JA Alumna Elected to U.S. House of Representatives

November 6, 2018

Donna Shalala, just elected to the U.S. House of Representatives, former President of the University of Miami, former U.S. Secretary of Health & Human Services, and former JA student elevated a mid-size university in South Florida and made it one of the best in the United States.

"In many ways, " she says, "universities are small businesses." And it was JA that gave her that business experience.

"Much of my youth was spent around JA, and I actually did JA for four years. We built our own companies. We made a stool that everybody in my family still has!

"We were becoming entrepreneurs. We were learning every aspect of business, from building financial plans to marketing to designing the product to identifying who were were going to sell it to.

"I had a bunch of very successful companies as a young person. Only one failure, but I learned more from that failure than anything else.

"JA made a big difference in my life. It gave me confidence. It was an extraordinary experience for us, and the JA experience continues to shape young people for the future, and now, all over the world.

"I'm Donna Shalala. I am JA!"

Watch the full interview: