The Clinton Community Library (CCL) is proud to present Conversations, a brand new guest speaker series featuring a variety of notable public figures and engaging global voices. For the inaugural event, CCL is partnering with Morton Memorial Library, Starr Library, and Tivoli Free Library to welcome Opal Vadhan. Vadhan served as Senior Advisor to former Vice President Kamala Harris and prior to that as Executive Assistant and Trip Director to former Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton.
During a 1-hour conversation titled “Women, Community and the American Dream” Vadhan will share the stories of five women, their communities and the enduring promise of the American dream. She will reflect on intimate stories from her time supporting the former Vice President and former Secretary of State, the support of her personal and professional relationships, and the lasting lessons she’s learned from working alongside the only two women ever nominated for President by a major political party. The conversation will then be followed with a 30-minute Q&A. This event is sponsored by Mirbeau Inn & Spa and Upstate Films.
Event Details
About The Speaker
Opal Vadhan is a distinguished public servant and trusted advisor who has worked at the
highest levels of American political leadership. A former Senior Advisor to Vice President
Kamala Harris, she previously spent five years supporting Secretary Hillary Rodham Clinton, making her one of the few people to have served in a high-trust role for the only two women to receive the Democratic nomination for President. Most recently, she served as a Pritzker Fellow and Practitioner in Residence at the University of Chicago Institute of Politics, where she taught a seminar series drawing on her decade of experience at the intersection of American politics and public service.
Vadhan began her career on Hillary Clinton's 2016 presidential campaign before going on to serve as Secretary Clinton's Executive Assistant and Trip Director from 2017 to 2021. She was also a collaborator on The Book of Gutsy Women, the New York Times bestselling book by Hillary Rodham Clinton and Chelsea Clinton. In 2021, she joined the Biden-Harris administration as Special Assistant to the President and Personal Aide to Vice President Harris, supporting the Vice President throughout the administration and the historic 107-day presidential campaign.
A first-generation Indian American raised in Queens, New York, Vadhan graduated from Pace University in 2015. Beyond government, she has remained deeply committed to service —working full-time with World Central Kitchen during the COVID-19 pandemic to help deliver more than eight million meals to New Yorkers in need, and receiving the Luminary Award from She's the First, a nonprofit advancing girls' education in underserved communities.
Over the past decade, Vadhan has been known for her empathy, leadership, and ability to make others feel seen and heard.
The Clinton Community Library does not endorse the views expressed by the speaker.
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Presented in partnership with Tivoli Free Library, Morton Memorial Library and Starr Library.