Shirley Sagawa

Shirley Sachi Sagawa (born August 25, 1961) is an American public service leader known as the “founding Mother of the Modern Service Movement”... An architect of AmeriCorps, Sagawa served in the White House of President Bill Clinton and First Lady Hillary Rodham Clinton.

In 2021, President Biden nominated Sagawa to serve as a Member of the Board of Directors of the Corporation for National and Community Service. She was confirmed by the Senate for a term ending October 6, 2024, on August 5, 2022.

Professional career
From 1987 to 1991, Sagawa served as Chief Council for Youth Policy for Senate Labor and Human Resources Committee Chairman Edward M. Kennedy.

In 1991, Sagawa joined the staff of the National Women's Law Center as senior counsel, focusing on Title IX, child care, and women in the military

White House
Sagawa served as a Senate-confirmed appointee in both the George H.W. Bush and Bill Clinton administrations. George HW Bush nominated her to serve a two-year term from 1991 to 1993 as a founding member of the Board of Directors of Commission on National and Community Service, authorized by the National and Community Service Act of 1990

In 1993, Sagawa served in The Clinton White House as Special Assistant to the President in the Office of the First Lady and Domestic Policy Council, advising the President and First Lady on education and children's policy. During the year, she assisted the Office of National Service by participating in the drafting and negotiation of President Clinton's national service legislation for AmeriCorps and the Corporation for National and Community Service.

In November 1993, President Clinton nominated Sagawa to serve as the first managing director of the Corporation for National and Community Service. In this position, she was responsible for overseeing all of the agency's programs, including standing up the new AmeriCorps program. The first AmeriCorps members were sworn in by President Clinton September 12, 1994.

Subsequent career
On January 7, 2001, Sagawa was featured in Newsweek on their "Watch Out" List. On the list, she is recognized for her tenure as Deputy Assistant to President Bill Clinton and Deputy Chief of Staff for First Lady Hillary Rodham Clinton. The article also includes her plans for beginning a consulting firm helping develop non-profit organizations.

From 2001 to 2016, Sagawa led sagawa/jospin, llc, a consulting business with partner Deborah Jospin, focusing on social innovation. For client New Profit, Sagawa played a central role in conceiving and developing policy for America Forward, a coalition of social entrepreneurs focused on improving federal policy. In this capacity, Sagawa drafted the Social Innovation Fund, passed as part of the Edward M Kennedy Serve America Act. In the first three years of the program, the Social Innovation Fund generated over $1 billion in through more than 450 public-private partnerships that deliver high-impact, community-based solutions.

In February 2009 in The Chronicle of Philanthropy, Sagawa was cited discussing the number of participants involved in AmeriCorps rather than the quality of candidates involved. Focusing on the publication of her book, Sagawa was featured in Youth Today discussing the current state of community service in 2011.

In the Fall of 2011, Sagawa was also featured in Smith College's Alumnae Quarterly Magazine. In the article, Sagawa's time at Smith and explores her work in public service focusing on "how to help people find service opportunities in their communities".

Service Year Alliance
In 2016, Sagawa became the founding chief executive officer of the Service Year Alliance, chaired by Gen. Stanley McChrystal (ret.).

Biden administration
On April 20, 2021, President Biden nominated Sagawa to the Board of Directors of the Corporation for National and Community Service. She was confirmed by the Senate for a term ending October 6, 2024, on August 5, 2022

Personal life
Sagawa married Gregory Baer in 1989 and is mother to three boys, Jackson Baer, Matthew Baer, and Thomas Baer.