Martha Choe

Martha Choe (born November 16, 1954) is an American banker, politician, and foundation executive. She was a two-term member of the Seattle City Council, elected to four-year terms[1] in 1991[2] and 1995.[3] Choe was the first Korean American elected to the city council[4][5] and the first to serve in a public office in the United States.[6] Choe succeeded retiring Filipino councilmember Dolores Sibonga and received her endorsement, which elicited controversy from Filipino community members.[7]

Martha Choe, 1992, as a member of the Seattle City Council

Choe served as the chair of the Transportation Committee and was also appointed as a Regional Transit Authority (RTA) boardmember during the early drafting of Seattle's future light rail and commuter train systems.[8] In her role on the committee, she oversaw the first public referendum on the citywide monorail project, a program that she personally opposed.[9][10] Choe was among a contingent of Asian American leaders and politicians tasked with organizing the 1993 APEC summit, hosted near Seattle on Blake Island.[11] Choe retired from the city council in 1998, having not run for re-election, but was named as a potential candidate in the 2001 mayoral election.[12]

After leaving the city council, Choe next served as director of the Washington State Department of Community, Trade and Economic Development (later Washington State Department of Commerce) under governor Gary Locke.[1] She left that position in 2004, at which time she became director of the Global Libraries initiative at the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation,[13] where she became chief administrative officer in 2008, a position she held until leaving the Foundation in 2014.[1] In that capacity, Choe had "considerable input" into the design of the Gates Foundation headquarters building.[14]

Beginning in May 2000 she served as one of the inaugural members of the White House Commission on Asian American and Pacific Islanders,[15] advancing in August to become its chair when initial chair Norman Mineta was tapped to be Secretary of Commerce.[16][17]

Future Seattle mayor Ed Murray served on Choe's staff for four years early in his political career.[18][19]

Personal life

Choe is the U.S.-born daughter of South Korean immigrants.[1] She graduated from Fairhaven College in 1977[20] and also has a B.A. from the University of Washington[21] and an M.B.A. from Seattle University.[15]

Prior to serving on the Seattle City Council, she was a board member of the regional Federal Reserve Bank of San Francisco Seattle Branch,[22] a vice president at the Bank of California in Seattle, and a member of the Board of Western Washington University.[23][24][1][25]

Choe also volunteered with the Seattle Chamber of Commerce and the Seattle Foundation.[26] In 2014, Seattle Business Magazine awarded her its lifetime achievement award.[27]

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References
  1. Drew Atkins (October 9, 2016). "How Martha Choe forged one of Washington's most influential careers". crosscut.com. Retrieved January 15, 2019.
  2. Nelson, Robert T. (November 6, 1991). "Women Are the Big Winners, hold 6 of 9 seats - 3 Newcomers Among Victors Put Uncertain Face on Council Politics". The Seattle Times. p. D4. Retrieved January 25, 2019.
  3. Lewis, Peter; Lilly, Dick (November 9, 1995). "2 Newcomers Win Seattle City Council Seats - Manning and Podlowski Defeat Incumbent, Veteran Campaigner". The Seattle Times. p. B5. Retrieved January 25, 2019.
  4. Hyon-hee, Shin (November 30, 2014). "[Herald Interview] A life devoted to public service". The Korea Herald. Retrieved January 16, 2019.
  5. Hong, Tae (July 30, 2014). "Martha Choe looks forward to life after Gates Foundation". The Korea Times. Retrieved January 16, 2019.
  6. Gary Greaves (interviewer). "Choe (Martha) Interview". washington.edu. Oral History Collection, Gary Greaves Collection. University of Washington. Retrieved January 15, 2019. Interview date is circa 1990, metadata is 2008 or later. This citation is from the metadata.
  7. Nelson, Robert T. (August 6, 1991). "Seattle's Asian vote tough bloc to unlock". The Seattle Times. p. E1. Retrieved January 15, 2019.
  8. Foltz, Kimberly (October 29, 2010). "Waiting for the interurban : the politics of light-rail planning in Seattle". hdl:1721.1/59723. Cite journal requires |journal= (help)
  9. Seven, Richard (February 22, 1998). "Prime mover: Dick Falkenbury's monorail dream is a long way from the station". Seattle Post-Intelligencer. p. 12.
  10. Schaefer, David (February 1, 1998). "Monorail may collide with RTA". The Seattle Times. p. B1.
  11. Gupta, Himanee (November 17, 1993). "Local Asian communities ready to party". The Seattle Times. p. A21.
  12. Murakami, Kery (December 24, 1999). "Fallout from WTO hangs like a cloud over Schell's future". Seattle Post-Intelligencer. p. A1.
  13. Marriott, Michel (March 31, 2006). "Digital Divide Closing as Blacks Turn to Internet". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved January 16, 2019.
  14. Cheek, Lawrence W. (March 17, 2012). "New Office Designs Offer Room to Roam and to Think". The New York Times. Retrieved January 16, 2019.
  15. Office of the Press Secretary, The White House (May 4, 2000). "Fifteen Members Named to the Advisory Commission on Asian Americans & Pacific Islander". clintonwhitehouse4.archives.gov. Retrieved January 15, 2019.
  16. Ignatius Bau (October 14, 2011). "Of, By and For the People: My Reflections on the White House Initiative on Asian Americans & Pacific Islanders". ignatiusbau.com. Retrieved January 15, 2019.
  17. William J. Clinton (January 2000). "Appendix A". Public Papers of the Presidents of the United States: William J. Clinton, 2000-2001. Best Books. p. 2143. ISBN 1623768195. Retrieved January 15, 2019.
  18. "The Education of Ed Murray". Seattle Met. December 19, 2012. Retrieved January 16, 2019.
  19. Young, Bob (May 9, 2017). "The rise and fall of Seattle Mayor Ed Murray's political career". The Seattle Times. Retrieved January 16, 2019.
  20. "Choe, Cole selected for Board of Trustees". Résumé. Western Washington University. 16 (2): 5. Winter 1985.
  21. "Changing faces: hail and farewell". Résumé. Western Washington University. 21 (3): 5. Summer 1990.
  22. "Seattle Branch Board of Directors as of January 1, 2013". 2012 Annual Report (PDF). Federal Reserve Bank of San Francisco. 2012. p. 24. Retrieved January 16, 2019.
  23. "Martha Choe to Join Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation as Global Libraries Director". Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation. May 2004.
  24. "2016 Crosscut Courage Award Winners - Seattle Magazine".
  25. "Longtime leader Martha Choe will leave Gates Foundation". www.bizjournals.com. July 18, 2014. Retrieved December 23, 2016.
  26. James, Sally (August 24, 2010). "Gates to the City". Seattle Business Magazine. Retrieved January 16, 2019.
  27. Truzzi, Gianni; Helm, Leslie; Levesque, John (January 20, 2014). "The 2014 Executive Excellence Awards: Lifetime Achievement -- Martha Choe". Seattle Business Magazine. Retrieved January 16, 2019.
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