Judge Ann Claire Williams (Ret.), who currently leads Jones Day's efforts in advancing the rule of law in Africa, has been elected to the board of trustees of the Carnegie Corporation of New York, one of the oldest and most influential grantmaking foundations in the United States. Martin Baron, former executive editor of The  Washington Post  and the Honorable Kurt L. Schmoke, president of the University of Baltimore and former mayor of Baltimore, were also elected to the board. Each will serve a four-year term. This is Judge Williams's second time as a trustee; she served on the board from 2012 through 2020. The Corporation announced the election of its new trustees on June 3, 2021.

"On behalf of the entire board of trustees and the Corporation's staff, we are delighted to welcome three highly distinguished individuals as members of the foundation's board—the depth and breadth of their wisdom and expertise will be critically important to the stewardship of the institution," said Thomas H. Kean, chairman of the board of trustees and former governor of New Jersey. "Judge Ann Claire Williams is one of the true pioneers on the federal bench, who has also worked to advance numerous causes, including the rule of law in Africa and the careers of underrepresented minority attorneys."

Judge Williams, who is of counsel in the Chicago Office, is the first woman of color to serve on a district court in the three-state Seventh Circuit, the first and only judge of color to sit on the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Seventh Circuit, and the third Black woman to serve on any federal circuit court. She retired as a judge on the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Seventh Circuit in 2018.

"One hundred ten years ago this month, Andrew Carnegie established the Corporation as the first grantmaking foundation of its type, with the understanding that its trustees would provide steady but responsive leadership for an institution meant to evolve in perpetuity," said Janet L. Robinson, vice chairman of the board of trustees, chair of the committee on trustees, and former president and CEO of The New York Times Company. "With the addition of Marty Baron, Kurt Schmoke, and Judge Ann Claire Williams, the board will benefit from the contributions of three powerhouse thinkers and doers."

Read the Carnegie Corporation of New York's press release on the election of its three new trustees.