Karine Jean-Pierre

Karine Jean-Pierre White House Press Secretary

The Press Office is responsible for providing support and information to the national and international media regarding the President’s beliefs, activities and actions. It works alongside the Office of Communications in crafting and espousing the administration’s message.

White House Briefing Room

The James S. Brady Press Briefing Room is a small theater in the West Wing of the White House where the White House press secretary gives briefings to the news media and the president of the United States sometimes addresses the press and the nation. It is located between the workspace assigned to the White House press corps and the office of the press secretary.

Professional Experience

Jean-Pierre got her professional start working at the Center for Community and Corporate Ethics, a nonprofit organization founded in 2004 to study the impact of large corporations on society and to develop standards for responsible corporate behavior. She also has served as a senior aide on staffs for two members of the New York City Council and acted as a campaign manager for the ACLU’s Reproductive Freedom Initiative.

She later went on to work on President Barack Obama’s 2008 and 2012 campaigns, as deputy manager for Democratic former Maryland Gov. Martin O’Malley’s failed 2016 presidential bid and as a member of Biden’s campaign team in 2020. When not campaigning for Democratic hopefuls, Jean-Pierre frequently appeared on NBC and MSNBC as a political analyst. In 2014, Jean-Pierre was tapped to teach at Columbia University’s School of International and Public Affairs, her alma mater.

Background and education

Jean-Pierre was born in the French territory Martinique to Haitian parents, who later emigrated to the US and settled in Queens, where she grew up and graduated from Kellenberg Memorial High School in 1993. She earned her bachelor’s degree from the New York Institute of Technology in 1997 and received a master’s in public affairs from Columbia University’s SIPA in 2003.

Background and education

Jean-Pierre was born in the French territory Martinique to Haitian parents, who later emigrated to the US and settled in Queens, where she grew up and graduated from Kellenberg Memorial High School in 1993. She earned her bachelor’s degree from the New York Institute of Technology in 1997 and received a master’s in public affairs from Columbia University’s SIPA in 2003. In 2019, Jean-Pierre published a memoir titled, “Moving Forward: A Story of Hope, Hard Work, and the Promise of America.” The book follows her journey as an immigrant growing up in New York’s Haitian community to working in the Obama administration.