The Office of the First Lady (OFL) is the staff accountable to the

first lady of the United States The first lady of the United States (FLOTUS) is the title held by the hostess of the White House, usually the wife of the president of the United States, concurrent with the president's term in office. Although the first lady's role has never ...

. The office and its responsibilities, while not constitutionally mandated, have grown as the role of the first lady has grown and formalized through the history of the United States. The Office of the First Lady is an entity of the

White House Office The White House Office is an entity within the Executive Office of the President of the United States (EOP). The White House Office is headed by the White House chief of staff, who is also the head of the Executive Office of the President. The ...

, part of the Executive Office of the President. It is located in the East Wing.

History

Though the persona, activities, and initiatives of the first lady have always been significant to the history of the United States, the first first lady to hire federally funded staff was

Edith Roosevelt Edith Kermit Roosevelt (née Carow; August 6, 1861 – September 30, 1948) was the second wife of President Theodore Roosevelt and the First Lady of the United States from 1901 to 1909. She also was the Second Lady of the United States in 190 ...

, who hired

Belle Hagner Isabella Louisa Hagner James (July 23, 1875 – November 1, 1943) was the first White House Social Secretary. She served in the administrations of President Theodore Roosevelt, William Howard Taft, and Woodrow Wilson. Early life and career Bor ...

as the first White House social secretary on October 2, 1901.

Eleanor Roosevelt Anna Eleanor Roosevelt () (October 11, 1884November 7, 1962) was an American political figure, diplomat, and activist. She was the first lady of the United States from 1933 to 1945, during her husband President Franklin D. Roosevelt's four ...

became the first first lady to expand the office beyond social and administrative secretaries by hiring

Malvina Thompson Malvina "Tommy" Thompson (1893 – April 12, 1953) was a private secretary and personal aide to First Lady Eleanor Roosevelt. She was a pioneer of the East Wing staff, being the first staffer for a First Lady of the United States who was not a soc ...

as her personal secretary and

Jackie Kennedy Jacqueline Lee Kennedy Onassis ( ; July 28, 1929 – May 19, 1994) was an American socialite, writer, photographer, and book editor who served as first lady of the United States from 1961 to 1963, as the wife of President John F. Kennedy. A po ...

was the first to employ a press secretary. Under Rosalynn Carter, the first lady's staff became known as the Office of the First Lady. She organized the office into four major departments: projects and community liaison, press and research, schedule and advance, and social and personal; and was the first to add a chief of staff. She was also the first to move her own work office into the East Wing. Though the role of the office has grown over the years, it primarily supports the first lady in promoting the agenda and campaigns of the president. Further to that, it provides support for the agenda of the first lady, who chooses causes and initiatives to campaign for during their time at the White House.

Organization

The first lady, Jill Biden, has her own staff. The information in the table below shows the key members of the current staff.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Office of the First Lady of the United States * 1977 establishments in the United States Government agencies established in 1977

First Lady First lady is an unofficial title usually used for the wife, and occasionally used for the daughter or other female relative, of a non- monarchical head of state or chief executive. The term is also used to describe a woman seen to be at the ...

History

Organization

See also

References