Our Steering Committee

Pamela Northam, former First Lady of Virginia, currently lives in Norfolk and is a Senior Advisor for the Hunt Institute, and works in Public Relations and Education with the Elizabeth River Project. She attended Baylor University and University of Texas, Medical Branch earning degrees that led her to become a pediatric occupational therapist prior to serving as First Lady.

She worked in the Office of the Governor of Virginia from 2018 to 2022 as the Chair of the Virginia’s Children’s Cabinet. Her passion for children and dedication to elevating quality early childhood education is evident in the many successes she acheived during her tenure as First Lady.

Most notably, she led the effort to write and pass unifying legislation forming a new Division of Early Childhood Education at the Virginia Department of Education. This early childhood education system transformation brings a new level of accountability and quality to early care and education-- setting a foundation for excellence that the Commonwealth has never seen before!

Her best memory from kindergarten is her teacher, Ms Fan. “She wrote that I would be most likely to “ run a corporation” when I grew up…. !”