Wes Moore

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Wes Moore
Born	Westley Watende Omari Moore (1978-10-15) October 15, 1978 (age 42) Takoma Park, Maryland, U.S.
Education	Johns Hopkins University (BA) Wolfson College, Oxford (MLitt)
Spouse(s)	Dawn Moore ​ (m. 2007)​
Military career
Service/branch	United States Army
Battles/wars	War in Afghanistan
Website	Official website

Westley "Wes" Watende Omari Moore^[1] (born October 15, 1978) is an American author, entrepreneur, television producer, and United States Army veteran. From 2017 to 2021 Moore served as the CEO of the Robin Hood Foundation.^[2] On June 7, 2021, Moore launched his campaign to become the Democratic candidate for Maryland governor.^[3]

Moore is the author of The Other Wes Moore and The Work, both of which are New York Times Bestsellers. He was also the host for Beyond Belief on the Oprah Winfrey Network, as well as the executive producer and a writer for Coming Back with Wes Moore on PBS.^[4]

Moore is the founder and CEO of BridgeEdU, a social enterprise dedicated to reinventing the freshman year and creating a smoother transition to higher education for students entering their freshman year of college.^[5]

Early life and education[]

Moore was born in Takoma Park, Maryland^[6] on October 15,^[7] 1978,^[8] to father William Westley Moore Jr.,^[9] a 1971 Bard College graduate^[10] and highly respected black American broadcast news journalist,^[11] and mother Joy Thomas Moore, a daughter of immigrants from Lowe River, Jamaica and a media professional.^[12]

When Moore was nearly four years old,^[13] his father died on April 16, 1982, from acute epiglottitis.^[14] In the summer of 1984, Moore's mother took him and his two sisters to live in the Bronx, New York, with their grandparents. His grandmother, Winell Thomas, a Cuban immigrant,^[15] was a retired school teacher. His grandfather, Rev. Dr. James Thomas, a Jamaican immigrant,^[15] was the first black minister in the history of the Dutch Reformed Church.^[9]

Moore attended Riverdale Country School. At Riverdale, he encountered academic and disciplinary struggles. When Moore's grades declined and he became involved in petty crime, his mother enrolled him in Valley Forge Military Academy.^[9]

After high school, Moore graduated Phi Theta Kappa from Valley Forge Military College, a junior college in Pennsylvania. He went on to attend Johns Hopkins University where he studied International Relations and Economics and graduated Omicron Delta Kappa and Phi Beta Kappa in 2001.^[16] Immediately after, he attended the Wolfson College, Oxford as a Rhodes scholar where he earned a master's degree in International Relations.

Career[]

While living in London, Moore started a career in finance at Deutsche Bank in the international trade and finance division, but in 2005 he left to join the 82nd Airborne Division of the United States Army in Afghanistan. Moore led a team of paratroopers and special operators who were trained in civil affairs, psychological operations, information operations, and various other special operations command disciplines. Among the many awards he received was the Combat Action Badge.^{[citation needed]}

Upon his return to the United States, Moore was accepted as a White House Fellow. He placed within the State Department's Office of U.S. Foreign Assistance Resources where he tracked foreign aid to ensure it was being used properly. He served at the White House for one year, then returned to New York to work in finance at Citigroup.^{[citation needed]}

Literary work[]

Moore's first book, The Other Wes Moore, was published in 2010. This book and The Work are New York Times Bestsellers. Additionally, Discovering Wes Moore is a Young Adult edition of his bestselling book, and This Way Home, his first Young Adult novel, was released in the Fall of 2015.

The Other Wes Moore[]

The Other Wes Moore is the story of two young Baltimore boys that share the same name and race, but largely different familial histories and they travel down very different paths. While both grew up without the consistent presence of their biological father and got into trouble as youth, one, who was raised by his grandmother and grandfather and was born to two parents with college degrees, became a Rhodes scholar and leader, and the other, who was raised by a single mother who dropped out of college, was convicted of murder and is currently serving a life sentence. Wes Moore sets out to answer what made the difference through telling the story of young men trying to find their way in a seemingly broken world. The Other Wes Moore has been on both The New York Times and Wall Street Journal bestseller list.^[9]

Discovering Wes Moore[]

Discovering Wes Moore is the Young Adult adaption to The Other Wes Moore. This book acts as a cautionary tale that is more accessible to a younger audience while maintaining the powerful message and story that was set out in The Other Wes Moore.^[17]

The Work[]

The Work provides a tale of finding purpose and passion through the work a person does. This book retraces Moore's experiences around the globe that have led him to find his passion. Additionally, he tells the stories of a dozen other "change makers" and how they found their paths to purpose.^[18]

This Way Home[]

This Way Home is a Young Adult novel about a high school star basketball player. Elijah faces a struggle that emerges from a standoff with a local gang after they attempt to recruit him to their basketball team. Elijah refuses to play for them and is faced with the consequences. Taking place in a pivotal time of a young adult's journey, this story is about discovering what truly matters in life.^[19]

Productions[]

Moore is also involved in a variety of productions. He has hosted, directed and produced programs on OWN as well as CNN.

Future City[]

Future City is a series on Baltimore's WYPR station. In this interview based talk show, Wes Moore examines systemic issues in Baltimore. In each episode, Wes looks at bright ideas that are working in other cities.  And he asks the question: Can those ideas work for Baltimore?^[20]

Coming Back with Wes Moore[]

Coming Back with Wes Moore, a series executive produced by author and former Army combat veteran Wes Moore, aired in three parts on consecutive Tuesdays beginning May 13, 2014, on PBS. The three-episode series tells the story of Wes Moore's search for answers to some of the most difficult questions related to returning home from war. The show follows the personal lives of different soldiers as they attempt to reintegrate back into society, establish new identities, and find new missions. Each episode focuses on a different stage of coming home: "Coming Back", "Fitting In" and "Moving Forward".^[21]

All the Difference[]

All the Difference is a documentary which seeks to understand why many boys of color have difficulty transitioning in higher education and what can be done about it. The program has been filmed over a period of five years and tells the stories of two young boys and their efforts to avoid the pitfalls of growing up in low-income, high risk Chicago communities and navigate higher education. The film is being made in cooperation with PBS and the Corporation for Public Broadcasting.

Media[]

Moore at Social Innovation Summit by New America in January 2020

Moore is a news contributor to various publications including The Wall Street Journal, The Huffington Post, The Baltimore Sun, The New York Times and many other publications. Moore regularly appears on various MSNBC programs including Hardball with Chris Matthews, Now with Alex Wagner, The Rachel Maddow Show, PoliticsNation, Meet The Press^[22] and Morning Joe^[23]

He has also made appearances on various notable programs including: Face the Nation, The Daily Show with Jon Stewart,^[24] The Colbert Report,^[25] and Real Time with Bill Maher^[26]

Veterans activism[]

Moore is a vocal advocate for serving those who served in the military overseas. He has worked with various veterans groups, including Iraq Afghanistan Veterans of America and Things We Read, and is a member of the Veterans of Foreign Wars (VFW).

Moore has also presented a TED talk at TEDSalon NY2014 titled How to Talk to Veterans About the War.

Robin Hood Foundation[]

In April 2017, it was announced Moore would be appointed CEO of the Robin Hood Foundation, a charitable organization which attempts to alleviate problems caused by poverty in New York City. Founded in 1988, Robin Hood was conceived by hedge fund manager Paul Tudor Jones and co-founded with Peter Borish and Glenn Dubin.^{[27][28][29][30]}

The foundation combines investment principles and philanthropy to assist programs that target poverty in New York City. This is accomplished mainly by funding schools, food pantries and shelters, however they also administer a relief fund for disasters.^[31]

Beginning the position in June 2017, he is the organization's first chief executive officer in its 30-year history.^[32] Guidestar reports he earns over $800,000 per year in this role.^{[citation needed]} He stepped down from the position in May 2021 after announcing his intention to do so in February 2021.^[2]

Honors and awards[]

On May 27, 2020, Moore was invited to and gave special remarks at his alma mater Johns Hopkins University's 2020 Commencement ceremony.^[33] Other notable guest speakers during the virtual ceremony included Reddit co-founder and Commencement speaker Alexis Ohanian; philanthropist and former New York City Mayor, Michael Bloomberg; Anthony Fauci, director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases and a leading member of the White House Coronavirus Task Force; and senior class president Pavan Patel.^[34]

Bibliography[]

• The other Wes Moore : one name, two fates, New York : Spiegel & Grau, 2010. ISBN 9780385528191
• The maker, North Carolina : Provectus Media, 2011. ISBN 9781450711135
• Discovering Wes Moore : My Story, New York : Ember, 2013. ISBN 9780385741682
• The work : searching for a life that matters, New York : Spiegel & Grau, 2015. ISBN 9780812983845
• Wes Moore; Shawn Goodman, This way home, New York : Delacorte Press, 2015. ISBN 9780385741699
• Wes Moore; Erica L Green, Five days : the fiery reckoning of an American city, New York : One World, 2020. ISBN 9780525512363

References[]

External links[]

• Robin Hood Bio and Website
• BridgeEdU Bio and Website