Draft:Robert C. Embry Jr.

Robert C. Embry Jr. (born Sept. 7, 1937 ) is an American civic leader and president of the Baltimore-based Abell Foundation.

Biography
Robert C. Embry Jr. was born in Baltimore, the son of Frances Embry (née Cockerham) and Robert C. Embry Sr. A 1955 graduate of Baltimore City College High School, he earned his bachelor's degree with honors from Williams College in 1959 and his juris doctorate from Harvard Law School in 1964. After initially considering a career in the foreign service, Embry returned to Baltimore. He clerked for Chief Judge of the 4th Circuit Simon Sobeloff and practiced law before winning the 3rd District City Council race in 1967 at the age of 30. He was also named a member of the Baltimore Planning Commission and was soon recruited by then-Mayor Thomas J. D'Alesandro III to head the city's newly created Department of Housing and Community Development. He would continue in that position for nearly a decade, playing a leading role under D'Alesandro's successor, Mayor William Donald Schaefer, in completing some of Baltimore's signature initiatives of the era, including the Dollar House program, the development of Harborplace, and the construction of landmarks such as the National Aquarium and Maryland Science Center.

He served in President President Jimmy Carter's administration as assistant secretary of the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development for Community Planning and Development, and after President Ronald Reagan's election, he returned to Baltimore and joined up with his high school friend, the developer David S. Cordish, to work on urban redevelopment projects nationwide.

In 1987, Embry was approached by the trustees of the newly reconstituted Abell Foundation, whose assets had increased significantly after the sale of The Baltimore Sun to the Times-Mirror Co., to discuss what the foundation's focus should be. He presented a vision of philanthropy focused on Baltimore City with the central mission of addressing racial disparities. The trustees offered him the job of president, a role he has held ever since.

Under his leadership, the Abell Foundation has helped start or scale up a number of initiatives in education, workforce development, health and human services, and community development, including the Collegebound Foundation, Thread, the Center for Urban Families, Roca Baltimore and the Ingenuity Project. Abell has also spearheaded litigation resulting in greater state funding for Baltimore City Public Schools and support for Baltimore City public housing voucher recipients to move to less economically and racially segregated neighborhoods in the suburbs.

Boards and commissions

 * Baltimore City Board of School Commissioners, 1983-1986 (president 1985-1986)
 * Maryland State Board of Education, 1989-1995 (vice president 1989-1990, president 1990-1995 )
 * Greater Baltimore Committee, 1996-present
 * CollegeBound Foundation, 1989-present

Honors

 * Harvard Law School Ames Moot Court Competition winner, 1964
 * Time Magazine 50 Faces for America's Future, 1979
 * Greater Baltimore Committee Regional Visionary Award, 2000
 * The Daily Record Influential Marylanders, 2017
 * Baltimore Business Journal Power 10, 2018
 * Baltimore Sun Business and Civic Hall of Fame, 2019