Wes Moore

Westley "Wes" Watende Omari Moore (born October 15, 1978) is an American author, entrepreneur, television producer, and retired United States Army officer. Moore is the CEO of the Robin Hood Foundation.

This article is about the American author, social entrepreneur and television producer. For the basketball coach, see Wes Moore (basketball).
Wes Moore
Born
Westley Watende Omari Moore[1]

(1978-10-15) October 15, 1978
Baltimore, Maryland, U.S.
EducationJohns Hopkins University (BA)
Wolfson College, Oxford (MLitt)
Spouse(s)
Dawn Moore
​
(m. 2007)​
Military career
Service/branch United States Army
Battles/warsWar in Afghanistan
WebsiteOfficial website

Moore is the author of The Other Wes Moore and The Work, both of which are New York Times Bestsellers. He was also the host for Beyond Belief on the Oprah Winfrey Network, as well as the executive producer and a writer for Coming Back with Wes Moore on PBS.[2]

Moore is the founder and CEO of BridgeEdU, social enterprise dedicated to reinventing the freshman year and creating smoother transition to higher education for students entering their freshman year of college.[3]

Early life and education

Moore was born in Baltimore on October 15,[4] 1978,[5] to father William Westley Moore Jr.,[6] a 1971 Bard College graduate[7] and highly respected black American broadcast news journalist,[8] and mother Joy Thomas Moore, an immigrant from Lowe River, Jamaica, and a media professional.[9]

When he was three years old,[10] Moore's father died from acute epiglottitis, caused by a rare virus.[11] With his father being deceased, Moore's mother took him and his two sisters to live in the Bronx, New York, with their grandparents. His grandmother, Winell Thomas, a Cuban immigrant,[12] was a retired school teacher. His grandfather, Rev. Dr. James Thomas, a Jamaican immigrant,[12] was the first black minister in the history of the Dutch Reformed Church.[6]

Moore attended Riverdale Country School. At Riverdale, he encountered academic and disciplinary struggles. When Moore's grades declined and he became involved in petty crime, his mother enrolled him in Valley Forge Military Academy.[6]

After high school, Moore graduated Phi Theta Kappa from Valley Forge Military College, a junior college in Pennsylvania. He went on to attend Johns Hopkins University where he studied International Relations and Economics and graduated Omicron Delta Kappa and Phi Beta Kappa[13] in 2001. Immediately after, he attended the Wolfson College, Oxford as a Rhodes scholar where he earned a master's degree in International Relations.

Career

While living in London, Moore started a career in finance at Deutsche Bank in the international trade and finance division, but in 2005 he left to use his skills as a paratrooper and joined the 82nd Airborne Division of the United States Army in Afghanistan. Moore led a team of paratroopers and special operators who were trained in civil affairs, psychological operations, information operations and various other special operations command disciplines. Among the many awards he received was the Combat Action Badge.

Upon his return to the United States, Moore was accepted as a White House Fellow. He placed within the State Department's Office of U.S. Foreign Assistance Resources where he tracked foreign aid to ensure it was being used properly. He served at the White House for one year, then returned to New York to work in finance at Citigroup.

Literary work

Moore's first book, The Other Wes Moore, was published in 2010. This book and The Work are New York Times Bestsellers. Additionally, Discovering Wes Moore is a Young Adult edition of his bestselling book, and This Way Home, his first Young Adult novel, was released in the Fall of 2015.

The Other Wes Moore
Main article: The Other Wes Moore

The Other Wes Moore is the story of two young Baltimore boys that share the same name and race, but largely different familial histories and they travel down very different paths. While both grew up without the consistent presence of their biological father and got into trouble as youth, one, who was raised by his grandmother and grandfather and was born to two parents with college degrees, became a Rhodes scholar and leader, and the other, who was raised by a single mother who dropped out of college, was convicted of murder and is currently serving a life sentence. Wes Moore sets out to answer what made the difference through telling the story of young men trying to find their way in a seemingly broken world. The Other Wes Moore has been on both The New York Times and Wall Street Journal bestseller list.[6]

Discovering Wes Moore

Discovering Wes Moore is the Young Adult adaption to The Other Wes Moore. This book acts as a cautionary tale that is more accessible to a younger audience while maintaining the powerful message and story that was set out in The Other Wes Moore.[14]

The Work

The Work provides a tale of finding purpose and passion through the work a person does. This book retraces Moore's experiences around the globe that have led him to find his passion. Additionally, he tells the stories of a dozen other "change makers" and how they found their paths to purpose.[15]

This Way Home

This Way Home is a Young Adult novel about a high school star basketball player. Elijah faces a struggle that emerges from a standoff with a local gang after they attempt to recruit him to their basketball team. Elijah refuses to play for them and is faced with the consequences. Taking place in a pivotal time of a young adult's journey, this story is about discovering what truly matters in life.[16]

Productions

Moore is also involved in a variety of productions. He has hosted, directed and produced programs on OWN as well as CNN.

Future City

Future City is a series on Baltimore's WYPR station. In this interview based talk show, Wes Moore examines systemic issues in Baltimore. In each episode, Wes looks at bright ideas that are working in other cities.  And he asks the question: Can those ideas work for Baltimore?[17]

Coming Back with Wes Moore

Coming Back with Wes Moore, a series executive produced by author and former Army combat veteran Wes Moore, aired in three parts on consecutive Tuesdays beginning May 13, 2014, on PBS. The three episode series tells the story of Wes Moore's search for answers to some of the most difficult questions related to returning home from war. The show follows the personal lives of different soldiers as they attempt to reintegrate back into society, establish new identities, and find new missions. Each episode focuses on a different stage of coming home: "Coming Back", "Fitting In" and "Moving Forward".[18]

All the Difference

All the Difference is a documentary which seeks to understand why many boys of color have difficulty transitioning in higher education and what can be done about it. The program has been filmed over a period of five years and tells the stories of two young boys and their efforts to avoid the pitfalls of growing up in low-income, high risk Chicago communities and navigate higher education. The film is being made in cooperation with PBS and the Corporation for Public Broadcasting.

Media
Moore at Social Innovation Summit by New America in January 2020

Moore is a news contributor to various publications including The Wall Street Journal, The Huffington Post, The Baltimore Sun, The New York Times and many other publications. Moore regularly appears on various MSNBC programs including Hardball with Chris Matthews, Now with Alex Wagner, The Rachel Maddow Show, PoliticsNation, Meet The Press[19] and Morning Joe[20]

He has also made appearances on various notable programs including: Face the Nation, The Daily Show with Jon Stewart,[21] The Colbert Report,[22] and Real Time with Bill Maher[23]

Veterans activism

Moore is a vocal advocate for serving those who served in the military overseas. He has worked with various veterans groups, including Iraq Afghanistan Veterans of America and Things We Read, and is a member of the Veterans of Foreign Wars (VFW).

Moore has also presented a TED talk at TEDSalon NY2014 titled How to Talk to Veterans About the War.

Robin Hood Foundation

In April 2017, it was announced Moore would be appointed CEO of the Robin Hood Foundation, a charitable organization which attempts to alleviate problems caused by poverty in New York City. Founded in 1988, Robin Hood was conceived by hedge fund manager Paul Tudor Jones and co-founded with Peter Borish and Glenn Dubin.[24][25][26][27]

The foundation combines investment principles and philanthropy to assist programs that target poverty in New York City. This is accomplished mainly by funding schools, food pantries and shelters, however they also administer a relief fund for disasters.[28]

Beginning the position in June 2017, he is the organization's first chief executive officer in its 30-year history.[29] Guidestar Reports he earns over $800,000 per year in this role.

Honors and awards

On May 27, 2020, Moore was invited to and gave special remarks at his alma mater Johns Hopkins University's 2020 Commencement ceremony.[30] Other notable guest speakers during the virtual ceremony included Reddit co-founder and Commencement speaker Alexis Ohanian; philanthropist and former New York City Mayor, Michael Bloomberg; Anthony Fauci, director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases and a leading member of the White House Coronavirus Task Force; and senior class president Pavan Patel.[31]

Bibliography
  • The other Wes Moore : one name, two fates, New York : Spiegel & Grau, 2010. ISBN 9780385528191
  • The maker, North Carolina : Provectus Media, 2011. ISBN 9781450711135
  • Discovering Wes Moore : My Story, New York : Ember, 2013. ISBN 9780385741682
  • The work : searching for a life that matters, New York : Spiegel & Grau, 2015. ISBN 9780812983845
  • Wes Moore; Shawn Goodman, This way home, New York : Delacorte Press, 2015. ISBN 9780385741699
  • Wes Moore; Erica L Green, Five days : the fiery reckoning of an American city, New York : One World, 2020. ISBN 9780525512363

Press

References
  1. Wes Moore (2003). Discovering Wes Moore. Random House. p. 6.
  2. Moore, Wes. "Coming Back With Wes Moore". PBS.org. Retrieved 18 August 2015.
  3. Moore, Wes. "BridgeEdu". BridgeEdu. Retrieved 18 August 2015.
  4. Wes Moore (@WesMoore1) (October 15, 2015). "What a way to end my birthday!! @MDDailyRecord Thanks for making it unforgettable!!". Twitter. Retrieved April 18, 2016.
  5. "About the Author", www.theotherwesmoore.com, accessed July 15, 2015.
  6. Moore, Wes (11 January 2011). The Other Wes Moore. Random House Publishing Group. pp. 250. ISBN 9780385528207. Retrieved 18 August 2015.
  7. "Excerpt from The Other Wes Moore".
  8. "Wes Moore Scholarships". The Washington Post.
  9. "Joy Thomas Moore". MAEC, Inc. Retrieved 2020-12-27.
  10. "The Wes Moores: two fatherless boys, two very different paths". MinnPost. 2012-11-02. Retrieved 2020-12-27.
  11. Cheng, Allen (2020-10-07). "The Other Wes Moore Book Summary, by Wes Moore". Allen Cheng. Retrieved 2020-12-27.
  12. "Character List". The Other Wes Moore: One Name, Two Fates. Retrieved 2020-12-27.
  13. http://hub.jhu.edu/2013/04/17/wes-moore-education-commencement/
  14. Moore, Wes. "Discovering Wes Moore". Penguinrandomhouse.com. Penguin Random House. Retrieved 18 August 2015.
  15. Moore, Wes (13 January 2015). The Work. Random House Publishing. p. 272. ISBN 978-0812993578. Retrieved 19 August 2015.
  16. Moore, Wes (10 November 2015). This Way Home. Random House Childrens Books. p. 256. ISBN 978-0385741699. Retrieved 19 August 2015.
  17. "Future City". www.wypr.org. Retrieved 2019-07-03.
  18. https://www.pbs.org/coming-back-with-wes-moore/home/
  19. Meet the Press
  20. Morning Joe.
  21. The Daily Show with Jon Stewart
  22. The Colbert Report
  23. Real Time with Bill Maher
  24. Teltsch, Kathleen (May 9, 1991). "Nowadays, Robin Hood Gets the Rich to Give to the Poor". The New York Times.
  25. "The Emperors of Benevolence". New York Magazine. November 5, 2007.
  26. "Board of Directors – Peter Borish" Robin Hood
  27. Tom Brokaw (2012). The Time of Our Lives: A Conversation about America - Who We Are, Where We've Been, and Where We Need to Go Now, to Recapture the American Dream. Random House LLC. p. 159. Retrieved April 22, 2014. Peter Borish.
  28. "Wes Moore | Robin Hood". robinhood.org. Retrieved 2018-10-07.
  29. "Author Wes Moore Will Be CEO of Robin Hood Nonprofit". Fox Business. 2017-04-25. Retrieved 2017-04-25.
  30. Eva Chen (2020-05-21). "Johns Hopkins Alumni Welcome the Class of 2020". Johns Hopkins University. Retrieved July 1, 2020.
  31. Hub staff report (2020-05-21). "Senior class president Pavan Patel said the Class of 2020 is "ready to make its mark"". Retrieved June 25, 2020.
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