Mellody Hobson

Mellody Hobson (born 1969) grew up in Chicago and was raised by her mother, a realtor. After graduating from Princeton, she began working at Ariel Investments eventually becoming its president and co-CEO. In 2021, Hobson became Chair of the Board of Starbucks making her the first black woman to be chairperson of an S&P 500 company. She is passionate about financial literacy and is a strong advocate for diversity in American businesses.

Why this stop? The Clark/Division stop is a few blocks from Ogden Elementary School, the Chicago public school which Hobson attended through 8th grade.

Listen to Mellody Hobson’s TED talk challenging us to be color brave (as opposed to color blind).
If you have more time, here’s a followup interview on the subject.