Cheryl "Cherie" Klein

Cheryl “Cherie” Klein is the Strategic Advisor in the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID) Office of Civil Rights (OCR). She is committed to achieving excellence in government performance, universal access to federal programs and services, and stewardship of public resources.

Ms. Klein will serve as a White House Leadership Development Program Fellow in the Office of Management and Budget Office of Performance and Personnel Management. As a Senior Advisor for Equity, she looks forward to using her knowledge to help federal agencies remove barriers to equal access and participation in federal programs. Her curiosity and interest in diverse perspectives will be integral to the work of ensuring inclusive and equitable program design and delivery for all of the American public.

At USAID, Ms. Klein served in a variety of leadership positions in which she developed strategic and technical guidance across a range of agency functions, including as the Chief of Staff in the Executive Secretariat of the Prosper Africa U.S. Government Initiative, Acting OCR Deputy Director, Ebola Budget Officer on the Ebola Task Force, and Country Coordinator for Africa in the Office of Foreign Assistance at the U.S. Department of State.

Her interest in policy as a means to increase access and equity in federal programs has roots in her first federal position as Special Assistant to the Executive Director of the Presidential Task Force on Employment of Adults with Disabilities and her subsequent position as a Program Analyst who helped establish the U.S. Department of Labor Office of Disability Employment Policy.

Ms. Klein began her public service career as a volunteer, first in the U.S. Peace Corps in the Republic of Kiribati and then with AmeriCorps VISTA in Washington, D.C. Between volunteer stints, she worked in academia as a college administrator at the College of Micronesia-FSM, in Pohnpei, Federated States of Micronesia. Her interest in cultural diversity grew during her overseas experience and has remained a consistent value throughout her career.

Ms. Klein and her wife chose Washington, D.C., as their adopted hometown years ago and she continues to enjoy and explore the abundance of history, art, recreation, and culture the nation’s capital has to offer.

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