By now you probably know everything there is to know about President-elect Joe Biden and Vice President-elect Kamala Harris – but what about our new first lady, Dr. Jill Biden? Though she was Second Lady for eight years during the Obama administration, there wasn’t much of a spotlight on Dr. Biden.
Dr. Biden met President-elect Joe Biden in 1975 after they were set up by a mutual friend, and the rest was history! Joe proposed five times before Jill agreed because she wanted to ensure Beau and Hunter Biden (his two sons) were okay with their marriage. Now, 43 years later, they have two adorable German Shepherds together named Major and Champ (in other exciting news, Major will be the first-ever rescue dog to set his paws in the White House!).
Beyond her relationship with President-elect Biden, however, I can assure you that Dr. Biden is going to be a First Lady to be proud of. Here’s why!
- Her teaching career
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Dr. Jill Biden has been a teacher for most of her adult life. She started working as an English professor at Northern Virginia Community College just before former President Barack Obama’s first inauguration, and she continued teaching through both of his terms. She also held the first White House Summit on Community Colleges under former President Obama.
Before her husband’s tenure as Vice President, Biden taught at various public schools throughout Delaware. She told CBS News she plans to continue teaching as the First Lady. If she keeps it up during her husband’s stay in office, she’ll be the first First Lady to have two full-time jobs! Earlier this year Dr. Biden tweeted, “Teaching is not what I do. It’s who I am.”
- Her work with military families
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Biden has always been an active member of her community due to her experience as both a military parent and the daughter of a former Navy signalman. Before her days in the White House, she helped bring attention to the sacrifices made by military families through her writing: in 2002, Biden wrote a children’s book titled, Don’t Forget, God Bless Our Troops. The book is written through her granddaughter’s eyes and meant to help children cope with having family in the military. It even includes some resources in the back to help military families!
Dr. Biden also worked with former First Lady Michelle Obama on the Joining Forces Initiative, which makes sure that “service members, veterans, and their families have the tools they need to succeed throughout their lives.”
- Her health initiatives
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According to the Barack Obama archives, four of Dr. Biden’s friends were diagnosed with breast cancer in 1993, and she consequently started the Biden Breast Health Initiative. This initiative has educated more than 10,000 high school girls about the importance of detecting early signs of breast cancer. Additionally, Dr. Jill Biden and President-elect Joe Biden have served as the Honorary Co-chairs for Global Race for the Cure in Washington, D.C.
With Dr Biden as our First Lady, we can’t go wrong! She’ll continue to fight for free community college tuition, funding for cancer research, and support for military families. If you would like to learn more about our new First Lady-elect, I highly recommend checking out this DNC video.