Barbara Davis Blum (born July 6, 1939) is an American businesswoman, public health administrator, and environmental advocate who served as the deputy administrator of the United States Environmental Protection Agency from 1977 to 1981. From 1983 to 1998, she was the president and chief executive of Adams National Bank, the first federally chartered bank to be owned and managed by women. The bank was later renamed Abigail Adams National Bancorp.

Early life and education

Blum was born July 6, 1939, in

Hutchinson, Kansas Hutchinson is the largest city in and the county seat of Reno County, Kansas, Reno County, Kansas, United States. The city is located on the Arkansas River. It has been home to salt mines since 1887 (thus its nickname of "Salt City") but locals ...

, and attended

Florida State University Florida State University (FSU or Florida State) is a Public university, public research university in Tallahassee, Florida, United States. It is a senior member of the State University System of Florida and a preeminent university in the s ...

, where she received both a bachelor's degree and master's degree in social work.

Career

Blum was a faculty member at the Pediatric Psychiatry Clinic at the

University of Kansas Medical Center The University of Kansas Medical Center, commonly referred to as KU Med or KUMC, is a medical campus for the University of Kansas. KU Med houses the university's schools of medicine, nursing, and health professions, with the primary health scienc ...

. From 1963 to 1964, she served as acting administrator of the Suffolk County Mental Health Clinic in Huntington, New York. In 1964, Blum co-founded the Mid-Suffolk Center for Psychotherapy in Hauppauge, New York, where she held the position of partner and center administrator until 1966. Blum has held various positions on boards and commissions, including as a member of the Federal Reserve Board's National Consumer Advisory Council, chair of the Georgia Heritage Trust Commission, and vice-chair of the Fulton County Planning Commission. She was also appointed by the Atlanta Chamber of Commerce to Leadership Atlanta from 1974 to 1976. In 1976, Blum served as a deputy campaign director for the Carter-Mondale Presidential campaign. During her tenure at the EPA, she established the National Hazardous Waste Enforcement Task Force to coordinate the clean up of toxic waste at so-called

superfund sites Superfund sites are Pollution, polluted locations in the United States requiring a long-term response to clean up hazardous material contaminations. Sites include landfills, mines, manufacturing facilities, processing plants where toxic waste h ...

. She was also part of the EPA's 1978 recall of American Motors Corporation vehicles because of faulty exhaust systems that permit nitrogen oxide to escape into the air. The recall affected 270,000 Hornets, Gremlins, Pacers and Matadors, as well as 40,000 Jeeps and postal delivery trucks.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Blum, Barbara 1939 births Living people People of the United States Environmental Protection Agency Washington, D.C., Democrats