WASHINGTON, D.C. – The U.S. Government’s Millennium Challenge Corporation (MCC) today welcomed two representatives to its Board of Directors. Mike Johanns, former U.S. Senator, Secretary of the U.S. Department of Agriculture, and Governor joins the nine-member Board for the first time. With more than 30 years of public service, Johanns has worked at virtually every level of government in both the legislative and executive branches and has successfully led large and complex organizations.
Morton Halperin, senior advisor at the Open Society Foundations, re-joins the Board for a second term. He previously served on the MCC Board of Directors from January 2013 to January 2016. Both Johanns and Halperin were nominated by President Obama in December 2015 and confirmed by the U.S. Senate in February 2016.
“On behalf of the MCC Board of Directors, I am thrilled to welcome Mike Johanns, a recognized global leader in agriculture and development, to the Board,” MCC CEO Dana J. Hyde said. “I am also delighted that Morton Halperin, a champion for transparency and democracy, will be returning to our Board. Our private sector members bring valuable experience and insight to our work, and we look forward to collaborating with them in the months ahead to advance the MCC mission.”
Johanns served as a U.S. Senator from Nebraska between 2009 and 2015, and as U.S. Secretary of Agriculture from 2005 to 2007. He served as Governor of Nebraska from 1999 to 2005 and Mayor of Lincoln, Nebraska from 1991 to 1999. From 1989 to 1991, Johanns served on the Lincoln City Council, and from 1983 to 1987, he served on the Lancaster County Board of Commissioners. Johanns received a B.A. from St. Mary’s University of Minnesota and a J.D. from Creighton University.
Halperin has held several positions at the Open Society Foundations – formerly the Open Society Institute – since 2002. He has also held a number of leadership positions within the federal government as part of the Clinton, Nixon and Johnson administrations. From 1998-2001, he served as director of the policy planning staff at the U.S. State Department, and from 1994 to 1996, he served as special assistant to the president and senior director for democracy at the National Security Council.
Outside government, Halperin has held leadership positions at the Center for American Progress, the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace, the Brookings Institution, and the Council on Foreign Relations. He is the author of numerous books and articles, including Bureaucratic Politics and Foreign Policy, The Democracy Advantage, and Protecting Democracy. Halperin received a Ph.D. and master’s degree from Yale University and a bachelor’s degree from Columbia College.
MCC’s Board of Directors is comprised of the U.S. Secretary of State, the U.S. Secretary of the Treasury, the U.S. Trade Representative, the USAID administrator, the MCC CEO, and four non-governmental representatives. Private sector Board members are nominated by the President based on recommendations received from the minority and majority leaders of the U.S. House of Representatives and the U.S. Senate, and then confirmed by the U.S. Senate.
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The Millennium Challenge Corporation is an innovative and independent U.S. Government agency working to reduce global poverty through economic growth. Created by the U.S. Congress in January 2004, with strong bipartisan support, MCC provides time-limited grants and assistance to countries that demonstrate a commitment to good governance, investments in people and economic freedom. Learn more about MCC at www.mcc.gov.