President Obama Announces More Key Administration Posts

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

• Tammie Kahn – Member, National Museum and Library Services Board
• George Kerscher – Member, National Museum and Library Services Board
• Jacquelyn K. Sundstrand – Member, National Museum and Library Services Board
• Rabbi Samuel N. Gordon – Member, United States Holocaust Memorial Council
• Maureen Schulman – Member, United States Holocaust Memorial Council
• Melanie N. Roussell – Assistant Secretary for Public Affairs, Department of Housing and Urban Development

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 appoint the following individuals to key Administration posts:

Tammie Kahn, Appointee for Member, National Museum and Library Services Board
Tammie Kahn is the Executive Director of the Children’s Museum of Houston, a position she has held since 1995.  In this role, she has overseen an expansion of the museum and the creation of an Institute for Family Learning.  She is a past President of the Houston Museum District Association and served as the Associate Director of the Museum of Fine Arts, Houston.  She has served on the boards of the Association of Children’s Museums, the Institute for Learning Innovation, the Greater Houston Collaborative for Children, and the Houston Holocaust Museum.  Ms. Kahn received a B.S. from the University of Texas at Austin and an M.B.A. from the University of Houston.

George Kerscher, Appointee for Member, National Museum and Library Services Board
George Kerscher is Secretary General of the DAISY Consortium, an international organization dedicated to facilitating access to information for persons with disabilities.  He is President of the International Digital Publishing Forum, Senior Officer of Accessible Technology at Learning Ally, and serves on the National Instructional Materials Accessibility Standard Board.  He was named an Innovator of the Year by U.S. News and World Report in 1998, received the Harry Murphy Catalyst Award in 2004, and recognized as a White House Champion of Change in 2012.  Mr. Kerscher received a B.A. from Northeastern Illinois University.

Jacquelyn K. Sundstrand, Appointee for Member, National Museum and Library Services Board
Jacquelyn K. Sundstrand is an associate professor at the University of Nevada, Reno and the Manuscripts and Archives Librarian in the University Libraries’ Special Collections Department.  Previously, she was the Library and Archives Coordinator at the Southern Oregon Historical Society from 1993 to 2001, and the Special Collections Librarian and Archivist at California State University, Dominquez Hill from 1985 to 1993.  She is a member of the Nevada State Historic Resources Advisory Board, the Society of American Archivists, the Society of California Archivists, the Conference of Intermountain Archivists, and the Association of Centers for the Study of Congress.  Ms. Sundstrand received a B.A. from California State University, Fullerton, an M.S.L.S. from the University of Southern California, and an M.A. from the University of California, Riverside.

Rabbi Samuel N. Gordon, Appointee for Member, United States Holocaust Memorial Council
Rabbi Samuel N. Gordon is the founding rabbi of Congregation Sukkat Shalom in Wilmette, Illinois.  He is a Vice President of the Central Conference of American Rabbis, and served as Financial Secretary from 1996 to 2001.  Rabbi Gordon is a member of the President’s Advisory Council of the Hebrew Union College and a Senior Rabbinic Fellow of the Hartman Institute of Jerusalem.  He is a former member of the Citizen’s Committee of the Cook County Juvenile Court and the Reform Pension Board.  Rabbi Gordon received a B.A. from the University of Pittsburgh, an M.A. in Hebrew Letters and Ordination from Hebrew Union College, and an M.B.A. from the Kellogg Graduate School of Management at Northwestern University.

Maureen Schulman, Appointee for Member, United States Holocaust Memorial Council
Maureen Schulman is President of Maureen Schulman Public Relations, Inc., and Director of Public Relations for The Eli’s Cheesecake Company.  Ms. Schulman is President of the Board of The Happiness Club and a Director of the Magnificent Mile Charitable Foundation.  Previously, she served as a director of the Women’s Board of Lincoln Park Zoo, the Chicago Children’s Museum, and as Chairman of the Junior Medical Research Institute Council.  Ms. Schulman received a B.F.A. from the University of Miami and an M.S.J. from the Medill School of Northwestern University.

Melanie N. Roussell, Appointee for Assistant Secretary for Public Affairs, Department of Housing and Urban Development
Melanie N. Roussell is the National Press Secretary for the Democratic National Committee, a position she has held since August 2011.  From February 2009 to July 2011, she was Press Secretary for the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development.  Prior to that, Ms. Roussell served as Spokesperson for the Presidential Inaugural Committee and Southern Regional Communications Director for Obama for America.  From February 2007 to July 2008, she was Communications Director for the Judiciary Committee of the U.S. House of Representatives under Chairman John Conyers, Jr.  She was honored as one of Florida A&M University’s “40 under 40” Young Alumni in 2011.  Ms. Roussell received a B.S. in Broadcast Journalism from Florida A&M University and an M.A. in Public Communication from American University.