Michelle Robinson was raised on the South Side of Chicago, Michelle’s father suffered from multiple sclerosis, which had a profound emotional effect on her as she was growing up. She was determined to stay out of trouble and be a good student.

An excellent student, she was inspired to follow her brother to Princeton University, although some of her teachers in high school tried to dissuade her from applying, saying she was setting her sights too high. Nonetheless, she graduated from Princeton with a Bachelor of Arts, continuing her study, earning her Juris Doctor (J.D.) degree from Harvard Law School in 1988.

In her early legal career in Chicago, she met fellow lawyer Barack Obama and they married in 1992. When Obama was elected as the 44th U.S. President, Michelle became the first African-American First Lady.

“I am an example of what is possible when girls from the very beginning of their lives are loved and nurtured by people around them. I was surrounded by extraordinary women in my life who taught me about quiet strength and dignity.”