Cecile Richards

Cecile Richards became a trustee of the Ford Foundation in February 2010 (and since 2006, she had led Planned Parenthood).

She was "the national president of Planned Parenthood. During the 2004 election cycle she was a founding member of America Coming Together and served as president of America Votes, a coalition of almost 30 national organizations working together to educate and mobilize voters in the 2004 elections on a broad range of issues including the environment, civil and human rights, women's rights, choice, education and labor."  She is also the daughter of Texan politician Ann Richards

"Ms. Richards has a long history of work in the reproductive rights community. She created and directed a national pro-choice ID project for the Turner Foundation, working closely with Planned Parenthood affiliates and national staff. She formed and served as president of Pro-Choice Vote, the largest 527 political committee in the 2000 election cycle. Ms. Richards has served on the boards of several organizations, including NARAL Pro-Choice America and the Planned Parenthood Action Fund.

"During the political ascendancy of the religious right in the 1990s, Ms. Richards formed the Texas Freedom Network (TFN) to combat the anti-choice, radical policy agenda of the extreme right in Texas. The TFN is a network of more than 10,000 clergy and community leaders across the state and serves as a model for other advocacy organizations. The work of TFN has been featured in the Washington Post, New York Times, Mother Jones, and other national publications." 

"Before joining Planned Parenthood, Ms. Richards served as deputy chief of staff for Democratic Leader Nancy Pelosi and played a key role in her election as the Democratic Leader in the House of Representatives...

"The daughter of former Texas Governor Ann Richards, Ms. Richards was raised in a family committed to social justice and public service. She worked side by side with her mother on her very first campaign — the successful election to the state legislature of Sarah Weddington, the lawyer who successfully argued the landmark 1973 U.S. Supreme Court case Roe v. Wade, which legalized abortion nationwide.

"Cecile Richards and her husband, Kirk Adams, have three children. They currently reside in New York City."