Summary
Gautam Raghavan is an Indian American political advisor who is the director of the White House Presidential Personnel Office.[1] Raghavan previously served as the associate director of the Office of Public Liaison in the Obama administration.
Gautam Raghavan | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Director of the White House Presidential Personnel Office | |
| Assumed office January 31, 2022 | |
| President | Joe Biden |
| Preceded by | Catherine Russell |
| Personal details | |
| Born | India |
| Political party | Democratic |
| Education | Stanford University (BA) George Washington University |
Early life and education edit
Raghavan was born in India and raised in Seattle, Washington, attending middle school and high school in Kent, Washington.[2] He received his Bachelor of Arts degree from Stanford University in 2004, where he was a member of the Stanford Harmonics. He attended the Graduate School of Political Management at George Washington University from 2004 until 2006.
Career edit
Raghavan served as the associate director of the Office of Public Liaison under President Obama, acting as a liaison to both the LGBT and Asian American and Pacific Islander communities from 2011 to 2017. As the associate director Raghavan facilitated conversation on issues impacting both the LGBT and Asian American and Pacific Islander communities, including marriage equality, workplace nondiscrimination, transgender rights, bullying prevention, immigration reform, hate violence, and access to health care.[3] It was during Raghavan's tenure that President Obama spoke out in favor of marriage equality,[4] and later signed an executive order barring federal contractors from discriminating on the basis of sexual orientation and gender identity.[5]
He has also worked for the Progressive Majority, the 2008 Obama campaign, the Democratic National Committee, the Gill Foundation, and the U.S. Department of Defense as the outreach lead for its "Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell" Working Group.
Outside of government, Raghavan has worked as a consultant for progressive organizations including the Biden Foundation[3] and IMPACT, the Indian American Impact Project & Fund, the latter being an initiative that supports Indian Americans in politics.[6] He was also founding executive director of IMPACT, 2016–18.[7] Raghavan was the editor of West Wingers: Stories from the Dream Chasers, Change Makers, and Hope Creators Inside the Obama White House, which includes personal accounts by eighteen Obama Administration staffers.[2]
From December 2018 to July 2020, Raghavan was the chief of staff for Congresswoman Pramila Jayapal.[8] In June 2020, Biden selected Raghavan to serve on his presidential transition team.[9]
Personal life edit
Raghavan is openly gay. He lives with his husband Andy, and their daughter in Washington D.C.[2]
References edit
- ^ "Biden Makes More Senior Hires, Including Deputy Chief of Staff". Retrieved 2020-12-22.
- ^ a b c "Gautam Raghavan | Penguin Random House". www.penguinrandomhouse.com. Retrieved 2018-06-05.
- ^ a b "The Biden Foundation Brings on Two Obama White House Experts - Biden FoundationBiden Foundation - A new stage of public service". Biden Foundation. 2017-04-05. Archived from the original on 2018-07-08. Retrieved 2018-06-05.
- ^ Gast, Phil. "Obama announces he supports same-sex marriage". CNN. Retrieved 2018-06-05.
- ^ "White House LGBT liaison to depart Obama administration - Metro Weekly". www.metroweekly.com. 4 September 2014. Retrieved 2018-06-05.
- ^ "About". Indian American Impact Fund. Retrieved 2018-06-05.
- ^ "Gautam Raghavan Appointed Chief of Staff to Rep. Pramila Jayapal". Archived from the original on 2021-11-30. Retrieved 2020-12-22.
- ^ "Jayapal Announces Gautam Raghavan As Chief of Staff". Congresswoman Pramila Jayapal. 2018-12-03. Retrieved 2020-12-22.
- ^ Reporter, India-West Staff. "Biden Names Indian American Gautam Raghavan to Transition Team". India West. Archived from the original on 2020-08-26. Retrieved 2020-12-22.