User:Gsakorafis/sandbox

Robin Leeds
Born	Newark, New Jersey
Alma mater	Hamilton College
Years active	1986-present
Organization	Winning Strategies
Title	CEO
Awards	Most Admired Person, Black Women United (1997)
Website	winningstrategies.us

Robin Leeds is an American political strategist, activist and businesswoman. She is the CEO of Winning Strategies, a public affairs and political consulting firm in Washington, D.C. and currently sits on the President’s Advisory Committee on the Arts under Joe Biden. Through her public and and private sector work, Leeds has devoted her life to expanding economic, civil, and social opportunities for Americans while advocating for women, people of color, the LGBTQ community, and other underrepresented groups.

Background

Leeds was born in Newark, New Jersey and attended Hamilton College. As a young adult, she took an interest in political issues. In the 1980s, Leeds became active in organizations advocating for worker's rights and voter access in Massachusetts.

Career

In 1986, Leeds founded Winning Strategies, a public affairs and political consulting firm, which she continues to operate as CEO. The company engages clients in public relations, government affairs, and corporate social responsibility issues, and advises political campaigns and institutions. In 1992, Leeds organized a nation-wide voter registration and get-out-the-vote program for VOTE NOW ’92. In 1994, she would become a political appointee within the Clinton Administration, serving until 2000. For four years in the administration, Leeds was the Issues Director at the White House Office on Women’s Initiatives and Outreach. In 2001, Leeds joined the Harvard Women’s Leadership Board and held positions with the Inter-American Commission of Women and GlobalSecurity.org until 2005.. In 2004, Leeds became a National Co-Chair of Women for Kerry, an advocacy group for John Kerry's presidential campaign, and would later serve as a women’s policy advisor during the presidential campaigns of Barack Obama, Hillary Clinton and Joe Biden. In 2022, Leeds was appointed to the President's Advisory Committee on the Arts, an organization focused on expanding access to the arts and managing the Kennedy Center in Washington, D.C..

Leeds holds many board, committee, and advisory positions. She is currently a fellow at the The Institute for Citizens & Scholars and a Board Director for the National Council of Jewish Women and Breast Care for Washington. In addition to the Women's Leadership Board, Leeds was a Fellow at the Center for Public Leadership at the Kennedy School, Advisor to the Senior Director of Harvard University Women’s Initiatives, Scholar-in-Residence at the Women in Politics Institute at American University, and Academic Advisor to the Commission on Federal Election Reform.

Awards and Honors

In 1997, Black Women United recognized Leeds as "Most Admired Person" for her contributions toward the international agenda of women of color.