[District of Columbia, August 29, 2019] – The Washington Business Journal has selected DC Bar Foundation Chief Executive Officer, Kirra L. Jarratt, as one of twenty-five honorees for the 2019 Women Who Mean Business awards program. This award honors the region’s most influential business women of 2019 who have made a difference in their communities and are leaving a mark on the Washington-area community.
Ms. Jarratt joined the DC Bar Foundation in 2014. During her time at the Foundation, the organization’s revenue and staff have doubled in size, allowing the Foundation to help more District residents with civil legal aid needs. Integral to this growth has been Ms. Jarratt’s dedication to overhauling the Foundation’s infrastructure and operations, which she has accomplished by modernizing its systems, investing in technology, and reducing programmatic cycles. Under her leadership, the Foundation has intentionally expanded its profile beyond the legal community in order to partner with non-legal stakeholders who are focused on improving the lives of those within the District. These efforts have allowed the Foundation to be more intentional and strategic in its grantmaking.
Ms. Jarratt has dedicated over 25 years to working in the DC community. She began her career working as Counsel on the Senate Judiciary Committee to then Senator Joseph R. Biden Jr., then as Legislative Director to Congresswoman Eleanor Holmes Norton from 1994 to 1998. Upon leaving the Hill, Ms. Jarratt co-founded the law practice of Jarratt & Jarratt PLLC with her mother, where she focused her work from 1998 to 2004 on helping families navigate DC’s child welfare system. She then served in the District’s Office of the Attorney General as agency counsel to the Child and Family Services Agency and the Department of Youth Rehabilitation Services through 2008. Immediately before beginning at the DC Bar Foundation in 2014, Ms. Jarratt served as Legislative Counsel to the American Bar Association.
Ms. Jarratt currently serves on the boards of the National Conference of Bar Foundations and the Washington Improv Theater. She has a B.A. from Harvard, and a J.D. from the University of Michigan Law School. “It’s an honor to receive this recognition, which helps us shine a light on our ongoing work to make sure that DC’s civil justice system works for everyone, and not just those with wealth, power and knowledge,” says Jarratt.
The Women Who Mean Business awards program was established in 2004. Honorees are selected by an external panel of judges made up of alumni of the program and Washington Business Journal staff, and are chosen based on criteria including strong leadership skills, commitment to community service, and continuing success in their field. This year’s honorees will be recognized at the 16th annual Women Who Mean Business Awards, hosted by the Washington Business Journal on October 3, 2019.
About the DC Bar Foundation: For DC residents in poverty, we make strategic investments to strengthen and expand our civil legal aid network, addressing critical needs and improving our community. As the largest funder of civil legal aid in the District, we are a steadfast community partner, committed to protecting access to justice in life’s most pivotal moments.
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