Edge Rewrite
pun Source code View original
Jump to content

Office of the First Lady of the United States

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
(Redirected from Office of the First Lady)

Office of the First Lady
Office overview
Formed1977[1]
HeadquartersEast Wing of The White House
Office executive
Parent Office
White House Office
WebsiteFirst Lady Melania Trump

The Office of the First Lady (OFL) is the staff accountable to the first lady of the United States. 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.[2] The Office of the First Lady is an entity of the White House Office, part of the Executive Office of the President.[3] The physical offices were located in the White House's East Wing, prior to its demolition in October 2025. They have been temporarily relocated to other parts of the White House complex until the completion of the White House State Ballroom.[4] The current first lady is Melania Trump, assuming office on January 20, 2025.

History

[edit]

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, who hired Belle Hagner as the first White House social secretary on October 2, 1901.[5] Eleanor Roosevelt became the first first lady to expand the office beyond social and administrative secretaries by hiring Malvina Thompson as her personal secretary[6] and Jackie Kennedy was the first to employ a press secretary.[7][2]

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.[1] 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.

At the time of the East Wing demolition in October 2025, which was being done to make room for the White House State Ballroom, plans were made to transfer the Office of the First Lady to the Executive Residence, split between the Vermeil Room, the South Mezzanine, the Library and the China Room.[8] However, it was also acknowledged that Melania Trump had in fact been spending minimal in the Office of the First Lady during her husband's second term as President.[8] During that month, however, it was reported that Melania privately raised concerns over her husband's demolition of the East Wing.[9][10] In November 2025, President Trump responded to these rumors saying Melania initially "loved her little tiny office" but quickly came around to support the renovation.[11]

Organization

[edit]
The first lady of the United States, Melania Trump

The first lady, Melania Trump, has her own staff. The information in the table below shows the key members of the current staff. On October 23, 2025, however, it was revealed that she had now "eschewed the nation's capital for New York and Palm Beach" and now employed a "skeletal staff".[8]

Office Incumbent
Chief of Staff to the First Lady Hayley Harrison
Communication Director Nick Clemens[12]
Operations Director Mary C. Finzer[13]
Policy Director Sarah J. Gesiriech[13]
Scheduler Meredith M. Thoren[13]

See also

[edit]

References

[edit]
  1. 1 2 "Rosalynn Carter—Miller Center". Archived from the original on December 1, 2016. Retrieved November 22, 2016.
  2. 1 2 "The First Lady & Her Role - The George W. Bush Presidential Library and Museum". Archived from the original on November 25, 2020. Retrieved November 22, 2016.
  3. ↑ "Executive Office of the President". United States Government. Archived from the original on June 3, 2009. Retrieved June 5, 2009.
  4. ↑ "The East Wing is gone. Here's why it's been called 'the heart' of the nation". The Washington Post. October 26, 2025. ISSN 0190-8286. Retrieved November 1, 2025.
  5. ↑ "TR Center - Isabella Hagner". Retrieved November 22, 2016.
  6. ↑ "Malvina Thompson". Archived from the original on November 1, 2016. Retrieved November 22, 2016.
  7. ↑ "First Lady Jacqueline Kennedy's Press Secretary Pamela Turnure Accepts Gift Recording of Pablo Casals' White House Concert". John F. Kennedy Presidential Library and Museum. February 21, 1962. Retrieved November 22, 2016.
  8. 1 2 3 Klein, Betsy (October 23, 2025). "Melania Trump has been silent on demolition of the East Wing, home to first ladies for decades". CNN. Retrieved October 24, 2025.
  9. ↑ Linskey, Annie; Dawsey, Josh; Parker, Will (October 27, 2025). "How Trump Barreled Through D.C.'s Bureaucracy to Get His White House Ballroom". wsj.com. The Wall Street Journal. Retrieved October 31, 2025. Everyone, it seems, has an opinion about the project, even first lady Melania Trump, who privately raised concerns about tearing down the East Wing and told associates it wasn't her project, according to administration officials.
  10. ↑ Manchester, Julia (October 27, 2025). "Melania Trump privately raised concerns about tearing down East Wing: Report". thehill.com. The Hill. Retrieved October 31, 2025.
  11. ↑ Adeosun, Adeola; Whisnant, Gabe (November 10, 2025). "Donald Trump Responds to Report That Melania Disapproves of New Ballroom". newsweek.com. Newsweek. Retrieved November 11, 2025.
  12. ↑ "Nick Clemens - White House (Jan. 2025-), Special Assistant to the President/Communications Director for the First Lady - Biography | LegiStorm". www.legistorm.com. Retrieved June 6, 2025.
  13. 1 2 3 "2025 Annual Report to Congress on White House Staff" (PDF). Executive Office of the President of the United States. July 1, 2025. Retrieved October 22, 2025.
Retrieved from "https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Office_of_the_First_Lady_of_the_United_States&oldid=1368387646"