44th First Lady Michelle Obama
Michelle Obama is the wife of U.S. president Barack Obama. She is the first African American first lady. She studied sociology and African American studies at Princeton University (B.A., 1985) in New Jersey before attending Harvard Law School (J.D., 1988). Michelle Obama is a lawyer and a former Chicago city administrator and community outreach worker. Reared in a blue-collar home on Chicago's South Side, she was an associate at a law firm when she met Obama; he was a summer intern and she was assigned to advise him. She has worked in the offices of Chicago's mayor and its planning commission, headed a career-training program for young adults and directed community affairs for the University of Chicago and its medical center. She caught the eye of a national audience at her husband's side after he delivered a high-profile speech at the Democratic National Convention in 2004 and then was elected that year to the U.S. Senate. In 2007 she scaled back her own professional work to attend to family and campaign obligations during Obama's run for president. She took her turn as a speaker on the opening night of the 2008 Democratic convention, and her husband was elected president on 4 November 2008. She became First Lady with his inauguration on 20 January 2009.
As first lady, Michelle is involved in various causes, notably supporting military families and ending childhood obesity. Let’s Move! will give parents the support they need, provide healthier food in schools, help our kids to be more physically active, and make healthy, affordable food available in every part of our country.
In 2011, Mrs. Obama and Dr. Jill Biden together launched Joining Forces, a nationwide initiative that mobilizes all sectors of society to give our service members and their families the opportunities and support they have earned, and to raise awareness of military families' unique needs as pertains to employment, education and wellness.
As First Lady, Mrs. Obama looks forward to continuing her work on the issues close to her heart — supporting military families, helping working women balance career and family, encouraging national service, promoting the arts and arts education, and fostering healthy eating and healthy living for children and families across the country.
Michelle and Barack Obama have two daughters: Malia, 13, and Sasha, 10. Like their mother, the girls were born on the South Side of Chicago
