The University of Chicago Laboratory Schools (also known as Lab, Lab Schools, or U-High , abbreviated UCLS ) is a private , co-educational , day Pre-school and K-12 school in Chicago , Illinois . It is affiliated with the University of Chicago . Almost half of the students have a parent who is on the faculty or staff of the university .
128-483: The family of Barack Obama , the 44th president of the United States , is a prominent American family active in law, education, activism and politics. Obama 's immediate family circle was the first family of the United States from 2009 to 2017, and are the first such family of African-American descent. His immediate family includes his wife Michelle Obama and daughters Malia and Sasha. Obama's wider ancestry
256-729: A perpetual union between the states in November 1777 and sent it to the states for ratification . Under the Articles, which took effect on March 1, 1781, the Congress of the Confederation was a central political authority without any legislative power. It could make its own resolutions, determinations, and regulations, but not any laws, and could not impose any taxes or enforce local commercial regulations upon its citizens. This institutional design reflected how Americans believed
384-1033: A president of the United States in Congress Assembled to preside over its deliberation as a neutral discussion moderator . Unrelated to and quite dissimilar from the later office of president of the United States, it was a largely ceremonial position without much influence. In 1783, the Treaty of Paris secured independence for each of the former colonies. With peace at hand, the states each turned toward their own internal affairs. By 1786, Americans found their continental borders besieged and weak and their respective economies in crises as neighboring states agitated trade rivalries with one another. They witnessed their hard currency pouring into foreign markets to pay for imports, their Mediterranean commerce preyed upon by North African pirates , and their foreign-financed Revolutionary War debts unpaid and accruing interest. Civil and political unrest loomed. Events such as
512-634: A " Matthew Headrick Day" and the US House made a proclamation when then-student Headrick appeared on talk shows including Today after winning the Westinghouse . In response to the award, the Chicago Tribune wrote: "this ... is a ... school where being on the math team ... can actually enhance one's social status." The Finance Club was founded in 2015 with more than $ 100,000 of donated funds to invest. The 2019 boys soccer team won
640-511: A "disruptive" erosion of his ability to govern. Ford failed to win election to a full term and his successor, Jimmy Carter , failed to win re-election. Ronald Reagan , who had been an actor before beginning his political career, used his talent as a communicator to help reshape the American agenda away from New Deal policies toward more conservative ideology. With the Cold War ending and
768-409: A British document, based on a 1928 ordinance, recording his grandfather as 35 years old. The date of the document was estimated to be about 1930, which would mean that his grandfather had been born c. 1895 .) The Luo are given names related to the circumstances of their birth, and Onyango means "born in the early morning". Onyango was the fifth son of his mother, Nyaoke, who was the first of
896-573: A delegate for Virginia. When the Constitutional Convention convened in May 1787, the 12 state delegations in attendance ( Rhode Island did not send delegates) brought with them an accumulated experience over a diverse set of institutional arrangements between legislative and executive branches from within their respective state governments. Most states maintained a weak executive without veto or appointment powers, elected annually by
1024-463: A dominant figure in American politics. Historians believe Roosevelt permanently changed the political system by strengthening the presidency, with some key accomplishments including breaking up trusts, conservationism, labor reforms, making personal character as important as the issues, and hand-picking his successor, William Howard Taft . The following decade, Woodrow Wilson led the nation to victory during World War I , although Wilson's proposal for
1152-912: A fashion icon. Barack and Michelle Obama have two daughters: Malia Ann ( / m ə ˈ l iː ə / ), born July 4, 1998, and Natasha Marian (known as Sasha / ˈ s ɑː ʃ ə / ), born June 10, 2001. They were both delivered at University of Chicago Medical Center by their parents' friend and physician Anita Blanchard. Sasha was the youngest child to reside in the White House since John F. Kennedy Jr. arrived as an infant in 1961. In 2014, Malia and Sasha were named two of "The 25 Most Influential Teens of 2014" by Time magazine. Before his inauguration, President Obama published an open letter to his daughters in Parade magazine, describing what he wants for them and every child in America: "to grow up in
1280-473: A genealogy team at Ancestry.com , published in 2012, stated that Obama is likely descended from the African slave John Punch through his mother's Bunch line, with generations of African Americans who gradually "married white" and became landowners in colonial Virginia. The Bunches later moved to Tennessee; in 1834 a daughter moved to Kansas, where Obama's mother was born four generations later. Obama's mother
1408-545: A good deal of foreign and domestic policy without aid, interference or consent from Congress". Bill Wilson , board member of Americans for Limited Government , opined that the expanded presidency was "the greatest threat ever to individual freedom and democratic rule". Article I, Section 1 of the Constitution vests all lawmaking power in Congress's hands, and Article 1, Section 6, Clause 2 prevents
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#17327798755311536-629: A keynote address at the 2008 Democratic National Convention . She returned to speak at the 2012 Democratic National Convention , and again during the 2016 Democratic National Convention in Philadelphia , where she delivered a speech in support of the Democratic presidential nominee, and fellow first lady, Hillary Clinton . As first lady, Michelle Obama sought to become a role model for women, an advocate for poverty awareness, education, nutrition, physical activity and healthy eating, and became
1664-517: A mission cook and as a local herbalist . He joined the King's African Rifles during World War I. In 1949, Onyango spent at least six months in Kamiti Prison . He was tried in a magistrates' court either on charges of sedition or being a member of a banned organization. Records do not survive; all such documentation was routinely destroyed after six years by the colonial administration. Onyango
1792-466: A month after taking office. Presidents often grant pardons shortly before leaving office, like when Bill Clinton pardoned Patty Hearst on his last day in office; this is often controversial . Two doctrines concerning executive power have developed that enable the president to exercise executive power with a degree of autonomy. The first is executive privilege , which allows the president to withhold from disclosure any communications made directly to
1920-941: A panel with Freida Pinto and Meryl Streep moderated by CNN's Isha Sesay in Marrakesh and delivered a substantive amount of money to aid 62 million girls lacking access to formal education. They proceeded to Spain where Michelle delivered a message about the initiative. In August 2016, Sasha began working at Nancy's, a seafood restaurant in Martha's Vineyard, Massachusetts . In the fall of 2016, Malia went on an 83-day trip to Bolivia and Peru . In February 2017, Malia started an internship for Harvey Weinstein at The Weinstein Company film studio in New York City. In August 2017, Malia started attending Harvard University . Sasha graduated from Sidwell Friends in 2019 and began attending
2048-431: A presidential veto, it requires a two-thirds vote of both houses, which is usually very difficult to achieve except for widely supported bipartisan legislation. The framers of the Constitution feared that Congress would seek to increase its power and enable a "tyranny of the majority", so giving the indirectly elected president a veto was viewed as an important check on the legislative power. While George Washington believed
2176-438: A sexual harassment suit could proceed without delay, even against a sitting president. The 2019 Mueller report on Russian interference in the 2016 presidential election detailed evidence of possible obstruction of justice , but investigators declined to refer Donald Trump for prosecution based on a United States Department of Justice policy against indicting an incumbent president. The report noted that impeachment by Congress
2304-648: A shelter animal. On April 12, 2009, it was reported that the Obamas had adopted a six-month-old Portuguese Water Dog given to them as a gift by Senator Ted Kennedy ; Malia and Sasha named the dog Bo . The White House referred to Bo as the First Dog . In 2013, the family adopted a second Portuguese Water Dog named Sunny . As a high school student, Malia Obama spent a portion of the summer in 2014 and 2015 working in television studios in New York and Los Angeles. She spent
2432-612: A sitting American president led troops in the field", though James Madison briefly took control of artillery units in defense of Washington, D.C. , during the War of 1812 . Abraham Lincoln was deeply involved in overall strategy and in day-to-day operations during the American Civil War , 1861–1865; historians have given Lincoln high praise for his strategic sense and his ability to select and encourage commanders such as Ulysses S. Grant . The present-day operational command of
2560-550: A state visit by a foreign head of state, the president typically hosts a State Arrival Ceremony held on the South Lawn , a custom begun by John F. Kennedy in 1961. This is followed by a state dinner given by the president which is held in the State Dining Room later in the evening. As a national leader, the president also fulfills many less formal ceremonial duties. For example, William Howard Taft started
2688-424: A third. In addition, nine vice presidents have become president by virtue of a president's intra-term death or resignation . In all, 45 individuals have served 46 presidencies spanning 58 four-year terms. Joe Biden is the 46th and current president, having assumed office on January 20, 2021. President-elect Donald Trump is scheduled to be inaugurated as the 47th president on January 20, 2025. During
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#17327798755312816-596: A world with no limits on your dreams and no achievements beyond your reach, and to grow into compassionate, committed women who will help build that world". While living in Chicago, the Obamas kept busy schedules, as the Associated Press reported: "soccer, dance and drama for Malia, gymnastics and tap for Sasha, piano and tennis for both". In July 2008, the family gave an interview to the television series Access Hollywood . Obama later said they regretted allowing
2944-627: Is 8:1. According to the 2021 Lab Student Wellness Survey, 48% of girls and 25% of boys, for a total of 37% of students, identify as part of the LGBTQ community. In 2007 The Wall Street Journal ranked the high school fourth in the nation for its record of sending graduates to 8 elite colleges including its parent university, University of Chicago. U-High offers more than 150 different classes. All are college preparatory in nature and there are more than 30 Advanced Placement or Advanced Topic courses. High school students may also qualify to take classes at
3072-464: Is Madelyn Dunham's younger brother and Obama's great-uncle. He was born in 1925. Payne served during World War II in the U.S. Army 89th Infantry Division . Obama has often described Payne's role in liberating the Ohrdruf forced labor camp . There was brief media attention when Obama mistakenly identified the camp as Auschwitz during the campaign. In 2009, Payne spoke about his war experience: Ohrdruf
3200-521: Is Maya Soetoro-Ng's father. After his divorce from Dunham, Soetoro married Erna Kustina. They had two children, Yusuf Aji Soetoro (b. 1981) and Rahayu Nurmaida Soetoro (b. 1984). Maya Soetoro-Ng, Obama's half-sister, was born in Jakarta, Indonesia . She has a half-brother and half-sister, Yusuf and Aya Soetoro, from her father's second marriage. She is married to Canadian-American Konrad Ng, with whom she has two daughters, Suhaila and Savita. Maya Soetoro-Ng
3328-1011: Is a U.S. citizen. He was an assistant professor at the University of Hawaiʻi 's Academy of Creative Media. From 2011–2015, he was the Director of the Smithsonian's Asian Pacific American Program . Since 2016, he has been the Executive Director of The Shangri La Museum of Islamic Art, Culture & Design in Honolulu. He studied philosophy at McGill University and cultural studies at the University of Victoria before getting his PhD degree from University of Hawaiʻi at Mānoa . Ng studies "how minority and diaspora communities use cinema and digital media to engage in artistic and cultural representation and preservation, and community mobilization". From 2011 to 2016, he served as director of
3456-604: Is a teacher in Hawaii. Konrad Ng is Barack Obama's brother-in-law. He is of Overseas Chinese descent, and his parents are from Kudat and Sandakan , two small towns in Sabah, Malaysia . Ng and his younger brother, Perry, were born and raised in Burlington, Ontario , Canada. Perry Ng works for the University of Ottawa . He married Maya Soetoro-Ng at the end of 2003 in Hawaii. They have two daughters, Suhaila and Savita. Konrad Ng
3584-647: Is buried at the Punchbowl National Cemetery . Madelyn Dunham (née Madelyn Lee Payne) was Obama's maternal grandmother who worked in banking and became vice president of a bank in Hawaii. Obama grew up with her and remembered that when he was a child, his grandmother "read me the opening lines of the Declaration of Independence and told me about the men and women who marched for equality because they believed those words put to paper two centuries ago should mean something." Charles Thomas Payne
3712-413: Is head of the executive branch of the federal government and is constitutionally obligated to "take care that the laws be faithfully executed". The executive branch has over four million employees, including the military. Presidents make political appointments . An incoming president may make up to 4,000 upon taking office, 1200 of which must be confirmed by the U.S. Senate . Ambassadors , members of
3840-621: Is home to approximately 625 children in nursery through second grade. The building is named for Earl Shapiro, who graduated from Lab in 1956. The school has over 2,160 students in total from Pre-Kindergarten – Grade 12. Today the school is divided into a Nursery School (Pre-K and Kindergarten), Primary School (grades 1 and 2), Lower School (grades 3 through 5), Middle School (grades 6 through 8), and High School (grades 9 through 12). Many children begin in nursery school and continue through their high school graduation, and 75% of applications are for nursery school or 9th grade. The student/teacher ratio
3968-499: Is made up of people of Kenyan (Luo) , African-American , and Old Stock American (including originally English, Scots-Irish, Welsh, German, and Swiss) ancestry. Michelle LaVaughn Robinson Obama (born January 17, 1964) is an American lawyer, university administrator, and writer who served as the First Lady of the United States from 2009 to 2017. She is Barack Obama's wife, and was the first African-American first lady. Raised on
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4096-439: Is the maternal grandfather of Barack Obama. He served as a sergeant in the U.S. Army during World War II, enlisting just after the attacks on Pearl Harbor . He and his wife Madelyn Dunham raised Obama in Honolulu, Hawaii. In addition to Obama, Stanley is related to six US presidents: James Madison , Harry S. Truman , Lyndon B. Johnson , Jimmy Carter , George H. W. Bush , and George W. Bush . He died in Honolulu, Hawaii, and
4224-571: Is to be commander-in-chief of the army and navy of the United States. ... It would amount to nothing more than the supreme command and direction of the military and naval forces ... while that [the power] of the British king extends to the DECLARING of war and to the RAISING and REGULATING of fleets and armies, all [of] which ... would appertain to the legislature. [Emphasis in
4352-733: The American Revolutionary War , the Thirteen Colonies , represented by the Second Continental Congress in Philadelphia , declared themselves to be independent sovereign states and no longer under British rule. The affirmation was made in the Declaration of Independence , which was written predominantly by Thomas Jefferson and adopted unanimously on July 4, 1776, by the Second Continental Congress. Recognizing
4480-583: The Boy Scouts of America . University of Chicago Laboratory School The Laboratory Schools were founded by American educator John Dewey in 1896 in the Hyde Park neighborhood of Chicago . Calvin Brainerd Cady was director of the music department under Dewey. The school began as a progressive educational institution that goes from nursery school through 12th grade. The school
4608-535: The Cabinet , and various officers , are among the positions filled by presidential appointment with Senate confirmation. The power of a president to fire executive officials has long been a contentious political issue. Generally, a president may remove executive officials at will. However, Congress can curtail and constrain a president's authority to fire commissioners of independent regulatory agencies and certain inferior executive officers by statute . To manage
4736-601: The Jok'Obama , a clan belonging to the Luo people, the nation's second-largest ethnic group. Linguistically, Luo is one of the Nilotic languages . The Obama family is concentrated in the western Kenyan province of Nyanza . Paternal grandfather to Barack Obama, he was born Onyango Obama. (One source gives 1870–1975 as his dates of birth and death, possibly based on his tombstone in his home village.) Barack Obama relates finding in 1988
4864-719: The Kendu Bay area many people were baptized into the church, including Onyango. When he later converted to Islam, he took the first name Hussein . She said that he passed on the name of Hussein to his children, but not the religion. Onyango is sometimes referred to as Mzee Hussein Onyango Obama. The word mzee (meaning "elder") is a Kenyan honorific . To this day the Obama family in Kenya is divided between Seventh-day Adventists and Muslims. Also known as Akumu Nyanjoga and Sje. She
4992-763: The League of Nations was rejected by the Senate. Warren Harding , while popular in office, would see his legacy tarnished by scandals, especially Teapot Dome , and Herbert Hoover quickly became very unpopular after failing to alleviate the Great Depression . The ascendancy of Franklin D. Roosevelt in 1933 led further toward what historians now describe as the Imperial presidency . Backed by enormous Democratic majorities in Congress and public support for major change, Roosevelt's New Deal dramatically increased
5120-660: The Newburgh Conspiracy and Shays' Rebellion demonstrated that the Articles of Confederation were not working. Following the successful resolution of commercial and fishing disputes between Virginia and Maryland at the Mount Vernon Conference in 1785, Virginia called for a trade conference between all the states, set for September 1786 in Annapolis, Maryland , with an aim toward resolving further-reaching interstate commercial antagonisms. When
5248-696: The Smithsonian Asian Pacific American Center . Robert Wolfley, born in 1835, is one of Obama's maternal third great-grandfathers. He served as a private in Company A, 145th Ohio Infantry during the American Civil War . He died July 17, 1895, and is buried in the Olathe Memorial Cemetery in Olathe, Kansas . According to Ancestry.com 's research in 2012, using a combination of historical documents and yDNA analysis, genealogists found that John Punch ,
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5376-603: The South Side of Chicago, Michelle Obama is a graduate of Princeton University and Harvard Law School , and spent her early legal career working at the law firm Sidley Austin , where she met her husband. She subsequently worked as the associate dean of Student Services at the University of Chicago and the vice president for Community and External Affairs of the University of Chicago Medical Center . Barack and Michelle married in 1992. Michelle campaigned for her husband's presidential bid throughout 2007 and 2008, delivering
5504-559: The Supreme Court of the United States . However, these nominations require Senate confirmation before they may take office. Securing Senate approval can provide a major obstacle for presidents who wish to orient the federal judiciary toward a particular ideological stance. When nominating judges to U.S. district courts , presidents often respect the long-standing tradition of senatorial courtesy . Presidents may also grant pardons and reprieves . Gerald Ford pardoned Richard Nixon
5632-588: The U.S. Constitution emerged. As the nation's first president, George Washington established many norms that would come to define the office. His decision to retire after two terms helped address fears that the nation would devolve into monarchy, and established a precedent that would not be broken until 1940 and would eventually be made permanent by the Twenty-Second Amendment . By the end of his presidency, political parties had developed, with John Adams defeating Thomas Jefferson in 1796,
5760-664: The United Nations , is thought by historian Paul Heinegg to have likely been an African-American descendant of the Bunch family via South Carolina and Detroit , Michigan. Jonathan Singletary Dunham, born in 1640 in the Massachusetts Bay Colony , was one of Obama's maternal eighth great-grandfathers and is his earliest ancestor known to be born in North America. Obama's family in Kenya are members of
5888-469: The University of Michigan in the fall. Sasha transferred to the University of Southern California and graduated in 2023. Malia graduated from Harvard in 2021 and began working as a writer on the Amazon Prime Video television series Swarm . In spring 2023, Donald Glover confirmed that Malia was working on a short film for his production company; The Heart , starring Tunde Adebimpe ,
6016-610: The Watergate scandal , Congress enacted a series of reforms intended to reassert itself. These included the War Powers Resolution , enacted over Nixon's veto in 1973, and the Congressional Budget and Impoundment Control Act of 1974 that sought to strengthen congressional fiscal powers. By 1976, Gerald Ford conceded that "the historic pendulum" had swung toward Congress, raising the possibility of
6144-636: The Watergate scandal , the Supreme Court ruled in United States v. Nixon , 418 U.S. 683 (1974), that executive privilege did not apply in cases where a president was attempting to avoid criminal prosecution. When Bill Clinton attempted to use executive privilege regarding the Lewinsky scandal , the Supreme Court ruled in Clinton v. Jones , 520 U.S. 681 (1997), that
6272-490: The convention failed for lack of attendance due to suspicions among most of the other states, Alexander Hamilton of New York led the Annapolis delegates in a call for a convention to offer revisions to the Articles, to be held the next spring in Philadelphia . Prospects for the next convention appeared bleak until James Madison and Edmund Randolph succeeded in securing George Washington 's attendance to Philadelphia as
6400-500: The federal government and is the commander-in-chief of the United States Armed Forces . The power of the presidency has grown substantially since the first president, George Washington , took office in 1789. While presidential power has ebbed and flowed over time, the presidency has played an increasingly significant role in American political life since the beginning of the 20th century, carrying over into
6528-585: The 1830s and 1840s until debates over slavery began pulling the nation apart in the 1850s. Abraham Lincoln 's leadership during the Civil War has led historians to regard him as one of the nation's greatest presidents. The circumstances of the war and Republican domination of Congress made the office very powerful, and Lincoln's re-election in 1864 was the first time a president had been re-elected since Jackson in 1832. After Lincoln's assassination, his successor Andrew Johnson lost all political support and
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#17327798755316656-524: The 20th century, especially during the Cold War , the U.S. president was often called "the leader of the free world". Article II of the Constitution establishes the executive branch of the federal government and vests executive power in the president. The power includes the execution and enforcement of federal law and the responsibility to appoint federal executive, diplomatic, regulatory, and judicial officers. Based on constitutional provisions empowering
6784-434: The 21st century with notable expansions during the presidencies of Franklin D. Roosevelt and George W. Bush . In modern times, the president is one of the world's most powerful political figures and the leader of the world's only remaining superpower . As the leader of the nation with the largest economy by nominal GDP , the president possesses significant domestic and international hard and soft power . For much of
6912-751: The Anthropology Department at the University of Hawaiʻi at Mānoa and the Ann Dunham Soetoro Graduate Fellowships at the East–West Center (EWC) in Honolulu, Hawaii , are named in her honor. Obama has said that his mother was the dominant figure of his formative years. "The values she taught me continue to be my touchstone when it comes to how I go about the world of politics." Stanley Armour Dunham
7040-418: The Armed Forces is delegated to the Department of Defense and is normally exercised through the secretary of defense . The chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff and the Combatant Commands assist with the operation as outlined in the presidentially approved Unified Command Plan (UCP). The president has the power to nominate federal judges , including members of the United States courts of appeals and
7168-415: The Constitution grants to the president as commander-in-chief has been the subject of much debate throughout history, with Congress at various times granting the president wide authority and at others attempting to restrict that authority. The framers of the Constitution took care to limit the president's powers regarding the military; Alexander Hamilton explained this in Federalist No. 69 : The President
7296-490: The IHSA 1A state championship. The 2019 girls tennis team won the IHSA 1A state championship, becoming the first U-High girls team to win a state championship. The 2021 girls tennis team was also 1A state champion, and the team won the 1A state championship again in 2023. The boys tennis team won the 1A state championship in 2018 and again in 2024, making the 2023-24 school year the first time in school history that both girls and boys tennis teams won state championships in
7424-418: The Supreme Court dismissed a case brought by a former Union spy. However, the privilege was not formally recognized by the U.S. Supreme Court until United States v. Reynolds 345 U.S. 1 (1953), where it was held to be a common law evidentiary privilege. Before the September 11 attacks , use of the privilege had been rare, but increasing in frequency. Since 2001, the government has asserted
7552-483: The United States and other countries. Such agreements, upon receiving the advice and consent of the U.S. Senate (by a two-thirds majority vote), become binding with the force of federal law. While foreign affairs has always been a significant element of presidential responsibilities, advances in technology since the Constitution's adoption have increased presidential power. Where formerly ambassadors were vested with significant power to independently negotiate on behalf of
7680-578: The United States becoming the world's undisputed leading power, Bill Clinton , George W. Bush , and Barack Obama each served two terms as president. Meanwhile, Congress and the nation gradually became more politically polarized, especially following the 1994 mid-term elections that saw Republicans control the House for the first time in 40 years, and the rise of routine filibusters in the Senate in recent decades. Recent presidents have thus increasingly focused on executive orders , agency regulations, and judicial appointments to implement major policies, at
7808-423: The United States, presidents now routinely meet directly with leaders of foreign countries. One of the most important of executive powers is the president's role as commander-in-chief of the United States Armed Forces . The power to declare war is constitutionally vested in Congress, but the president has ultimate responsibility for the direction and disposition of the military. The exact degree of authority that
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#17327798755317936-554: The United States. The Debate Team has won numerous national circuit tournaments. Organized by the Office of Alumni Relations Development, members of the student body at U-High are nominated by faculty to serve in the Maroon Key Society. The Maroon Key Society serve as ambassadors for the school, and they help provide tours to visiting alumni, potential students, and other guests to the school. The high school's extracurricular activities occasionally make national and international news. For example, in 1990 then-Governor Thompson declared
8064-456: The University of Chicago at no extra charge, and about 20 do so each year. The average composite ACT score is 31.5. The school maintains four separate libraries which collectively hold over 110,000 volumes. High school students may choose from over 40 different clubs and activities. The high school math, science, and Model UN teams are regular contenders for – and winners of – state titles. The school's newspaper/website, The U-High Midway, and
8192-402: The White House". Presidents have been criticized for making signing statements when signing congressional legislation about how they understand a bill or plan to execute it. This practice has been criticized by the American Bar Association as unconstitutional. Conservative commentator George Will wrote of an "increasingly swollen executive branch" and "the eclipse of Congress". To allow
8320-437: The children to be included. Malia and Sasha both graduated from the private Sidwell Friends School in Washington, D.C. , the same school that Chelsea Clinton , Tricia Nixon Cox , Archibald Roosevelt and the grandchildren of Joe Biden (when he was Vice President ) attended. The Obama girls began classes there on January 5, 2009; Malia graduated in 2016. Before the family moved to Washington in 2009, both girls attended
8448-447: The contribution made by his wife Alice Dewey to the development of the school in its early years. The Laboratory Schools consists of two interrelated campuses. The Historic Campus, located at 1362 East 59th Street, fills two full city blocks and is known for its Modern Gothic style architecture. It houses grades 3–12 (about 1,200 students) in five connected buildings: Blaine Hall (built in 1903), Belfield Towers (1904), Judd Hall (1931),
8576-485: The death of William Henry Harrison and subsequent poor relations between John Tyler and Congress led to further weakening of the office. Including Van Buren, in the 24 years between 1837 and 1861, six presidential terms would be filled by eight different men, with none serving two terms. The Senate played an important role during this period, with the Great Triumvirate of Henry Clay , Daniel Webster , and John C. Calhoun playing key roles in shaping national policy in
8704-457: The deposed British system of Crown and Parliament ought to have functioned with respect to the royal dominion : a superintending body for matters that concerned the entire empire. The states were out from under any monarchy and assigned some formerly royal prerogatives (e.g., making war, receiving ambassadors, etc.) to Congress; the remaining prerogatives were lodged within their own respective state governments. The members of Congress elected
8832-413: The edge of Lake Victoria . (She should not be confused with her stepdaughter of the same name, Sarah Obama , a daughter of Onyango's second wife Akumu.) President of the United States [REDACTED] [REDACTED] The president of the United States ( POTUS ) is the head of state and head of government of the United States of America . The president directs the executive branch of
8960-461: The executive branch may draft legislation and then ask senators or representatives to introduce these drafts into Congress. Additionally, the president may attempt to have Congress alter proposed legislation by threatening to veto that legislation unless requested changes are made. Many laws enacted by Congress do not address every possible detail, and either explicitly or implicitly delegate powers of implementation to an appropriate federal agency. As
9088-407: The expense of legislation and congressional power. Presidential elections in the 21st century have reflected this continuing polarization, with no candidate except Obama in 2008 winning by more than five percent of the popular vote and two, George W. Bush and Donald Trump , winning in the Electoral College while losing the popular vote. The nation's Founding Fathers expected the Congress , which
9216-504: The federal government by issuing various types of directives , such as presidential proclamation and executive orders . When the president is lawfully exercising one of the constitutionally conferred presidential responsibilities, the scope of this power is broad. Even so, these directives are subject to judicial review by U.S. federal courts, which can find them to be unconstitutional. Congress can overturn an executive order through legislation. Article II, Section 3, Clause 4 requires
9344-458: The fighting through France, Italy and Germany. Eleanor Dunham, Obama's great-aunt, was the younger sister of Stanley Armour Dunham and Ralph Dunham. Married to Ralph Lee Berkebile. She was the youngest daughter of Ralph Waldo Emerson Dunham Sr. and his second wife, Martha Mae Stonehouse. She retired from civil service as an executive secretary. Margaret Arlene Payne, Obama's great-aunt, was the younger sister of Madelyn Dunham and Charles Payne. She
9472-539: The first U.S. president, firmly established military subordination under civilian authority . In 1794, Washington used his constitutional powers to assemble 12,000 militia to quell the Whiskey Rebellion , a conflict in Western Pennsylvania involving armed farmers and distillers who refused to pay an excise tax on spirits. According to historian Joseph Ellis , this was the "first and only time
9600-520: The first documented African slave in the Colony of Virginia , has been documented as likely an eleventh great-grandfather of Obama through his mother, Ann Dunham, and her Bunch ancestors. With intermarriage, there were eventually both white and African-American lines of descent from Punch; some Bunch descendants were classified as white by the early 18th century. Other Bunch descendants were considered free people of color . Ralph Bunche , American delegate to
9728-536: The first truly contested presidential election. After Jefferson defeated Adams in 1800, he and his fellow Virginians James Madison and James Monroe would each serve two terms, eventually dominating the nation's politics during the Era of Good Feelings until Adams' son John Quincy Adams won election in 1824 after the Democratic-Republican Party split. The election of Andrew Jackson in 1828
9856-506: The five wives of his father, Obama. Barack Obama relates how his step-grandmother Granny Sarah ( Sarah Onyango Obama ) describes his grandfather: "Even from the time that he was a boy, your grandfather Onyango was strange. It is said of him that he had ants up his anus, because he could not sit still." As a young man, Onyango learned to speak, read and write in English, the language of British colonial administration in Kenya. Onyango worked as
9984-417: The government to act quickly in case of a major domestic or international crisis arising when Congress is not in session, the president is empowered by Article II, Section 3 of the Constitution to call a special session of one or both houses of Congress. Since John Adams first did so in 1797, the president has called the full Congress to convene for a special session on 27 occasions. Harry S. Truman
10112-661: The growing federal bureaucracy, presidents have gradually surrounded themselves with many layers of staff, who were eventually organized into the Executive Office of the President of the United States . Within the Executive Office, the president's innermost layer of aides, and their assistants, are located in the White House Office . The president also possesses the power to manage operations of
10240-474: The head of the executive branch, presidents control a vast array of agencies that can issue regulations with little oversight from Congress. In the 20th century, critics charged that too many legislative and budgetary powers that should have belonged to Congress had slid into the hands of presidents. One critic charged that presidents could appoint a "virtual army of 'czars'—each wholly unaccountable to Congress yet tasked with spearheading major policy efforts for
10368-496: The high school (built in 1960), the middle school (1993), and Gordon Parks Arts Hall (2015) which has 100 classrooms. Two connected gymnasiums also sit on this campus, Sunny Gym (built in 1929) and Kovler Gymnasium (built in 2000) and students have access to both Scammon Garden and Jackman Field. In September 2013, Lab opened Earl Shapiro Hall on its new Early Childhood Campus located at 5800 S. Stony Island Avenue . This new building, designed by Valerio Dewalt Train and FGM Architects,
10496-554: The junior Barack. Aunt of U.S. President Obama and younger sister of his father, born to Hussein Onyango and second wife Habiba Akumu Obama. Sarah Onyango Obama was the third wife of Obama's paternal grandfather. She was known for short as Sarah Obama; she was sometimes referred to as Sarah Ogwel, Sarah Hussein Obama, or Sarah Anyango Obama. She lived in Nyang'oma Kogelo village, 30 miles west of western Kenya 's main town, Kisumu , on
10624-422: The legislature to a single term only, sharing power with an executive council, and countered by a strong legislature. New York offered the greatest exception, having a strong, unitary governor with veto and appointment power elected to a three-year term, and eligible for reelection to an indefinite number of terms thereafter. It was through the closed-door negotiations at Philadelphia that the presidency framed in
10752-539: The most recent immigrant on the maternal side of Barack Obama's family tree. Fulmoth married Charlotte Holloway and raised a family which included three daughters (including Mary Ann). She and two of her sisters married three Dunham brothers. Kearney and his wife are buried in Fairview Cemetery in Labette County, Kansas . Descendants placed a headstone there in 2014. Around the same time, a photo of him
10880-563: The name Habiba upon her conversion to Islam in her second marriage, to Salmin Orinda, a Muslim from Wagwe, near Homa Hills, South Nyanza. A photograph of her holding her son, Barack Sr., on her lap is on the cover of her grandson's memoir. (See image at right margin.) Aunt of U.S. President Obama and elder sister of his father, daughter of Hussein Onyango and his second wife, Habiba Akumu Obama. (She should not be confused with her stepmother Sarah Onyango Obama , also often called just Sarah Obama,
11008-539: The necessity of closely coordinating their efforts against the British , the Continental Congress simultaneously began the process of drafting a constitution that would bind the states together. There were long debates on a number of issues, including representation and voting, and the exact powers to be given the central government. Congress finished work on the Articles of Confederation to establish
11136-512: The office as a position of global leadership. His successors, Harry Truman and Dwight D. Eisenhower , each served two terms as the Cold War led the presidency to be viewed as the " leader of the free world ", while John F. Kennedy was a youthful and popular leader who benefited from the rise of television in the 1960s. After Lyndon B. Johnson lost popular support due to the Vietnam War and Richard Nixon 's presidency collapsed in
11264-423: The original.] In the modern era, pursuant to the War Powers Resolution , Congress must authorize any troop deployments longer than 60 days, although that process relies on triggering mechanisms that have never been employed, rendering it ineffectual. Additionally, Congress provides a check to presidential military power through its control over military spending and regulation. Presidents have historically initiated
11392-524: The president (and all other executive branch officers) from simultaneously being a member of Congress. Nevertheless, the modern presidency exerts significant power over legislation, both due to constitutional provisions and historical developments over time. The president's most significant legislative power derives from the Presentment Clause , which gives the president the power to veto any bill passed by Congress . While Congress can override
11520-406: The president believes are needed. Additionally, the president can attempt to shape legislation during the legislative process by exerting influence on individual members of Congress. Presidents possess this power because the Constitution is silent about who can write legislation, but the power is limited because only members of Congress can introduce legislation. The president or other officials of
11648-461: The president in the performance of executive duties. George Washington first claimed the privilege when Congress requested to see Chief Justice John Jay 's notes from an unpopular treaty negotiation with Great Britain . While not enshrined in the Constitution or any other law, Washington's action created the precedent for the privilege. When Nixon tried to use executive privilege as a reason for not turning over subpoenaed evidence to Congress during
11776-556: The president is authorized to adjourn Congress if the House and Senate cannot agree on the time of adjournment; no president has ever had to exercise this power. Suffice it to say that the President is made the sole repository of the executive powers of the United States, and the powers entrusted to him as well as the duties imposed upon him are awesome indeed. Nixon v. General Services Administration , 433 U.S. 425 (1977) ( Rehnquist, J. , dissenting ) The president
11904-422: The president personally has absolute immunity from court cases is contested and has been the subject of several Supreme Court decisions. Nixon v. Fitzgerald (1982) dismissed a civil lawsuit against by-then former president Richard Nixon based on his official actions. Clinton v. Jones (1997) decided that a president has no immunity against civil suits for actions taken before becoming president and ruled that
12032-505: The president to "receive Ambassadors." This clause, known as the Reception Clause, has been interpreted to imply that the president possesses broad power over matters of foreign policy, and to provide support for the president's exclusive authority to grant recognition to a foreign government. The Constitution also empowers the president to appoint United States ambassadors, and to propose and chiefly negotiate agreements between
12160-457: The president to appoint and receive ambassadors and conclude treaties with foreign powers, and on subsequent laws enacted by Congress, the modern presidency has primary responsibility for conducting U.S. foreign policy. The role includes responsibility for directing the world's most expensive military , which has the second-largest nuclear arsenal . The president also plays a leading role in federal legislation and domestic policymaking. As part of
12288-516: The president to recommend such measures to Congress which the president deems "necessary and expedient". This is done through the constitutionally-based State of the Union address, which usually outlines the president's legislative proposals for the coming year, and through other formal and informal communications with Congress. The president can be involved in crafting legislation by suggesting, requesting, or even insisting that Congress enact laws that
12416-494: The president's veto power with the Line Item Veto Act . The legislation empowered the president to sign any spending bill into law while simultaneously striking certain spending items within the bill, particularly any new spending, any amount of discretionary spending, or any new limited tax benefit. Congress could then repass that particular item. If the president then vetoed the new legislation, Congress could override
12544-508: The president. The state secrets privilege allows the president and the executive branch to withhold information or documents from discovery in legal proceedings if such release would harm national security . Precedent for the privilege arose early in the 19th century when Thomas Jefferson refused to release military documents in the treason trial of Aaron Burr and again in Totten v. United States 92 U.S. 105 (1876), when
12672-568: The president. In recent decades, presidents have also made increasing use of executive orders , agency regulations, and judicial appointments to shape domestic policy. The president is elected indirectly through the Electoral College to a four-year term, along with the vice president . Under the Twenty-second Amendment , ratified in 1951, no person who has been elected to two presidential terms may be elected to
12800-404: The previous thirty years worked towards "undivided presidential control of the executive branch and its agencies". She criticized proponents of the unitary executive theory for expanding "the many existing uncheckable executive powers—such as executive orders, decrees, memorandums, proclamations, national security directives and legislative signing statements—that already allow presidents to enact
12928-438: The private University of Chicago Laboratory School . In his victory speech on the night of his election, President Obama repeated his promise to Sasha and Malia to get a puppy to take with them to the White House. The selection was slow because Malia is allergic to animal dander; the president subsequently said that the choice had been narrowed down to either a labradoodle or a Portuguese Water Dog , and that they hoped to find
13056-424: The privilege also could not be used in civil suits. These cases established the legal precedent that executive privilege is valid, although the exact extent of the privilege has yet to be clearly defined. Additionally, federal courts have allowed this privilege to radiate outward and protect other executive branch employees but have weakened that protection for those executive branch communications that do not involve
13184-515: The privilege in more cases and at earlier stages of the litigation, thus in some instances causing dismissal of the suits before reaching the merits of the claims, as in the Ninth Circuit 's ruling in Mohamed v. Jeppesen Dataplan, Inc. Critics of the privilege claim its use has become a tool for the government to cover up illegal or embarrassing government actions. The degree to which
13312-500: The process for going to war, but critics have charged that there have been several conflicts in which presidents did not get official declarations, including Theodore Roosevelt 's military move into Panama in 1903, the Korean War , the Vietnam War , and the invasions of Grenada in 1983 and Panama in 1989. The amount of military detail handled personally by the president in wartime has varied greatly. George Washington,
13440-493: The size and scope of the federal government, including more executive agencies. The traditionally small presidential staff was greatly expanded, with the Executive Office of the President being created in 1939, none of whom require Senate confirmation. Roosevelt's unprecedented re-election to a third and fourth term, the victory of the United States in World War II , and the nation's growing economy all helped established
13568-861: The subject and hoped to carry the secret to her grave". But her daughter Madelyn Dunham (Obama's maternal grandmother) "would turn her head in profile to show off her beaked nose, which along with a pair of jet-black eyes, was offered as proof of Cherokee blood". To date, no concrete evidence has surfaced of Cherokee heritage in the McCurry line. Obama's family said that his paternal great-grandmother, Ruth Dunham, died November 26, 1926, from ptomaine poisoning. She resided in Topeka, Kansas. A maternal 3rd great-grandfather of Barack Obama, nicknamed "Fully". Born c. 1829 in Moneygall , King's County , Ireland, he emigrated to Ohio via New York in 1850, making him
13696-666: The summer of 2016 working as an intern in the U.S. Embassy in Madrid, Spain . During the week June 26, 2016, to July 3, 2016, Michelle, Sasha, Malia, and Michelle's mother Marian Robinson went to Liberia to promote the Let Girls Learn Peace initiative, for which the United States has provided $ 27 million in aid. They met with Ellen Johnson Sirleaf , the former president of Liberia and the first elected female head of state in Africa. Then they went to Morocco, where they had
13824-462: The system of separation of powers , Article I, Section 7 of the Constitution gives the president the power to sign or veto federal legislation. Since modern presidents are typically viewed as leaders of their political parties, major policymaking is significantly shaped by the outcome of presidential elections, with presidents taking an active role in promoting their policy priorities to members of Congress who are often electorally dependent on
13952-487: The third wife of Onyango.) Barack Obama Sr., father of Barack Obama, was the son of Onyango and his second wife Habiba Akumu Obama. Educated in the US at the University of Hawaiʻi and Harvard University , he returned to Kenya, where he became an economist with the government. He served in the ministries of transportation and finance. Barack Obama Sr. married three times, and he fathered a daughter and at least five sons including
14080-622: The tradition of throwing out the ceremonial first pitch in 1910 at Griffith Stadium , Washington, D.C., on the Washington Senators's Opening Day . Every president since Taft, except for Jimmy Carter , threw out at least one ceremonial first ball or pitch for Opening Day, the All-Star Game , or the World Series , usually with much fanfare. Every president since Theodore Roosevelt has served as honorary president of
14208-407: The veto by its ordinary means, a two-thirds vote in both houses. In Clinton v. City of New York , 524 U.S. 417 (1998), the U.S. Supreme Court ruled such a legislative alteration of the veto power to be unconstitutional. For most of American history, candidates for president have sought election on the basis of a promised legislative agenda. Article II, Section 3, Clause 2 requires
14336-528: The veto should only be used in cases where a bill was unconstitutional, it is now routinely used in cases where presidents have policy disagreements with a bill. The veto – or threat of a veto – has thus evolved to make the modern presidency a central part of the American legislative process. Specifically, under the Presentment Clause, once a bill has been presented by Congress, the president has three options: In 1996, Congress attempted to enhance
14464-594: The visitor's gallery at the Democratic National Convention in Denver, Colorado, when his great-nephew was nominated for President. He was the assistant director of the University of Chicago 's Library. Ralph Dunham was Stanley Dunham's older brother and Obama's great-uncle, who served in the U.S. Army as an assignment and personnel officer during World War II. He landed at Normandy's Omaha Easy Red Beach on D-Day plus four, and moved with troops in
14592-411: The yearbook, U-Highlights, regularly win state and national awards, as does its arts magazine, Renaissance . Other popular activities include theater, identity and affinity clubs, Student Council, policy debate, and Model UN. The Model UN team is consistently ranked among the top in the nation, and is world-renowned for its competitive excellence. In 2011, it was ranked the #2 High School Model UN team in
14720-743: Was Barack Obama's paternal grandmother , and the second wife of Hussein Onyango Obama. She had three children with Onyango: daughters Sarah and Auma, and son Barack (Barack Obama's father). Her father was named Njango or Njoga, and she was born and raised in the Western Kenyan village of Karabondi . In his memoir Dreams from My Father , Obama wrote that Akumu was miserable in her marriage and abandoned Onyango Obama and her children with him. She subsequently married again and moved to Tanganyika, now Tanzania . Her name Akumu means "mysterious birth". Her mother conceived her after having given birth to another child and before resuming her menses . Akumu took
14848-409: Was a professor of nutrition who taught at the University of Missouri , Kansas City, and at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill (1980–1990). She wrote numerous research articles and two books. Obama's family said that his maternal great-grandmother, Leona McCurry, was part Native American. She reportedly held that as a "source of considerable shame" and "blanched whenever someone mentioned
14976-569: Was a significant milestone, as Jackson was not part of the Virginia and Massachusetts elite that had held the presidency for its first 40 years. Jacksonian democracy sought to strengthen the presidency at the expense of Congress, while broadening public participation as the nation rapidly expanded westward. However, his successor, Martin Van Buren , became unpopular after the Panic of 1837 , and
15104-412: Was an attempt to create a unified school system from the kindergarten to university. Managed by the university's Department of Philosophy, Psychology, and Education, it served as a laboratory to test hypotheses and build on the knowledge about education because John Dewey, who became head of the department in 1894, wanted to test certain ideas of his. Dewey acknowledges in his book How We Think (1910)
15232-726: Was announced as part of the Short Cuts program at the 2023 Toronto International Film Festival . Written and directed by "Malia Ann" (her credited name), the film screened at the 2024 Sundance Film Festival . Marian Robinson , Michelle Obama's mother, resided in the White House during the Obama presidency. Barack Obama was raised by his mother, Stanley Ann Dunham , and maternal grandparents Madelyn and Stanley Dunham . He often referred to his family during his candidacy and two terms as president. Obama's maternal heritage consists mostly of English ancestry, with smaller amounts of German , Scotch-Irish, Welsh, and Swiss ancestry. Research by
15360-517: Was available as a remedy. As of October 2019, a case was pending in the federal courts regarding access to personal tax returns in a criminal case brought against Donald Trump by the New York County District Attorney alleging violations of New York state law. As head of state , the president represents the United States government to its own people and represents the nation to the rest of the world. For example, during
15488-555: Was born Stanley Ann Dunham. She became an anthropologist, specializing in economic anthropology and rural development. She earned her PhD degree from the University of Hawaiʻi at Mānoa and worked with the United States Agency for International Development , the Ford Foundation , and Women's World Banking, to promote the use of microcredit in order to combat global poverty. The Ann Dunham Soetoro Endowment in
15616-508: Was discovered. Barack Obama visited Moneygall in 2011. In 2014, " Barack Obama Plaza ", a service station and visitor center, was opened in Moneygall. In 2015, a photograph of Kearney was discovered and made publicly available. In 2018, statues of Michelle and Barack were erected in Moneygall. Lolo Soetoro, Javanese given name: Martodihardjo , was the second husband of Ann Dunham (married on March 15, 1965) and stepfather to Barack Obama. He
15744-464: Was in that string of towns going across, south of Gotha and Erfurt . Our division was the first one in there. When we arrived there were no German soldiers anywhere around that I knew about. There was no fighting against the Germans, no camp guards. The whole area was overrun by people from the camp dressed in the most pitiful rags, and most of them were in a bad state of starvation. Payne appeared in
15872-539: Was nearly removed from office, with Congress remaining powerful during the two-term presidency of Civil War general Ulysses S. Grant . After the end of Reconstruction , Grover Cleveland would eventually become the first Democratic president elected since before the war, running in three consecutive elections (1884, 1888, 1892) and winning twice. In 1900, William McKinley became the first incumbent to win re-election since Grant in 1872. After McKinley's assassination by Leon Czolgosz in 1901, Theodore Roosevelt became
16000-547: Was now an old man." Onyango was permanently scarred, suffering pain and requiring assistance in moving until his death. Although previously he had worked closely with the British, Onyango became bitterly anglophobic after his experiences in Kamiti Prison. According to his third wife, Sarah, Onyango had converted from tribal religion to Roman Catholicism early in life. When Seventh-day Adventist missionaries visited
16128-489: Was the first branch of government described in the Constitution , to be the dominant branch of government; however, they did not expect a strong executive department. However, presidential power has shifted over time, which has resulted in claims that the modern presidency has become too powerful, unchecked, unbalanced, and "monarchist" in nature. In 2008 professor Dana D. Nelson expressed belief that presidents over
16256-752: Was the most recent to do so in July 1948, known as the Turnip Day Session . In addition, prior to ratification of the Twentieth Amendment in 1933, which brought forward the date on which Congress convenes from December to January, newly inaugurated presidents would routinely call the Senate to meet to confirm nominations or ratify treaties. In practice, the power has fallen into disuse in the modern era as Congress now formally remains in session year-round, convening pro forma sessions every three days even when ostensibly in recess. Correspondingly,
16384-531: Was then subject to torture due to suspicions that he was an associate of the Mau Mau rebels . In his memoir, Obama recounted family descriptions of his grandfather's shocking physical state when released from prison: "When he returned to Alego he was very thin and dirty. He had difficulty walking, and his head was full of lice ." For some time, he was too traumatized to speak about his experiences. His wife told his grandson Obama: "From that day on, I saw that he
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