Lisa Blunt Rochester
1962 - PRESENT
Congresswoman Lisa Blunt Rochester is proudly serving our nation representing Delaware in the U.S. House of Representatives. Lisa has a tremendous track record of working in the community with a principal focus to help people in need. Lisa's run for Congress became a historic election in 2016 as she became the first woman and person of color Delaware has sent to Congress. In this post, I will share some of Lisa's career highlights in honor of Women's History Month.
Congresswoman Lisa Blunt Rochester was born Philadelphia, PA and raised in the small wonder of Wilmington, Delaware where she attended Padua High School. While in school, she worked her first job at McDonald's on the infamous Market Street in Wilmington. Upon completion of high school, Lisa went on to major in International Relations at Fairleigh Dickinson University and later completed a Master's in Urban Affairs and Public Policy at the University of Delaware.
Lisa started the early part of her career as a caseworker for then-Congressman Tom Carper, helping people with their Social Security benefits, disability insurance claims, IRS disputes, and housing needs. Lisa's historic career began, and she empowered herself to become Delaware's first African-American woman Secretary of Labor serving the cabinets of two Delaware governors. Lisa also became the first African-American Deputy Secretary of Health and Social Services and State Personnel Director. In these roles focused on connecting employers to resources and jobseekers, and commissioned to investigate the Delaware State Police for racial and sexual discrimination.
Lisa was also well-equipped to serve as the CEO of the Metropolitan Wilmington Urban League - an action-oriented, public policy research think-tank focused on the inclusion of people of color. Not only did Lisa have a core focus on local issues, but also national security. She helped women enter the workforce in the Middle East, provided vaccines to children in Africa, and co-authored a book while living in China; THRIVE: 34 Women, 18 Countries, One Goal. The book contours women who reinvented themselves while living in a foreign country.
Congresswoman Blunt Rochester is all about education, a healthy workforce, and a thriving economy which is why she serves on the Committee on Education and the Workforce, as well as the Committee on Agriculture.
Congresswoman Lisa Blunt Rochester, thank you for all that you do for our community at home in Delaware and also for our beautiful Nation.