AT : What inspired you to return to public service in 2019 after serving as corporate responsibility manager for JPMorgan Chase ?
RH : Well , answering that requires you to learn more about me . I am from North Carolina . I studied accounting , economics and political science at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill . While starting my career , I was also an intern at an accounting firm for many summers , even from high school at the accounting firm of Arthur Anderson . I knew I would go into business at some point , but when starting my career , I took a divergent path where I was a missionary . I did a short-term missionary assignment in Zambia and Zimbabwe ; I thought I would become an Episcopalian or Anglican priest . While I did not get the call to enter the priesthood , I went into financial services . The financial services I have done have been predicated upon helping underserved , marginalized communities . Through being a banker and now a regulator , I have still fulfilled my mission of helping the least fortunate . I have worked in community development , banking and affordable housing . I went to Wells Fargo as the director of affordable housing , working on financial literacy and homebuyer education and doing much outreach to groups like NeighborWorks America and Habitat for Humanity .
I left banking to go to the NCUA for the first time , where I was the vice chairman of the agency , and I was able to get involved with credit unions , which have this whole ethos of people helping people . When my term ended , I went to Wall Street , where I worked with JPMorgan in the real estate lending group , which centered around affordable housing and helping minority communities access affordable mortgage loan opportunities . From there , I went into corporate responsibility and that is where I learned how to think more broadly about economic development in terms of helping disabled and differently abled people . When the White House called me after my 10th year at JPMorgan asking if I would want to return to public service , I said yes because I was in a position in my life where I wanted to continue to give back . I wanted to use some of what I learned for 10 years on Wall Street around partnerships and disability rights and advocacy to continue to make a difference .
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