Kenneth W. Dam facts for kids
Quick facts for kids
Kenneth W. Dam
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| 8th United States Deputy Secretary of State | |
| In office September 23, 1982 – June 15, 1985 |
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| President | Ronald Reagan |
| Preceded by | Walter John Stoessel, Jr. |
| Succeeded by | John C. Whitehead |
| 9th United States Deputy Secretary of the Treasury | |
| In office January 20, 2001 – July 13, 2004 |
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| President | George W. Bush |
| Preceded by | Stuart E. Eizenstat |
| Succeeded by | Samuel Bodman |
| Personal details | |
| Born | August 10, 1932 Marysville, Kansas, U.S. |
| Died | May 31, 2022 (aged 89) Long Grove, Illinois, U.S. |
| Alma mater | University of Kansas (B.A.) University of Chicago Law School (J.D.) |
Kenneth Willard Dam (born August 10, 1932 – died May 31, 2022) was an important American lawyer and government official. He worked for two US Presidents, Ronald Reagan and George W. Bush.
He was the second-highest official in the United States Department of the Treasury from 2001 to 2004. In this role, he focused on helping countries around the world grow their economies. He also taught law at the University of Chicago Law School for many years.
Early Life and Education
Kenneth Dam grew up in Marysville, Kansas. He finished high school there in 1950. After that, he went to the University of Kansas and graduated in 1954.
He then studied law at the University of Chicago Law School, earning his law degree in 1957. After law school, he worked for a very important judge, Charles Evans Whittaker, who was a justice on the Supreme Court of the United States. This was from 1957 to 1958.
After his time with the Supreme Court, he worked at a law firm called Cravath, Swaine & Moore. In 1960, he became a law professor at the University of Chicago. He later became the provost of the university in 1980. A provost is a senior leader who helps manage the academic side of a university.
Government and Other Work
Kenneth Dam took breaks from teaching at the University of Chicago to work in the US government. He held several important jobs during Republican presidencies:
- He helped manage national security and international affairs at the Office of Management and Budget (1971–1973).
- He was the Executive Director of the White House Council on Economic Policy (1973).
- He served as the United States Deputy Secretary of State from 1982 to 1985. This role is the second-highest position in the US State Department.
After working for President Ronald Reagan, Dam joined IBM in 1985. He was a vice president there until 1992, focusing on legal and external relations.
In 1992, he became the president and CEO of the United Way of America. This is a large charity organization. He helped to fix problems and reorganize the staff and how the organization was run. After this, he went back to teaching law at the University of Chicago.
Kenneth Dam also worked as an arbitrator. This means he helped solve disagreements between different groups. For example, he helped settle issues between professional basketball players and the National Basketball Association from 1996 to 2001.
He was also part of several important groups that discuss public policy, like the Council on Foreign Relations. He was also a member of the board for Alcoa, a large company, for many years.
