Arne Duncan was named chief executive officer of the Chicago Public Schools in June 2001 by Mayor Richard Daley. He currently serves on a number of boards, including the Ariel Education Initiative, Chicago Cares, the Children’s Center, the Golden Apple Foundation, Jobs for America’s Graduates, Junior Achievement, Renaissance Schools Fund, Scholarship Chicago, and the South Side YMCA. He also serves on the board of overseers for Harvard College, the visiting committees for Harvard University’s Graduate School of Education, and the University of Chicago’s School of Social Service Administration.

Mr. Duncan joined Chicago Public Schools in 1998 after directing the Ariel Education Initiative, which seeks to create outstanding educational opportunities for inner-city children. He was a fellow in the Leadership Greater Chicago’s Class of 1995, and a member of the Aspen Institute’s Henry Crown Fellowship Program, Class of 2002. Mr. Duncan graduated magna cum laude from Harvard University in 1987 with a degree in sociology and holds honorary degrees from the Illinois Institute of Technology, Lake Forest College and National-Louis University. In 2006, the City Club of Chicago named Mr. Duncan Citizen of the Year.