Senior Vice President, Save the Children’s U.S. Programs
Mark K. Shriver leads Save the Children’s U.S. Programs, which works to ensure a fair start for all kids in the United States, including the one in five living in poverty. Shriver’s career fighting for social justice in advocacy and service organizations, as well as elective office, has focused on advancing the right of every kid in America to have a safe and vibrant childhood.
An Innovative Public-Private Partnership Model for American Education
Shriver created Save the Children’s early childhood education program and reinvigorated its literacy, nutrition, and fitness work in the United States through partnerships with more than 160 schools in some of the most impoverished regions of the country. Benefiting more than 70,000 children in 14 states, studies reveal that 64 percent of children showed major improvement after participating in the literacy program and the percentage reading at or above grade level nearly doubled during the school year.
To better sustain and fortify these programs, Shriver deepened corporate partnerships with Toys “R” Us, T.J. Maxx, Frigidaire, IKEA and Scholastic. He also secured Save the Children’s U.S. Programs as one of a handful of beneficiaries of American Idol’s social responsibility efforts in 2007, 2008 and 2010.
To ensure even stronger representation for kids’ issues in the nation’s capital and throughout the nation, Shriver recruited Jennifer Garner, Randy Jackson and Julianne Moore as artist ambassadors for Save the Children’s U.S. Programs. Garner and Moore have both lobbied extensively on behalf of kids in Congress and in state capitals. In addition, Moore and Shriver teamed up to launch an acclaimed kids’ Valentine’s Day project in partnership with the American Federation of Teachers to teach children about the challenges of childhood poverty.
Protecting Kids When Disaster Strikes
Mark Shriver created Save the Children’s domestic emergency response programs in 2005 to ensure that children are protected when disaster strikes and are provided safe haven and reunion with their families during a disaster’s aftermath. He was the chief spokesperson for the organization’s 2009 and 2010 national report card, which revealed a severe lack of preparedness for protecting kids during disasters. He led a national coalition that successfully convinced Congress to create the National Commission on Children and Disasters to ensure better protection of children before, during and after major domestic catastrophes. Shriver was appointed to the Commission by Senate Majority Harry Reid (D-NV) and was elected as its first chairperson by his fellow commissioners.
A Lifetime Advocating for Kids and Youth
Mark Shriver was a member of the Maryland House of Delegates from 1994 to 2002. He was the first
Chair of the Joint Committee on Children, Youth and Families, and was appointed Chair of the Children and Youth Subcommittee of Maryland’s House Ways and Means Committee. He was repeatedly recognized as Outstanding Legislator of the Year by prominent advocacy and civic organizations.
In 1988, Mark founded the innovative Choice Program, which serves delinquent and at-risk youth through intensive, community-based counseling. Shriver subsequently created The Choice Jobs Program, Inc., a private non-profit that trains, places and supports former Choice clients in jobs, as well as The Choice Middle Schools Program, a model for keeping at-risk middle school children in school.
Mark has served on a number of boards and commissions, including the Campaign for Tobacco-Free Kids, the FEMA National Advisory Commission, the Living Proof Project and the Cal Ripkin, Sr. Foundation. He was also a recipient of the National Father’s Day Committee’s 2008 Father of the Year award.
Shriver has been widely covered and published in the national media, including The New York Times, The Washington Post, The Huffington Post, The Times-Picayune, The Washington Times, The Tennessean, Newsweek, NPR, The Shreveport Times, CNN, The Today Show, Fox News, The Detroit News, ABC News, The Birmingham News and Time. George Will wrote a nationally syndicated column on his work as well.
Shriver’s management, business and institutional leadership skills were honed in part through his private sector work at a telecommunications firm, where he headed a multi-million dollar division. Shriver received his B.A. from The College of the Holy Cross in 1986 and a Masters in Public Administration from Harvard University in 1993. In 1994, he received an honorary degree from Loyola College in Baltimore, MD for his work on The Choice Program. Shriver resides in Bethesda, MD with his wife Jeanne and their three young children, Molly, Tommy and Emma.
