First Lady Hillary Clinton

Hillary has followed in the footsteps of many women that stood behind their husbands as First Lady to the Governor of a state or to the President of the United States. Even though this title has a certain role, so to speak, Hillary took the title to heart, and not only was First Lady to her husband, but also was First Lady to the people of Arkansas and then the entire United States.

Even before her role as First Lady of Arkansas and only a couple of years after her marriage to Bill Clinton, President Carter appointed her to the board of directors of the Legal Services Corporation, which she served from 1978 to 1981. During this time, she was the first woman to be chair of that board which was her main role, the majority of the time.

Hillary was not the type of First Lady that most American's were use to seeing. She was not the quiet, stay at home, cleaning, and baking type of First Lady. As First Lady, Hillary accomplished many firsts and worked at improving health care across the US.

Bill Clinton became Governor of Arkansas in January of 1979 and Hillary held the title of First Lady of Arkansas from 1979 until 1981 and again from 1983 until 1992. During her time as First Lady, Clinton appointed her to chair of the Rural Health Advisory Committee in 1979. While in this position she received federal funds that helped place medical facilities in poor areas around Arkansas, while not affecting the fees of doctors.

During her years as First Lady of Arkansas from 1983 until 1992, she served as chair of the Arkansas Educational Standards Committee, established the Arkansas' Home Instruction Program for Preschool Youth in 1985, and was honored by being named the Arkansas Woman of the Year in 1983 and Arkansas Mother of the Year in 1984. During 1987 to 1991, Hillary was the chairperson of the American Bar Associations's Commission on Women in the Profession, and was twice named by the National Law Journal as one of the most influential attorneys in the United States for the years of 1988 and 1991.

Other board positions Hillary held while having the title of First Lady of Arkansas include 1988-1992 Arkansas Children's Hospital Legal Services, 1985-1992 chairperson of the Children's Defense Fund, 1985 to 1992 corporate board of directors of TCBY, 1986 to 1992 Wal-Mart, and during 1990 to 1992 Lafarge. Once again, Hillary gained a first as being the first woman member on the board for Wal-Mart.

Bill Clinton was elected President of the United States and was inaugurated in January of 1993, thus giving the title of First Lady of the United States to Hillary. As First Lady of the United States once again Hillary accomplished being the first woman to do many things putting her in the league with another outspoken First Lady, Eleanor Roosevelt. Among her first as First Lady include the first to hold a post graduate degree, have a professional career, and have an office in the West Wing of the White House.

President Clinton appointed Hillary to be the head and the chairperson of the Task Force on National Health Care Reform in 1993, was a force behind the State Children's Health Insurance Program in 1997 along with Ted Kennedy, endorsed nationwide immunization and mammograms for older women covered by Medicare, aided in increasing research funding for childhood asthma and prostate cancer at the National Institutes of Health. Along with these accomplishments she worked along Attorney General Janet Reno to establish the Office on Violence Against Women, was the pioneer behind the Adoption and Safe Families Act in 1997, along with hosting several White House Conferences centered on Early Childhood Development and Learning in 1997, Children and Adolescents in 2000, Child Care in 1997, and the first Conferences ever held on Philanthropy in 1999 and Teenagers in 2000.

Among these wonderful accomplishments for the citizens of the United States, she broke the record of First Lady Pat Nixon by traveling to more than 80 countries.

Hillary Clinton is very outspoken when it comes to family, the well being of children, overall health benefits for the American people, and the abuse of women and children worldwide.