Who She Is: Hyatt Hotel scion Penny Pritzker is a well known businesswoman and philanthropist. She serves as chairman of the board of financial information company TransUnion, chairman and CEO of Pritzker Realty Group, as well as chairman and co-founder of Vi, a developer of retirement communities. She co-founded The Parking Spot, an off-site airport parking management company, in 1998 and serves as chairman of the company. She served on President Obama’s Economic Recovery Advisory Board and was active in Obama’s presidential campaign. She is chairman of the Chicago Public Education Fund and director of the Pritzker Traubert Family Foundation, a foundation that offers financial support to programs in education, health, arts and culture.
City Salary: Board of Education members are not paid for their service.
Goals: Pritzker will serve as a member of the Chicago Board of Education. She will certainly bring her philanthropic education background into the discussion, but her expertise in business will be most important for the Chicago Public School system in the coming years.
Challenges: With so many other ventures on her plate, where will her post on the Board of Education fall on Pritzker’s list of priorities. The challenge will be for her to dedicate the attention necessary to make the right decisions for the city’s school system.
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Powerful Chicagoans on White House Visitor Log
Pritzker's Rocovery Plan: Fire Workers
Exclusive: Pritzker Turns Down Commerce
Chicago Politics
New force in Illinois quickly pushes state toward school reform
Pritzker Family Foundation makes 2.5 million donation
President Barack Obama adds Penny Pritzker, Caterpillar's Jim Owens to economic team
