a B.A. from the College of William and Mary and an M.A. and Ph.D. from Princeton University.

Gilberto de Jesús, Nominee for Chief Counsel for Advocacy, Small Business Administration
Gilberto de Jesús is currently a Senior Attorney in the Office of Communications Business Opportunities at the Federal Communications Commission (FCC), a position he has held since 2009.  From 2007 to 2008, Mr. de Jesús was a Senior Legislative Fellow in the Office of U.S. Senator Benjamin Cardin.  Previously, Mr. de Jesús served as an Attorney Advisor with the FCC’s Investigations & Hearings Division from 2000 to 2007.  From 1999 to 2000, Mr. de Jesús served as a Consultant for the Maryland Hispanic Chamber of Commerce.  Previously, he was Secretary of the Juvenile Justice Department of Maryland.  From 1989 to 1997, he served at the Department of Justice as an Assistant U.S. Attorney and Legal Advisor to Federal and state prosecutors on issues of international law enforcement.  He currently sits on the Board of Directors for the Baltimore Development Corporation as well as the University of Maryland Medical Systems.  Mr. de Jesús received a B.A. from Columbia University and a J.D. from The George Washington University School of Law.

Russell C. Deyo, Nominee for Under Secretary for Management, Department of Homeland Security
Russell C. Deyo retired from Johnson & Johnson in 2012 after 27 years of service.  During his tenure, he held a number of positions, including Vice President, General Counsel, and for sixteen years served as a member of the Executive Committee, the Company’s principal management group for global operations.  He was also Vice President of Administration from 1996 to 2004, overseeing human resources and procurement for the entire Company.  Mr. Deyo served as Associate General Counsel for Litigation from 1991 to 1996.  From 1986 through 1996, he also served on management boards of several Johnson & Johnson consumer and pharmaceutical operating companies.  Prior to Johnson & Johnson, Mr. Deyo was an Assistant United States Attorney for the District of New Jersey from 1978 to 1985, serving the last three years as Chief of Special Prosecutions.  From 1977 to 1978, Mr. Deyo was an attorney at Patterson, Belknap, Webb & Tyler.  He clerked for The Honorable John B. Hannum of the U.S. District Court in Philadelphia from 1976 to 1977.  He received a B.A. from Dartmouth College and a J.D. from Georgetown University Law Center.

Todd A. Fisher, Nominee for Member, Board of Directors of the Overseas Private Investment Corporation  
Todd A. Fisher is Global Chief Administrative Officer at Kohlberg Kravis Roberts & Co (KKR), a position he has held since 2008.  He also oversees KKR’s real estate investment business.  Mr. Fisher joined KKR in 1993 as a private equity executive in the United States and Europe.  He is a member of KKR’s Real Estate Investment and Portfolio Committees and Chair of KKR’s Management Committee and Risk Committee.  He previously served as a member of KKR’s Private Equity Investment Committee.  Mr. Fisher is currently Vice Chairman and a Member of the Board of Directors of Maxeda BV.  Mr. Fisher previously worked for Goldman, Sachs & Co. in New York and for Drexel Burnham Lambert in Los Angeles.  He has served as a Member of the United States Holocaust Memorial Council since 2013.  He is a member of the Board of Trustees of Brown University, the Vice Chairman of the Board of Advisors of Johns Hopkins School of Advanced International Studies, and a Member of the Advisory Committee of the Clinton Health Access Initiative.  He is also a Member of the Council on Foreign Relations.  Mr. Fisher received a B.A. from Brown University, an M.A. from The John Hopkins University Paul H. Nitze School of Advanced International Studies, and an M.B.A. from the Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania. 

Deven J. Parekh, Nominee for Member, Board of Directors of the Overseas Private Investment Corporation  
Deven J. Parekh is currently a managing director at Insight Venture Partners, a position he has held since 2001.  Mr. Parekh held a number of roles at Berenson Minella & Company between 1992 and 2000, including Principal and Vice President.  Previously, from 1991 to 1992, he was a financial analyst for the Blackstone Group.  Mr. Parekh has served as a Member of the Technological Advisory Council of the Federal Communications Commission since 2011.  He is a Member of the Board of Publicolor, which he chaired from 2007 to 2012.  Mr. Parekh is Treasurer and Member of the Board of Governors of the National Academy Museum, a Member of the Board of the Tisch MS Research Center of New York, and a Member of the Greater NY Partnership.  He is a Member of the Council on Foreign Relations and the Economic Club of New York. From 2010 to 2012, he was a Member of the Advisory Board of the Export-Import Bank of the United States.  In 2006, he was named a Henry Crown Fellow of the Aspen Institute.  Mr. Parekh received a B.S. from the Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania.

Jennifer A. Haverkamp, Nominee for Assistant Secretary for Oceans and International Environmental and Scientific Affairs, Department of State
Jennifer A. Haverkamp is currently an independent consultant and a professorial lecturer in law at George Washington University Law School in Washington, D.C., positions she has held since 2014.  Previously, she was Director of the International Climate Program at the Environmental Defense Fund (EDF) from 2011 to 2014, Managing Director for International Policy at EDF from 2008 to 2010, and a Consultant at EDF from 2007 to 2008.  Ms. Haverkamp was an independent consultant from 2004 to 2007 and an adjunct professor at The Johns Hopkins University Krieger School of Arts and Sciences from 2004 to 2007.  Previously, she served in the Office of the U.S. Trade Representative as Assistant U.S. Trade Representative for Environment and Natural Resources from 1995 to 2003, Deputy Assistant U.S. Trade Representative for Environment and Natural Resources from 1994 to 1995, and Director for Environmental Policy from 1993 to 1994.  Ms. Haverkamp served as Special Assistant to the Assistant Administrator for Enforcement at the Environmental Protection Agency from 1992 to 1993, Attorney in the Policy, Legislation, and Special Litigation Section of the Environment and Natural Resources Division at the Department of Justice from 1988 to 1992, and Law Clerk to Judge Betty B. Fletcher on the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit from 1987 to 1988.  She is a member of several boards and advisory bodies, including the American Bird Conservancy and the U.S. Trade Representative’s Trade and Environment Policy Advisory Committee.  Ms. Haverkamp received a B.A. from The College of Wooster, a B.A. and M.A. from Somerville College at Oxford University, where she was a Rhodes Scholar, and a J.D. from Yale Law School.

Colette Honorable, Nominee for Commissioner, Federal Energy Regulatory Commission
Colette Honorable is currently Commissioner and Chair of the Arkansas Public Service Commission, positions she has held since 2007 and 2011, respectively.  Ms. Honorable also currently serves as Chairman of the Board and President of the National Association of Regulatory Utility Commissioners.  Previously, she served as Executive Director of the Arkansas Workforce Investment Board in 2007.  Ms. Honorable worked for then Arkansas Attorney General Mike Beebe in various roles, including as his Chief of Staff from 2006 to 2007, Assistant Attorney General for Civil Litigation from 2004 to 2006, and also as Assistant Attorney General under then Arkansas Attorney General Mark Pryor from 1999 to 2004.  She also worked as an associate at Cauley Geller Bowman and Rudman, LLP from 2003 to 2004.  Ms. Honorable was an assistant city attorney in North Little Rock City from 2003 to 2004, an assistant public defender from 1998 to 1999, a judicial law clerk at the Arkansas Court of Appeals from 1997 to 1998, and a staff attorney at the Center for Arkansas Legal Services from 1995 to 1996.  Ms. Honorable received a B.A. from Memphis State University and a J.D. from the University of Arkansas at Little Rock School of Law.

Virginia Lodge, Nominee for Member, Board of Directors of the Tennessee Valley Authority
Virginia Lodge is currently CEO of FSI Inc., a position she has held since 2012.  Prior to this, she served as Commissioner of the Tennessee Department of Human Services from 2003 to 2011.  From 2002 to 2003, she worked on Tennessee Governor Phil Bredesen’s campaign and transition team.  Ms. Lodge was National Director of GoreCorps for the Gore for President Campaign in 2000 and served as Executive Director for Kids Voting of Middle Tennessee from 1994 to 1999.  She served as Fundraising Director for Sasser for Senate from 1981 to 1982 and Finance Director for Tennessee for Carter and Mondale in 1980.  In 1976, Ms. Lodge was Controller for Moynihan for Senate, and from 1975 to 1976 she was Assistant Comptroller for Jackson for President.  Ms. Lodge received a B.A. from the University of Hawaii, an M.A. from the University of San Francisco, and an M.B.A. from Vanderbilt University.

Ronald Walter, Nominee for Member, Board of Directors of the Tennessee Valley Authority
Ronald Walter is currently the President and General Manager of WREG-TV, a position he has held since 2004.  Mr. Walter has served in a variety of positions at WREG-TV since 1987.  He was Executive Vice President/Station Manager from 1994 to 2004, concurrently serving as Vice President of Government and Cable Relations for the New York Times Broadcast Group, WREG-TV’s former parent company from 2001 to 2004.  He served as Vice President and Station Manager from 1991 to 1994, Vice President of Government and Public Relations from 1989 to 1990, and Director of Marketing, Production and Client Services from 1987 to 1989.  Mr. Walter was Vice President of Customer Relations for the Memphis Light, Gas and Water Division from 1982 to 1987.  From 1980 to 1982, he served as Assistant to the President at Memphis Light, Gas and Water.  Mr. Walter received a B.A. from Clark University and an M.S.L.S. from Case Western Reserve University.

Danny Marti, Nominee for Intellectual Property Enforcement Coordinator, Executive Office of the President
Danny Marti currently serves as the Managing Partner of Kilpatrick Townsend & Stockton’s Washington, D.C. office.  Mr. Marti served as Co-Chair of the firm’s Intellectual Asset Acquisitions & Transactions team from 2010 to 2013 and as Chair of the firm’s Diversity Council from 2009 to 2013.  He served as a Member of the firm’s Shares Committee in 2012 and 2014 and Hiring Committee from 2007 to 2013. Prior to joining Kilpatrick Townsend & Stockton in Washington, D.C., Mr. Marti was an attorney at Lott & Friedland (now Lott & Fischer) in Florida from 1999 to 2000.  He has served on several professional associations and charitable boards, including the International Trademark Association and the American Cancer Society’s National Capital Region Corporate Council.  Mr. Marti received a B.A. from Georgetown University and a J.D. from Emory University School of Law.

Carlos Monje, Jr. Nominee for Assistant Secretary for Transportation Policy, Department of Transportation
Carlos Monje, Jr. is currently Counselor to the Secretary at the Department of Transportation, a position he has held since February 2014.  From 2011 to 2014, Mr. Monje served as Special Assistant to the President and Chief of Staff of the Domestic Policy Council (DPC).  From 2009 to 2011, he served as a Senior Policy Advisor at the DPC.  From 2007 to 2008, he was Deputy Policy Director for Obama for America.  Previously, Mr. Monje served as Special Assistant for Policy and Communications to then U.S. Senator Barack Obama from 2006 to 2007.  He was a Legislative Assistant to U.S. Senator Ken Salazar in 2005.  In 2004, Mr. Monje was Press Secretary for Erskine Bowles’ U.S. Senate campaign.  Prior to that, he served as Deputy Press Secretary for John Edwards’ presidential campaign from 2003 to 2004.  From 2001 to 2003, he served as Deputy Press Secretary to U.S. Senator John Edwards.  Mr. Monje received an A.B. from Harvard University.

Ronald Alan Pearlman, Nominee for Member, Internal Revenue Service Oversight Board
Ronald Alan Pearlman recently retired as a Professor of Law at the Georgetown University Law Center, a position he held from 1999 to 2014.  Previously, he was a Tax Partner at Covington & Burling from 1991 to 2000.  Mr. Pearlman was Chief of Staff on the Joint Committee on Taxation of the U.S. Congress from 1988 to 1990 and a Tax Partner at Bryan Cave from 1986 to 1988.  Prior to Bryan Cave, Mr. Pearlman served at the Department of the Treasury, first as the Deputy Assistant Secretary for Tax Policy from 1983 to 1984, and subsequently as Assistant Secretary for Tax Policy from 1984 to 1985.  Before joining Treasury, Mr. Pearlman was a Tax Partner at Thompson & Coburn from 1969 to 1983.  Mr. Pearlman received a B.A. from Northwestern University, a J.D. from the Northwestern University School of Law, and an L.L.M. from the Georgetown University Law Center.  

Sarah R. Saldaña, Nominee for Assistant Secretary for Immigration and Customs Enforcement, Department of Homeland Security
Sarah R. Saldaña is the United States Attorney for the Northern District of Texas, a position she has held since 2011.  She also serves as a member of the Attorney General’s Advisory Committee.  Previously, Ms. Saldaña was the Deputy Criminal Chief for the Fraud and Public Corruption section of the Office of the U.S. Attorney for the Northern District of Texas.  From 1985 to 1999, she was an Attorney at Haynes and Boone, LLP and Baker Botts LLP.  She clerked for Judge Harold Barefoot Sanders at the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Texas from 1984 to 1985.  From 1974 to 1981, she worked for several federal agencies, including the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission, the Department of Labor, and the Department of Housing and Urban Development.  Ms. Saldaña received a B.A. from Texas A&I University and a J.D. from Southern Methodist University.

Carlos Torres, Nominee for Deputy Director, Peace Corps
Carlos Torres is the Associate Director for Global Operations at the Peace Corps, a position he has held since 2013.  He previously served as Regional Director for Inter-America and Pacific Region at the Peace Corps from 2010 to 2013.  He was an independent consultant on international projects from 2000 to 2010.  Mr. Torres founded CARANA Corporation in 1984 and served as its President and CEO until 2000.  He was a private contractor for the U.S. Agency for International Development in Costa Rica from 1983 to 1984, and from 1976 to 1983 he worked in the Financial Industries Section of Arthur D. Little, Inc.  Mr. Torres received a B.S. from Babson College and an M.S.M. from the Arthur D. Little Management Education Institute.

Sheila Gwaltney, Nominee for Ambassador to the Kyrgyz Republic, Department of State
Sheila Gwaltney, a career member of the Foreign Service, Class of Minister-Counselor, most recently was the Chargé d’Affaires, a.i., at the U.S. Embassy in Moscow, Russia.  From 2011 to 2014, she served as the Moscow Embassy’s Deputy Chief of Mission.  Previously, she served as Consul General at the Consulate General in Saint Petersburg, Russia from 2008 to 2011 and as Senior Advisor in the Office of the Coordinator for Reconstruction and Stabilization in the Department of State from 2007 to 2008.  From 2004 to 2007, she served as Deputy Chief of Mission at the U.S. Embassy in Kyiv, Ukraine, as Deputy Director for Eurasia in the Office of the Coordinator for Assistance for Europe and Eurasia in the Bureau of European Affairs from 2002 to 2004, and as Deputy Chief of Mission at the U.S. Embassy in Bishkek, Kyrgyz Republic from 1999 to 2001.  She was Special Assistant in the Office of the Under Secretary for Political Affairs from 1998 to 1999, Deputy Director in the Office of Russian Affairs in the Bureau of European and Eurasian Affairs from 1995 to 1998, and a Political/Economic Officer at the U.S. Consulate General in Saint Petersburg from 1992 to 1995.  She held a number of positions at the U.S. Embassy in Pretoria, South Africa, and was a Consular/Political Officer at the U.S. Embassy in Panama City, Panama.  Before joining the Foreign Service, she was a Program Coordinator at Delphi Research Associates in Washington, D.C.  Ms. Gwaltney received a B.A. from the University of California, Davis and an M.A. from George Washington University.

Peter Michael McKinley, Nominee for Ambassador to the Islamic Republic of Afghanistan, Department of State  
Peter Michael McKinley, a career member of the Foreign Service, Class of Minister-Counselor, is the Deputy Ambassador at the U.S. Embassy in Kabul, Afghanistan, a position he has held since 2013.  Previously, Mr. McKinley served as Ambassador to the Republic of Colombia from 2010 to 2013, Ambassador to the Republic of Peru from 2007 to 2010, Deputy Chief of Mission at the United States Mission to the European Union in Brussels, Belgium from 2004 to 2007, and as Deputy Assistant Secretary in the Bureau of Population, Refugees, and Migration from 2001 to 2004.  Mr. McKinley was Deputy Chief of Mission at the U.S. Embassy in Brussels from 2000 to 2001, Deputy Chief of Mission at the U.S. Embassy in Kampala, Uganda from 1997 to 2000, and Deputy Chief of Mission at the U.S. Embassy in Maputo, Mozambique from 1994 to 1997.  He also served at the U.S. Embassies in London, United Kingdom and La Paz, Bolivia, as well as in the Office of the Under Secretary for Political Affairs, the Office of Southern African Affairs, and the Bureau of Intelligence at the Department of State.  Mr. McKinley received a B.A. from Southampton University and an M.Phil. and D.Phil. from Oxford University.

Nancy Bikoff Pettit, Nominee for Ambassador to the Republic of Latvia, Department of State
Nancy Bikoff Pettit, a career member of the Foreign Service, Class of Counselor, is the Director of the Office of Western European Affairs in the Department of State (DOS) Bureau of European and Eurasian Affairs, a position she has held since 2013.  She served as Director of the Office of Policy Planning and Coordination in the Bureau of International Narcotics and Law Enforcement from 2010 to 2013 at DOS. She was Press Attaché at the U.S. Embassy in Kyiv, Ukraine from 2008 to 2010, Counselor for Law Enforcement Policy and Assistance at the U.S. Embassy in Moscow, Russia from 2003 to 2007, and Political Unit Chief at the U.S. Embassy in Vienna, Austria from 2000 to 2003.  Ms. Pettit previously served in a number of positions at several posts, including the U.S. Embassy in Moscow, the European Bureau, and the Near East Bureau.  She was also an Examiner at the DOS Board of Examiners.  Prior to joining the Foreign Service, she was a Research Assistant at the U.S. Board for International Broadcasting and the Federal Research Division of the Library of Congress.  Ms. Pettit received a B.A. from Vassar College and an M.A. from the University of Michigan.

President Obama announced his intent to appoint the following individuals to key Administration posts:

Dr. S. Dallas Dance, Appointee for Member, President’s Advisory Commission on Educational Excellence for African Americans  
Dr. S. Dallas Dance is currently Superintendent of Baltimore County Public Schools, a position he has held since 2012.  Dr. Dance was previously Chief School Officer for the Houston Independent School District from 2010 to 2012.  From 2009 to 2010, he was Director of School Improvement at Chesterfield County Public Schools, and from 2007 to 2009 he was Assistant Superintendent at Louisa County Public Schools in Virginia.  Dr. Dance began his career at Henrico County Public Schools in Virginia from 2001 to 2007, where he served as Principal, Assistant Principal, Summer School Principal, Administrative Aide, and English Teacher.  He has also taught as an adjunct professor at Averett University, the Virginia Commonwealth University, the University of Houston, and the University of Richmond.  Dr. Dance received a B.A. from Virginia Union University, and an M.Ed. and Ph.D. from Virginia Commonwealth University.

James S. Crown, Appointee for Member, President’s Intelligence Advisory Board
James S. Crown is the President of Henry Crown and Company, a position he has held since 2003 after joining the company in 1985.  From 1983 to 1985, Mr. Crown was a Vice President at Salomon Brothers, Inc. after working as an associate from 1980 to 1983.  He is currently on the Boards of Trustees at the Aspen Institute and at The University of Chicago, where he served as Chairman from 2003 to 2009.  Mr. Crown received a B.A. from Hampshire College and a J.D. from Stanford University.

Scott Davis, Appointee for Member, President’s Intelligence Advisory Board
Scott Davis serves as Chairman and CEO of United Parcel Service (UPS), positions he has held since 2008.  He was Vice Chairman of UPS from 2006 to 2008, and became Senior Vice President, Chief Financial Officer and Treasurer in 2001.  Mr. Davis previously held several positions in finance and accounting at UPS from 1986 to 2001.  Prior to joining UPS, he was the CEO of II Morrow.  Mr. Davis was appointed as a Member of the President’s Export Council in 2010.  Mr. Davis served on the Board of Directors of the Federal Reserve Bank of Atlanta from 2004 to 2009, completing a term as Chairman in the final year.  He also serves on the Board of Honeywell International, Inc. and Johnson & Johnson.  Mr. Davis received a B.B.A. from Portland State University.

Jamie Dos Santos, Appointee for Member, President’s Intelligence Advisory Board
Jamie Dos Santos is the Chairman and CEO of Cybraics, positions she has held since 2013.  Previously, she was the CEO of Terremark Federal Group, a position she held from 2005 to 2012.  Ms. Dos Santos previously served as the company’s Chief Marketing Officer from 2003 to 2005 and as Senior Vice President of Global Sales from 2001 to 2003.  Prior to joining Terremark, Ms. Dos Santos had a 20 year career with global companies BellSouth and Bellcore.  She has served on the President's National Security Telecommunications Advisory Committee since 2011.  Ms. Dos Santos is on the Cyber Committee of the Armed Forces Communications and Electronics Association (AFCEA) as well as on its Board of Directors as a Class Director.  She previously served two terms on the Intelligence Committee at AFCEA. 

Julius Genachowski, Appointee for Member, President’s Intelligence Advisory Board
Julius Genachowski is a Managing Director at The Carlyle Group.  Mr. Genachowski was Chairman of the Federal Communications Commission from 2009 to 2013.  Previously, he held a number of roles in the private sector, including as a senior executive at IAC/InterActiveCorp, special advisor at General Atlantic, and a member of the boards of directors of several public and private companies.  Earlier in his career, he served as Chief Counsel to the Chairman of the Federal Communications Commission and before that, as a Law Clerk for U.S. Supreme Court Justice David H. Souter.  Mr. Genachowski worked on the staff of then U.S. Representative Charles E. Schumer, as well as for the House Select Committee Investigating the Iran-Contra Affair.  He has taught a joint class at Harvard Business and Law Schools and was a Senior Fellow at the Aspen Institute.  Mr. Genachowski received a B.A. from Columbia College and a J.D. from Harvard Law School.

Dr. Shirley Ann Jackson, Appointee for Member, President’s Intelligence Advisory Board
Dr. Shirley Ann Jackson is currently the President of Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute, a position she has held since 1999.  From 1995 to 1999, Ms. Jackson served as the Chairman of the Nuclear Regulatory Commission and from 1991 to 1995, she was a Professor in the Department of Physics and Astronomy at Rutgers University.  From 1976 to 1991, she was a member of the technical staff at AT&T Bell Laboratories and from 1973 to 1976, she was a Research Associate for the Theoretical Physics Department at the Fermi National Accelerator Laboratory.  She was a Visiting Scientist at the European Organization for Nuclear Research from 1974 to 1975.  She is currently a member of the President’s Council of Advisors on Science and Technology, the Secretary of Energy Advisory Board, and the International Security Advisory Board at the Department of State.  She also serves on the Board of the Council on Foreign Relations and on the boards of several major corporations.  Dr. Jackson received an S.B., M.A., and Ph.D. from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology.

Neal S. Wolin, Appointee for Member, President’s Intelligence Advisory Board
Neal S. Wolin served as Deputy Secretary of the Treasury from 2009 through 2013, during which time he served for a period as Acting Secretary of the Treasury.  In 2009, he briefly served as Deputy Assistant to the President and Deputy Counsel to the President for Economic Policy.  From 2007 to 2009, he served as the President and Chief Operating Officer of the property and casualty insurance companies of The Hartford Financial Services Group.  From 2001 to 2007, he was the Executive Vice President and General Counsel of The Hartford and from 1995 to 2001, he was General Counsel of the Department of the Treasury after serving as Deputy General Counsel.  Mr. Wolin served as the Executive Assistant to the National Security Advisor from 1994 to 1995, and from 1993 to 1994 he was the Deputy Legal Adviser to the National Security Council.  From 1990 to 1993, he was Special Assistant to Directors of Central Intelligence William Webster, Robert Gates, and James Woolsey.  Mr. Wolin received a B.A. from Yale College, an M.Sc. from the University of Oxford, and a J.D. from Yale Law School.

President Obama to Award the Medal of Honor

WASHINGTON, DC – On September 15, 2014, President Barack Obama will award the Medal of Honor to Army Command Sergeant Major Bennie G. Adkins and to Army Specialist Four Donald P. Sloat for conspicuous gallantry. 

Command Sergeant Major Adkins will receive the Medal of Honor for his actions while serving as an Intelligence Sergeant assigned to Detachment A-102, 5th Special Forces Group, 1st Special Forces.  Then-Sergeant First Class Adkins distinguished himself during combat operations at Camp A Shau, Republic of Vietnam, on March 9 through March 12, 1966. 

Specialist Four Donald P. Sloat will receive the Medal of Honor posthumously for his actions while serving as a Machine gunner with Company D, 2nd Battalion, 1st Infantry Regiment, 196th Light Infantry Brigade, Americal Division.  Specialist Four Sloat distinguished himself during combat operations in the vicinity of Hawk Hill Fire Base, Republic of Vietnam, on January 17, 1970.

President Obama also approved the awarding of the Medal of Honor to Army First Lieutenant Alonzo H. Cushing for gallantry in action at the battle of Gettysburg on July 3, 1863.   Additional details on the award to First Lieutenant Cushing will be announced separately.

First Lieutenant Alonzo H. Cushing will receive the Medal of Honor posthumously for his actions while serving as commanding officer of Battery A, 4th United States Artillery, Artillery Brigade, 2nd Corps, Army of the Potomac. Cushing distinguished himself during combat operations against an armed enemy in the vicinity of Cemetery Ridge, Gettysburg, Pennsylvania, on July 3, 1863.

PERSONAL BACKGROUND: 

Command Sergeant Major Adkins joined the Army in 1956, at the age of 22. He served in the 2nd Infantry Division until leaving to join Special Forces in 1961.  He deployed to Vietnam three times between February 1963 and December 1971; the actions for which he will receive the Medal of Honor took place during his second tour.

After Vietnam, Command Sergeant Major Adkins served approximately two years as First Sergeant for the Army Garrison Communications Command in Fort Huachuca, Arizona. He then joined Class #3 of the Army Sergeants Major Academy in El Paso, Texas. After graduation, he served with Special Forces at Fort Bragg, North Carolina, and then led training at Fort Sherman’s Jungle School in the Panama Canal Zone. He retired from the Army in 1978.

Command Sergeant Major Adkins and his wife of 59 years, Mary Adkins, currently reside in Opelika, Alabama. They will both attend the Medal of Honor ceremony at the White House. 

Specialist Four Sloat entered the Army on March 19, 1969 from Coweta, Oklahoma. After completing his training, he was assigned as an M60 Machine Gunner, to 3rd Platoon, Delta Company, 2/1 196th Light Infantry Brigade, Americal Division, in the Republic of Vietnam.

Specialist Four Sloat was killed in action on Jan. 17, 1970, at the age of 20.  On that day, his squad was conducting a patrol, when one of the Soldiers triggered a hand grenade trap placed in their path by enemy forces. Specialist Four Sloat picked up the live grenade, initially to throw it away. However, when he realized that detonation was imminent, he chose to shield its blast with his own body, sacrificing his own life to save the lives of three of his fellow Soldiers.

Dr. William Sloat of Enid, Oklahoma, will join the President at the White House to accept the Medal of Honor on his brother’s behalf. 

First Lieutenant Cushing graduated, and was commissioned, from the United States Military Academy at West Point in the class of June 1861.  Born in what is now Delafield, Wisconsin, he was raised in Fredonia, New York.  Cushing was the commander of Battery A, 4th United States Artillery, Artillery Brigade, 2nd Corps, Army of the Potomac at Gettysburg. 

First Lieutenant Cushing was killed in action on July 3, 1863, at the age of 22.  On that day, the third day of the battle, in the face of Longstreet’s Assault, also known as Pickett’s Charge, First Lieutenant Cushing’s battery took a severe pounding by Confederate artillery.  As the rebel infantry advanced, he manned the only remaining, and serviceable, field piece in his battery.  During the advance, he was wounded in the stomach as well as in the right shoulder.  Refusing to evacuate to the rear despite his severe wounds, he directed the operation of his lone field piece continuing to fire in the face of the enemy.  With the rebels within 100 yards of his position, Cushing was shot and killed during this heroic stand.  His actions made it possible for the Union Army to successfully repulse the Confederate assault. First Lieutenant Cushing is buried with full honors at his alma mater, West Point. 

ADDITIONAL INFORMATION

THE MEDAL OF HONOR:

The Medal of Honor is awarded to members of the Armed Forces who distinguish themselves conspicuously by gallantry above and beyond the call of duty while:

• engaged in an action against an enemy of the United States;
• engaged in military operations involving conflict with an opposing foreign force; or
• serving with friendly foreign forces engaged in an armed conflict against an opposing armed force in which the United States is not a belligerent party.

The meritorious conduct must involve great personal bravery or self-sacrifice so conspicuous as to clearly distinguish the individual above his or her comrades and must have involved risk of life. There must be incontestable proof of the performance of the meritorious conduct, and each recommendation for the award must be considered on the standard of extraordinary merit.

FACT SHEET: Obama Administration Record for Women and Girls

“I didn’t run for President so that the dreams of our daughters could be deferred or denied. I didn’t run for President to see inequality and injustice persist in our time. I ran for President to put the same rights, the same opportunities, and the same dreams within the reach for our daughters and our sons alike. I ran for President to put the American Dream within the reach of all of our people, no matter what their gender, or race, or faith, or station.”

President Barack Obama, March 8, 2010

In recent decades, women’s participation in the workforce has transformed the American economy. Today, nearly half of all primary breadwinners are women, and since 1970, women’s labor has contributed $13,000 to the median family income and expanded the economy by $2 trillion dollars. Young women today are also more likely than young men to graduate college, and just as likely to earn advanced degrees. Yet, despite these gains, women still earn just 77 cents for every dollar men earn, and women of color earn even less making it more difficult to provide for their families and secure the promise of the American dream. Women also experience unacceptably high levels of violence, from domestic abuse to sexual assault, and gender disparities persist in health care access and workplace policies.

From his earliest days in office, President Obama has worked to address these issues by combatting discrimination, expanding access to health care, supporting women-owned businesses and taking action to keep women safe from violence at home and in school. In addition, from creating the White House Council on Women and Girls to appointing two women to the Supreme Court and a strong team of women leaders to his Cabinet and White House staff, President Obama has taken concrete steps to ensure that women are involved in shaping every level of our government and that their voices are heard throughout society and all around the world.

Building on this commitment to supporting and fighting for women and working families, the President has made 2014 a Year of Action, focused on expanding opportunity for all Americans. A key part of this agenda is pursuing policies that help women succeed, recognizing the critical and growing contributions they make to our economy and its continued recovery. We know that when women succeed, American succeeds and the President will continue to use all of the tools at his disposal – working with members of Congress where they are willing, acting on his own where they aren’t, and partnering with business leaders, governors, mayors and other stakeholders – to take action on behalf of women, girls and their families.

The Obama Administration’s record of supporting women and girls includes:

• Implementing Institutional Mechanisms for the Advancement of Women: 
  • ​Establishing the White House Council on Women and Girls: On March 11, 2009, President Obama signed an Executive Order creating the White House Council on Women and Girls (CWG). CWG is comprised of representatives from each Federal agency, as well as the White House offices, and coordinates efforts across Federal agencies and departments to ensure that the needs of women and girls are taken into account in all programs, policies, and legislation. To aid in implementation of the CWG’s mission, the President has created a number of positions, such as the first-ever White House Advisor on Violence Against Women and a Director for Human Rights and Gender at the White House National Security Council.
  • Creating an Ambassador-at-Large for Global Women’s Issues: In 2013 President Obama signed a Presidential Memorandum that will help ensure that advancing the rights of women and girls remains central to U.S. diplomacy and development around the world - and that these efforts will continue to be led by public servants at the highest levels of the United States government. After appointing the United States' first-ever Ambassador-at-Large for Global Women's Issues at the beginning of his Administration, the Presidential Memorandum ensures that an Ambassador-at-Large reporting directly to the Secretary heads the State Department's Office of Global Women’s Issues.

• Supporting Working Women and Families:
  • ​Promoting a Comprehensive Working Families Agenda: On June 23^rd, 2014, the White House partnered with the Department of Labor (DOL) and the Center for American Progress (CAP) to host the historic White House Summit on Working Families, which built on the President’s plan to ensure a better bargain for hardworking Americans by elevating the ongoing national conversation about making today’s workplace work for everyone. In preparation for the Summit, the White House Council on Women and Girls held discussions around the country with working families, employers, business and labor leaders, economists, and advocates to seek out new ideas for ensuring fair pay, encouraging more family-friendly workplaces, and improving and strengthening our businesses and our economy as a whole.
  • Fighting Pay Discrimination: 
    • ​In 2014, President Obama signed an Executive Order prohibiting federal contractors from retaliating against employees who choose to discuss their compensation. He also signed a Presidential Memorandum instructing the Secretary of Labor to establish new regulations requiring federal contractors to submit summary data on compensation paid to their employees to the Department of Labor, including data broken down by sex and race.
    • In 2010, the President created the National Equal Pay Task Force, which brings together the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC), the Department of Justice, the Department of Labor, and the Office of Personnel Management to identify and rectify challenges to gender pay disparities. Since the creation of the Equal Pay Task Force, the EEOC has obtained more than $91.5 million in monetary relief through administrative enforcement for victims of sex-based wage discrimination. The President continues to advocate for the passage of the Paycheck Fairness Act, legislation that gives women additional tools to fight pay discrimination, and of course, the first piece of legislation President Obama signed into law was the Lilly Ledbetter Fair Pay Act, which restored basic protections against pay discrimination. 
  • Giving Working Families a Raise. In 2014, President Obama signed an Executive Order raising the minimum wage to $10.10 for workers on new federal contracts. He also called on Congress to raise the minimum wage for all workers to $10.10 by 2016, and index this wage to the cost of living. The President’s plan would benefit around 28 million workers. More than half of all workers who would benefit from increasing the minimum wage to $10.10 are women. Since the President called on Congress to act in his 2013 State of the Union address, 13 states and the District of Columbia have increased their own minimum wages.
  • Expanding Workplace Protections to More Families: President Obama signed legislation that made it possible for flight attendants and crewmembers to access FMLA and expanded coverage for military families, and in June of 2014, the DOL announced a Notice of Proposed Rulemaking to amend the definition of a “spouse” under the Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA) so that eligible employees in legal same-sex marriages will be able to take FMLA leave to care for their spouse or family member, regardless of where they live.
  • Making Historic Investments to Expand Access to High-Quality Child Care and Early Education: The President has prioritized continuous improvement of the Head Start program, which serves nearly one million children from birth to 5 each year.  Through the Recovery Act, the President and Congress took important steps to expand Head Start and Early Head Start by adding more than 64,000 slots for these programs. ARRA investments in the Child Care and Development Fund also increased access to child care for an additional 300,000 children and families. In his 2013 State of the Union address, President Obama called on Congress to expand access to high-quality preschool for every child in America, and established a comprehensive early education agenda with a series of new investments to establish a continuum of high-quality early learning for a child—beginning at birth and continuing to age 5. In 2014, the Department of Health and Human Services began this work with a $500 million competitive grant opportunity to support the expansion of Early Head Start and the creation of Early Head Start-Child Care Partnerships and the Department of Education announced a $250 million Preschool Development Grants competition to enhance state preschool programs and expand access to high-quality preschool for four-year-olds in high-need communities to model the President’s Preschool for All vision.
  • Promoting Access to Child Care for Workers in Job Training Programs.  DOL will make funds available for technical skill training grants to provide low-wage individuals opportunities to advance in their careers in in-demand industries, with $25 million of the competition focused on addressing barriers to training faced by those with childcare responsibilities. These funds will give more working families a path to secure, higher wage jobs by addressing the significant barriers related to finding and acquiring affordable, high quality child care -- including emergency care -- while attending skills training programs.
  • Supporting State Paid Leave Programs: Every one of President Obama’s budgets has included a State Paid Leave Fund ($105m in FY15) that would help States with the start-up costs of creating their own paid leave programs. In June of 2014, DOL targeted funds for Paid Leave Analysis Grants to fund up to five states to conduct research and feasibility studies that could support the development or implementation of state paid leave programs.
  • Ensuring Minimum Wage and Overtime Protections for Home and Personal Care Workers: In September 2013, the Administration released a final rule to provide minimum wage and overtime protections for workers who are employed providing in-home care services for the elderly, the ill and individuals with disabilities. This rule will help ensure that  the nearly two million workers in this industry -- roughly 90% of whom are women, and a large portion of them women of color -- earn fair wages for a hard day’s work.
  • Attracting and Retaining Women and Girls in STEM: Building a pathway to high-paying, high-skilled jobs for women and girls, the Administration has featured competitive preference for inspiring and engaging girls in science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) through the President’s $4.35 billion Race to the Top program, the 2013 Youth Career Connect grants to redesign high schools so that students complete prepared for college and career, and additional education reform programs.  Federal agencies have deployed their STEM workforce and have partnered with the private sector to increase mentorship of girls and women in STEM, for example, by DOE forming new partnerships with 100kin10 and US2020 to reach classrooms and mentors, respectively, with their Women @ Energy series profiling women in STEM careers to inspire the next generation of energy scientists and engineers. Supporting and retaining America’s female scientists and engineers was a focus of the June 2014 White House Summit on Working Families at which NSF announced implementation nearly a year ahead of schedule of cost allowance policies for childcare at professional conferences that lesson the challenges for working families and NIH released a comprehensive summary of research on barriers and opportunities to attract and retain women in biomedical science careers and is using that evidence base to guide Administration policies to broaden participation and success of women in STEM fields.
  • Tax Credits for Working Families: Early in his Administration, President Obama pushed for significant improvements to tax credits for working families, which Congress extended on a bipartisan basis through 2017. These improvements include expansions to the Earned Income Tax Credit (EITC) and Child Tax Credit, which strengthen work incentives and help parents afford the costs of raising a family, and the creation of the American Opportunity Tax Credit, which helps working and middle-class families pay for college. Together, these improvements provide about $25 billion in tax relief to 26 million families every year.
  • The Federal Government as a Model Employer: To strengthen the government’s position as a model employer for working families, in 2014 President Obama signed a Presidential Memorandum to support executive departments and agencies in their efforts to better utilize existing and develop new workplace flexibilities and work-life programs, including making Federal employees aware of their right to request work schedule flexibilities. Additionally, in 2010 President Obama signed the Telework Enhancement Act which requires Federal agencies to promote the use of telework. Furthermore, in 2010 the President signed legislation establishing an Office of Minority and Women Inclusion in the Department of Treasury, the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency, the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC), the Federal Housing Finance Agency (FHFA), each of the Federal Reserve Banks, the Federal Reserve Board, the National Credit Union Administration, the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), and the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB).  Each office is responsible for all matters of its agency related to diversity in management, employment and business activities.
  • Supporting Mothers Who Choose to Breastfeed: As a result of the Affordable Care Act that President Obama signed into law, many women will now be provided reasonable break times and space at work to express breast milk, up until a child’s first birthday. The U.S. Surgeon General also launched a nationwide effort to support mothers who are breastfeeding. In addition, USDA’s Supplemental Nutrition Program for Women, Infants and Children (WIC) program has provided nutrition assistance and breastfeeding support to more than two million low-income pregnant, breastfeeding and postpartum women, as well as to their children.

• Expanding Women's Access to Quality, Affordable Health Care:
  • Preventing Insurance Companies from Denying Coverage or Raising Premiums Based on Gender or Pre-Existing Conditions, Including Pregnancy: The Affordable Care Act (ACA) ensures that every American can access high-quality, affordable coverage, providing health insurance to millions of Americans.  More than 4.3 million women and girls enrolled in coverage through the Health Insurance Marketplace in the first historic open enrollment period, and many more gained coverage through Medicaid.   In addition, as of 2012, 1.1 million women between the ages of 19 and 25 who would have been uninsured currently receive health coverage under a parent’s health insurance plan or through an individually purchased health insurance plan.
  • Making Women’s Preventive Health Care Affordable, Including Contraception: Thanks to the Affordable Care Act, most insurance plans must cover preventive services including contraception, mammograms, HIV testing and counseling, domestic violence counseling, and testing for gestational diabetes with no deductibles, copayments, or coinsurance. As of June 2014, due to the Affordable Care Act, 29.7 million women are estimated to have access to expanded preventive services coverage in private insurance plans.
  • Protecting Women’s Access to Reproductive Health Services. President Obama has consistently supported and defended Title X family planning clinics, proposing funding increases for these clinics above prior year levels in each year of his Administration. For many women, a family planning clinic is their entry point into the health care system and is their primary source of care. These services are highly cost-effective, saving $4 for every $1 spent.
  • Preventing Teen Pregnancy and Supporting Pregnant and Parenting Students. As part of his FY 2015 Budget, the President included $105 million to support community efforts to reduce teen pregnancy. Additionally, $7 million in Public Health Service Act evaluation funding is included for the evaluation of teen pregnancy prevention activities. Teen pregnancy funding will be used for replicating programs that have proven effective through rigorous evaluation to reduce teenage pregnancy; for research and demonstration grants to develop, replicate, refine and test additional models and innovative strategies; and for training, technical assistance, and outreach. In addition, in June 2013, the Department of Education’s Office for Civil Rights issued a Dear Colleague Letter and Pamphlet on “Supporting the Academic Success of Pregnant and Parenting Students Under Title IX of the Education Amendments of 1972” (June 25, 2013) to help support pregnant and parenting students.
  • Improving Maternal and Child Health Outcomes: The Administration launched the Maternal Infant, and Early Childhood Home Visiting (MIECHV) Program, which supports voluntary, evidence-based home visiting programs for at-risk families during pregnancy and children’s early years of life in over 700 communities and in all 50 states.  In March 2014, Congress allocated $400 million through the Protecting Access to Medicare Act, to provide grants to support states that encourage positive parenting, help prevent child abuse and neglect, and promote child development and school readiness.
• Expanding Opportunities for Women-Owned Businesses:
  • Increasing Access to Credit for Women Business Owners: The President has expanded Small Business Administration (SBA) loans, which are three to five times more likely to be made to minority- and women-owned businesses than conventional small business loans made by banks. Between January 2009 and December 2013, SBA made 57,831 loans worth $17.2 billion to women-owned businesses. In 2013 alone, SBA made $3.8 billion in capital available to women, a 31% increase since 2009.
  • Expanding Access to Federal Contracting for Women Business Owners: The Obama Administration has implemented the Women-Owned Small Business Federal Contract program, which helps level the playing field for women-owned small businesses in over 300 industries where women are underrepresented by giving them greater access to Federal contracting opportunities. In FY 2012, SBA awarded $16.2 billion of federal small business eligible contracting dollars to WOSBs. The National Defense Authorization Act of 2013 removed the caps on the contracts that were eligible for this program, and in 2013 SBA worked quickly to implement the cap removal, allowing contracting officers to set aside contracts with higher dollar amounts.

• Protecting Women From Violence:
  • ​Combating Sexual Assault on College Campuses: On January 22, 2014 the President signed a Presidential Memorandum establishing a White House Task Force to Protect Students from Sexual Assault. On April 29, 2014, the Task Force released its first 90-days report with recommendations and actions focused on helping schools identify the extent of sexual assault on their campuses through climate surveys, developing evidence-based prevention strategies to prevent sexual assault, helping schools to respond effectively when a student is sexually assaulted, providing training for school officials, and improving and making more transparent federal enforcement efforts. The Office on Civil Rights at the Department of Education has ramped up enforcement of federal civil rights laws and raised the visibility of federal investigations at colleges and universities.  The Department of Justice’s (DOJ’s) Office on Violence Against Women (OVW) has provided critical grants, training and support to help schools develop comprehensive sexual assault prevention and response programs.  DOJ’s Civil Rights Division has vigorously enforced civil rights laws prohibiting sex discrimination on campus and in communities, including sexual assault and harassment, resulting in landmark agreements over the last two years that provided robust and comprehensive protections for students from sexual assault and gender biased policing.
  • Improving the Response to Rape and Sexual assault. The Obama Administration has developed an unprecedented response to rape and sexual assault.  In 2011, the National Institute of Justice developed pilot projects to address the backlog of rape kits in targeted cities.  In 2012, the Department of Justice modernized the FBI’s Uniform Crime Report definition of rape, which will lead to a more comprehensive statistical reporting of rape nationwide. For the first time, rapes of men and boys will be included in our national crime statistics. The old definition- which only covers rape of women by force- did not capture the true impact of this crime. President Obama’s 2015 budget proposes additional funds to further improve the response to rape and sexual assault by testing more rape kits, developing cold case units to investigate these crimes, and developing trauma-informed law enforcement practices.
  • The Violence Against Women Act (VAWA). Authored by then-Senator Biden in 1994, VAWA provides resources for states and local communities to improve the criminal justice response to violence against women and to support victim services. On March 7, 2013, President Obama signed the Violence Against Women Reauthorization Act (VAWA) of 2013, which includes provisions that support the sovereignty of American Indian and Alaska Native tribes and hold perpetrators accountable – a necessary step to reducing violence against Native women. The reauthorization of VAWA also ensures that lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender survivors have access to the services they need and deserve; protecting victims in publicly subsidized housing from evictions or denials of housing because of the violence they have experienced; and adds protections for college students. Altogether, VAWA authorizes nearly $500 million each year, administered by the Office on Violence Against Women, to reduce domestic violence and sexual assault.
  • Addressing the Intersection of Violence and HIV/AIDS. In 2012, President Obama issued a Presidential Memorandum creating the Federal Working Group on HIV/AIDS, Violence Against Women, and Gender-related Health Disparities.  Women make up a quarter of the domestic HIV/AIDS epidemic, with Black and Latina women accounting for over three quarters of the new HIV infections annually.  Studies show that more than half of all HIV-positive women have experienced violence in their lifetime.   In 2013, the interagency federal working group developed a 56-point action plan, with a focus on women of color, to improve screening for intimate partner violence (IPV) and HIV, address violence and trauma among HIV positive women in care, expand HIV and IPV outreach, education, and prevention, and promote increased research around HIV and women/girls.
  • Leading by Example in the Federal Workplace. Many victims of domestic violence report being harassed at work, and the CDC estimates that domestic violence costs our national economy more than 8 billion dollars a year in lost productivity and health care costs alone. Employers can make a difference by supporting victims and ensuring safe workplaces. To lead by example, President Obama announced new efforts to help combat and prevent domestic violence in the federal workplace. In April 2012, the President directed federal agencies to develop policies to address the effects of domestic violence and provide assistance for employees who may be experiencing domestic violence. These policies will also serve as a model for private sector employers.
  • Preventing Teen Dating Violence. In 2011, Vice President Biden created the 1 is 2 Many Campaign to raise awareness about teen dating violence and sexual assault. That same year, the Office on Violence Against Women (OVW) at the Justice Department provided funding for the National Dating Abuse Helpline to use the latest technology to be available around the clock by text, online chat, or phone so that teens and young adults can reach out in the way they feel most comfortable. OVW also provided grants to help middle and high schools address dating violence by training school administrators, faculty, and staff; developing school-wide policies; providing support services; creating effective prevention strategies; and collaborating with local victim service providers. In 2013, the Department of Education sent an important Dear Colleague letter to school districts around the country urging them to address gender-based violence and providing training materials that can help.
  • Funding Culturally Specific Programs: Under the Violence Against Women Act (VAWA), the Department of Justice funds grants to provide culturally specific services in underserved communities. Through these grants, community-based providers partner with domestic violence and sexual assault programs to develop services that are relevant and driven by community needs. Over the past five years, the Department has provided $43 million in grants to develop these services. In 2012, the Department created a priority focus on underserved African American communities, and the Department funds national training and technical assistance efforts through the National Organization of Sisters of Color Ending Sexual Assault and the Institute on Domestic Violence in the African American Community. The Department of Health and Human Services also funds the Institute on Domestic Violence in the African American Community and the National Latin@ Network to advance effective, culturally specific remedies for domestic violence.
  • Combatting Human Trafficking at Home and Abroad:  In March 2012, President Obama directed his Cabinet to redouble the Administration’s efforts to eliminate human trafficking, which afflicts people around the world and here at home, including millions of women and girls.  Building from the strong record of the President’s Interagency Task Force to Monitor and Combat Trafficking in Persons and its member agencies, the Administration has announced a series of new commitments to combat human trafficking at home and abroad. These commitments stem from a strategic framework focused on raising public awareness; educating first responders and law enforcement; increased prosecution of traffickers; protecting survivors through comprehensive social services; and partnering with civil society, state and local government, the private sector, and faith-based organizations to maximize resources and outcomes. Key Administration initiatives include Executive Order (EO) 13627, which strengthens protections against human trafficking in federal government contracts; the first ever Federal Strategic Action Plan on Services for Victims of Human Trafficking in the United States, to ensure that all victims of human trafficking in the United States are identified and have access to the services they need to recover and to rebuild their lives; and the report of the President’s  Advisory Council on Faith-based and Neighborhood Partnerships entitled, “Building Partnerships to Eradicate Modern-Day Slavery,” demonstrating the commitment of a distinguished set of civic and religious leaders to strengthen and expand partnerships with government to prevent and combat trafficking.

• Ensuring Justice for Women and Girls:
  • ​Protecting the Rights of Young Women of Color: The Department of Justice’s Civil Rights Division has been re-invigorated over the past five years, and much of its work has protected the constitutional and statutory rights of women, often young women of color. Among a significant body of work, the Division has used the Fair Housing Act to protect women from severe and pervasive sexual harassment by landlords. These victims are typically low-income women with few housing options who are subjected to repeated sexual advances and/or sexual assault. The Division has also worked to help combat violence against women.  For example, after investigating the New Orleans Police Department (NOPD), the Division found that NOPD was failing to properly investigate violence against women.  The Division expressed similar concerns about the Puerto Rico Police Department and Maricopa County (AZ) Sheriff’s Office.
  • The Division has also entered into groundbreaking settlements with school districts and police departments to disrupt the school to prison pipeline by addressing racial discrimination in school discipline after finding that black students received far harsher consequences than white students for comparable misbehavior.  We know this work has a significant impact on girls of color, because the Department of Education’s most recent Civil Rights Data Collection found that nationwide, black girls are suspended at higher rates (12%) than girls of any other race or ethnicity and most boys; American Indian and Native-Alaskan girls (7%) are suspended at higher rates than white boys (6%) or girls (2%).
  • Improving the Juvenile Justice System’s Response to Girls: The number of girls arrested has grown by 50 percent since 1980; and Native American girls are four times more likely, and African American girls are three times more likely, to be incarcerated than white girls.  To help address this disparity, the Office of Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention (OJJDP) supported multiple projects to better meet the needs of girls in the juvenile justice system.  Projects include an effort to improve services for system-involved girls and develop gender-responsive, trauma-informed policies and practices, as well as a study to better understand the impact of juvenile justice system involvement on adolescent maturation, trajectories of delinquency, and young adult adjustment among females.  OJJDP will also evaluate the Young Women Leaders Program, a one-on-one and group-based mentoring program to prevent delinquency and related outcomes in at-risk girls.
  • Addressing Racial Disparities in School Discipline Policies:  Schools should provide pathways to opportunity, yet African American, American Indian and Native Alaskan girls receive out-of-school suspension at higher rates than other girls and most boys, increasing the likelihood that they will become involved in the juvenile justice system.  In 2014, the Department of Justice and the Department of Education launched the Supportive School Discipline Initiative to disrupt the “school-to-prison pipeline” and ensure that no child’s future is diverted or derailed by school discipline policies.
  • Providing Educational Stability for Youth in Foster Care: In May 2014, as part of National Foster Care Month, The Department of Education and the Department of Health and Human Services released a letter emphasizing the role Local Educational Agencies (LEAs) play in partnership with child welfare to increase educational stability for children in the foster care system. In any given year, there are approximately 400,000 children in foster care, approximately half of whom are girls. Youth in foster care face unique and compounded challenges, especially when it comes to education -- they’re are at high-risk of dropping out of school and are unlikely to attend or graduate from college. Ensuring educational stability is a crucial step in helping the most vulnerable among us.

• Supporting Women in the Military and Women Veterans:
  • Expanded Health Care and Outreach for Women Veterans and Service Members: With 2.2 million women Veterans in America, VA is working to provide comprehensive health care for women Veterans, including 141 full-time Women Veterans Program Managers at every VA health care system.
  • Women Veterans Hotline: In FY 2013, VA expanded its outreach to women Veterans through a new hotline (1-855-VA-WOMEN) to respond to questions from Veterans, their families and caregivers about the many VA services and resources available to women Veterans.  This hotline enhanced an outbound-only call center, improving responsiveness to women Veterans’ needs.  The service began accepting calls in April 2013 and, as of the end of FY 2013, more than 20,000 women Veterans’ calls were received.
  • Women Veterans Program: In September 2012, VA launched a new Department-wide Women Veterans Program (WVP) to better coordinate and enhance access to, and delivery of, VA benefits and services for women Veterans.  In the first year, this new WVP structure has improved collaboration and consistency in Department-wide operational activity, as well as engagement with, and communication to, women Veterans.  Further, through the WVP, VA deployed innovative and evidence-based employee training that has improved understanding of women’s military contributions and raised awareness of the importance of cultural competency in providing quality services to Veterans.
  • Supporting Women in the Military and Women Veterans by Opening Ground Combat Positions to Women. In February 2012, the Department of Defense announced its intention to eliminate the “co-location exclusion” barring women U.S. military service members from being co-located with ground combat units, a change that opened over 13,000 new positions to women soldiers. In January 2013, the Department of Defense (DoD) announced rescission of the 1994 Direct Ground Combat Definition and Assignment Rule prohibiting assignment of women to direct ground combat units below the brigade level, and directed the opening of all remaining closed units and positions consistent with the Joint Chiefs’ Guiding Principles by January 1, 2016.  The decision opens up about 237,000 positions to women -- 184,000 in combat arms professions and 53,000 assignments that were closed based on unit type.
  • Eliminating Military Sexual Assault: In May 2013, the President directed the Department of Defense to exponentially step up it’s game in addressing the rates of sexual assault in the military. Since that time, the Secretary of Defense announced 26 executive actions, including the implementation of the Special Victim's Counsel program which provides legal representation to victims of sexual assault. The Administration worked with Congress to reform the military justice system to improve victim's rights and hold offenders appropriately accountable. To determine what progress has been made and where to focus future efforts, in December 2013, the President directed the DOD to provide him a report assessing their progress towards eliminating sexual assault in the military.

• Supporting Women and Girls Worldwide:
  • Advancing Women’s Economic Empowerment:  The United States is leading new efforts in a range of multilateral forums to advance women’s economic empowerment and help spur economic growth worldwide, from brokering new commitments to increase female labor force participation in the G20 to increasing women’s entrepreneurship in the Asia Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) forum.  The Administration has launched several signature regional programs to drive reforms and investments, including the APEC Women and the Economy initiative, the Women’s Entrepreneurship in the Americas (WEAmericas) initiative, and the African Women’s Entrepreneurship Program (AWEP).  In 2009, the Administration launched the Feed the Future initiative to advance food security worldwide, with a priority focus on women agricultural producers as critical drivers of economic growth.
  • Promoting the Health of Women and Families. President Obama has placed women, girls, and gender equality at the heart of his global health agenda, including through the Global Health Initiative (GHI).  The President’s Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief (PEPFAR) has ensured a comprehensive approach to gender issues in HIV prevention, treatment, and care, including working to provide access to life-long anti-retroviral treatment for both mothers and their children.   In January 2009, President Obama rescinded the Mexico City Policy which denied federal funds to health care and aid organizations that used non-U.S. government funding to perform or offer information about abortion services.  USAID advances and supports voluntary family planning programs in more than 45 countries across the globe.  In FY 2013 for example, USAID's family planning programs reached more than 84 million women and averted 21 million unintended pregnancies, preventing 15,000 maternal deaths and saving the lives of more than 230,000 infants.  The U.S. Government has also restored funding to the UN Population Fund (UNFPA), providing over $200 million in funding since 2009 to the largest multilateral provider of family planning and reproductive health information and services with programs in 150 countries.
  • Empowering Women as Equal Partners in Preventing Conflict and Building Peace: On December 19, 2011, the Obama Administration released Executive Order 13595 and the U.S. National Action Plan on Women, Peace, and Security to support women’s voices and perspectives in decision-making in countries threatened and affected by war, violence, and insecurity.  Policies and programs work to strengthen prospects for peace and security through the empowerment and protection from violence of women and girls in countries affected by crisis, insecurity, and political transition.  As part of this effort, the U.S. launched the Safe from the Start initiative in 2013 to better address the needs of women and girls and other groups at risk of GBV in emergencies.
  • Addressing Gender-based Violence:  On August 10, 2012, President Obama issued Executive Order 13623 directing departments and agencies to implement the first ever United States Strategy to Prevent and Respond to Gender-based Violence Globally.  The Department of State and USAID have led the United States’ work to prevent and respond to gender-based violence by ensuring that this issue is integrated in diplomacy and development efforts.
  • Creating a New Multilateral Partnership on Women’s Political and Economic Participation. The Administration launched the Equal Futures Partnership in September 2012, which brings together partner countries from around the world to break down barriers to women’s political and economic empowerment in their countries through legal, regulatory and policy reforms.  U.S. commitments to the partnership have focused on supporting women entrepreneurs and civic education and leadership development for women and girls.

To download this PDF or learn more, visit www.whitehouse.gov/women