Biden picks Clyburn’s daughter to lead federal group targeting southeast US poverty
Jennifer Clyburn Reed, one of House Majority Whip Jim Clyburn’s three daughters, has been nominated to lead a federal commission aimed at addressing poverty in the Southeast.
President Joe Biden nominated Reed Friday to become the federal co-chair of the Southeast Crescent Regional Commission, which was created in 2008 to help direct federal investment to the southeastern United States in order to address system and persistent poverty in the region.
The seven-state region includes parts of Alabama, Florida, Georgia, Mississippi, North Carolina, South Carolina and Virginia not already served by the Appalachian Regional Commission or the Delta Regional Authority.
Reed’s nomination must be confirmed by the U.S. Senate.
Reed did not respond to a request for comment by deadline.
Clyburn endorsed Biden ahead of South Carolina’s Democratic presidential primary in February 2020, thought to have given Biden an election night bump which eventually helped him secure the nomination.
But Reed’s own profile has risen, apart from her family connection. Ahead of the primary, she helped Democratic candidates get to know the state, and she’s been rumored to be interested in running for Congress, particularly Clyburn’s seat should he retire.
Reed has 28 years of education and teaching experience in public and private schools. She recently retired from the University of South Carolina, where she directed the Center for the Education and Equity of African American Students.
She has taught in elementary and middle schools, and she has coordinated a college preparatory program for students with academic potential but who are first-generation college students in their families. She’s also helped to coordinate the design and implementation of the Apple Core Initiative, a scholarship program for incoming freshmen at USC’s College of Education. Reed also serves on the selection committee for the Emily Clyburn Honors College Scholarship at South Carolina State University, the state’s only historically Black four-year university.
Reed, who co-owns a property investment company called 49 Magnolia Blossom, also is CEO of Palmetto Issues Conference, an advisory group that advocates for accessible and equitable policies in education, health, housing and infrastructure, according to the White House.
This story was originally published August 2, 2021 at 1:15 PM.
