Obama Presidential Center Seeks 100 Unpaid Volunteers Ahead of Summer Opening — While CEO Valerie Jarrett Pockets $740K
The Obama Foundation is recruiting up to 100 unpaid volunteers to help operate the $850 million Obama Presidential Center in Chicago when it opens this summer.
The positions, described as part of a special volunteer initiative, will involve greeting visitors, directing guests around the campus, and explaining exhibits at the center’s museum tower, athletic facilities, and Chicago Public Library branch.
Foundation officials say the volunteers, referred to as “ambassadors,” will work alongside roughly 300 full- and part-time employees currently staffing the organization.
The recruitment drive comes as the foundation’s latest tax filings show that CEO Valerie Jarrett, a longtime Obama adviser, earned a massive $740,000 in compensation in 2024.
Financial records obtained by Fox News also show the organization’s payroll has expanded significantly in recent years.
Total salaries and benefits rose from $18.5 million in 2018 to $43.7 million in 2024, as staffing increased to 337 employees and annual revenue approached $210 million.
I’m the CEO of the Obama Foundation.
The Obama Presidential Center is an $850 million project in Jackson Park on the South Side of Chicago.
It will be the most expensive presidential center in American history.
We are building it with unpaid volunteers.
I need to explain what…
— Peter Girnus (@gothburz) March 15, 2026
The Obama Foundation’s headquarters is located in Chicago’s Hyde Park neighborhood, where it runs various leadership and community programs both in the United States and internationally.
Officials say the new presidential center will serve as a major cultural institution on Chicago’s South Side.
Obama’s presidential library looks like a large dumpster.
How appropriate.
This guy’s legacy deserves to end up in a dumpster. pic.twitter.com/jTuOuPZp8H
— Dinesh D’Souza (@DineshDSouza) March 15, 2026
The foundation has promoted the project as a driver of economic growth, citing projections of $3.1 billion in economic activity over the next decade along with 5,000 construction jobs tied to the development.
“Volunteerism has been central to President Obama’s vision of civic life since his earliest days as a community organizer on Chicago’s South Side,” the foundation said in a press release announcing the initiative.
Construction Photos of Obama Library Receive Harsh Reviews: ‘Looks Like a Prison’
Jarrett echoed that message, saying the center will be “a place where the world meets the best of the city of Chicago, and our volunteers will help bring that vision to life every day.”
The 19.3-acre campus is being built in Jackson Park and is scheduled to open on Juneteenth, the federal holiday commemorating the end of slavery in the United States.
Tax filings also show several other former Obama administration officials hold senior roles at the foundation and receive six-figure salaries.
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