MEDIA ADVISORY

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BIO

Janet Murguía – President and CEO
National Council of La Raza

Janet Murguía has emerged as a key figure among the next generation of leaders in the Latino community. Since January 1, 2005, she has served as the President and Chief Executive Officer of the National Council of La Raza (NCLR), the largest national Hispanic civil rights and advocacy organization in the U.S.

Murguía began her career in Washington, DC as legislative counsel to former Kansas Congressman Jim Slattery, serving for seven years. She then worked at the White House from 1994 to 2000, ultimately serving as deputy assistant to President Clinton, providing strategic and legislative advice to the president on key issues. She served as deputy director of legislative affairs, managing the legislative staff and acting as a senior White House liaison to Congress.

She then served as deputy campaign manager and director of constituency outreach for the Gore/Lieberman presidential campaign. In that role, she was the primary liaison between former Vice President Gore and national constituency groups. She also served as a spokesperson for the campaign, working with radio, print, and TV media outlets. In 2001, Murguía joined the University of Kansas (KU) as Executive Vice Chancellor for University Relations, overseeing KU’s internal and external relations with the public, including governmental and public affairs. Murguía coordinated the university's strategic planning and marketing efforts at the four KU campuses with those of the Alumni Association, the Athletics Corporation, and the Endowment Association.

Murguía has served on NCLR’s Board of Directors and on the Kauffman Foundation Youth Development Board. She is currently a Board member of the Independent Sector, a coalition of leading nonprofits, foundations, and corporations committed to connecting, informing, and advocating on behalf of the nonprofit and philanthropic community. She also sits on the Board of the Hispanic Association on Corporate Responsibility and the National Hispanic Leadership Agenda. In addition, Murguía is an executive committee member of the Leadership Conference on Civil Rights and a member of the Merrill Lynch Diversity & Inclusion Council.

In 2007, Murguía was named to Poder magazine’s “The Poderosos 100,” Latino Leaders magazine’s “101 Top Leaders of the Hispanic Community,” and Hispanic magazine’s “Powerful Latinos 2007.” In 2006, Murguía was name to Washingtonian magazine’s “100 Most Powerful Women in Washington,” The NonProfit Times’ “Power and Influence Top 50” leaders, and People En Español’s “100 Most Influential Hispanics 2006.” Hispanic Business magazine named Murguía as a finalist for its 2005 “Woman of the Year Award,” and in 2004, Hispanic magazine chose her for its annual list of "100 Top Latinas" and Hispanic Business magazine selected her as one of the "100 Most Influential Hispanics."

Janet Murguía grew up in Kansas City, Kansas. She received three degrees from KU: a B.S. degree in journalism (1982), a B.A. degree in Spanish (1982), and a J.D. degree (1985) from the School of Law.