President Janet Napolitano is a Professor of Public Policy at the Goldman School of Public Policy at UC Berkeley. She served as the twentieth president of the University of California, the nation’s largest public research university with ten campuses, five medical centers, three affiliated national laboratories, and a statewide agriculture and natural resources program. Prior to joining the University of California, President Napolitano served as Secretary of Homeland Security from 2009 to 2013. She is a former two-term Governor of Arizona, a former Attorney General of Arizona, and a former US Attorney for the District of Arizona. In 2019, President Napolitano published How Safe Are We? Homeland Security Since 9/11. President Napolitano earned her BS degree, summa cum laude, in Political Science from Santa Clara University, and her JD from the University of Virginia. She is based in Berkeley, CA.

"Women in public policy form a special cohort of mentors and colleagues. When I graduated from law school I was fortunate to clerk for Judge Mary Schroeder of the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals. She has been a lifelong mentor who I consult with even today. When I served as Arizona AG and then Governor, the other women then serving would gather for dinner to share stories and offer support. Many of these women, including Jennifer Granholm, became some of my best friends and we remain in close touch, albeit through zoom. When I served in Obama’s Cabinet, the women in the Cabinet along with senior women in the White House would gather every 6 weeks for dinner. DC can be a very tough town and having a safe space to talk and laugh made it more bearable for all of us. I encourage women to enter public service as the work is so meaningful and such a great use of one’s talents. But it’s nice to know you’re not alone and having women mentors and colleagues has been very important to me in my career."