Candidate for
Councilmember; City of Berkeley; District 5

Sophie Hahn: Experience, Leaderhship, Service

I grew up on Santa Barbara Road, in the heart of Berkeley's District 5. This area has been my home for almost 40 years. After attending Berkeley Public Schools, I went on to UC Berkeley, graduating Phi Beta Kappa. I continued at Stanford Law School, practiced law, worked in policy and governance at a large international organization, and started-up, grew and sold a small business. I am now raising my own family in District 5, blocks from my childhood home.

My father, an Emeritus UC Professor, came to the United States as a WWII refugee. My mother, a musician, is the daughter of Ellis Island immigrants. I was raised to give back to the community that has provided so much for us, and to champion equity, participation and opportunity for all.

Throughout my life I have participated in community leadership and service. I currently serve on the Board of the M3 Education Foundation, an organization I helped found to support African American boys in Berekley's Middle Schools, and am President of the PTA and Chair of the Governance Council at Martin Luther King Jr. Middle School. I have Chaired organizations and served on Boards, done pro bono legal work for a variety of social justice organizations, and more.

EDUCATION:

Berkeley Public Schools: Cragmont, Columbus, King, West Campus, and Berkeley High

UC Berkeley, BA, Phi Beta Kappa, with Honors

Stanford University School of Law, JD

Rutgers University School of Industrial Relations & Human Resources

LEADERSHIP, PRO BONO & COMMUNITY SERVICE:(Past & Present)

M3 Education Foundation, Founding Board Member

Planned Parenthood, Board

Maybeck Road Association, Chair

Step One School, Board

Martin Luther King Jr. Middle School PTA, President

Martin Luther King Jr. Middle School, School Governance Council, Chair

Prospect Sierra School Parent Association, Co-President

Equality NOW! (International Human Rights)

Thousand Flowers (Voter registration)

ACLU Reproductive Freedom Project

Contra Costa County Commission on the Status of Women

Women of Stanford Law, Co-Chair

East Palo Alto Community Law Project (Immigration/Asylum)

Henry Dunant Institute, Red Cross (Humanitarian Law)

California Rural Legal Assistance

Bay Area Women Against Rape (BAWAR)

PROFESSIONAL:

Attorney, retired

Policy and Governance, international organization

Owner and Co-CEO, small manufacturing and wholesale business

PERSONAL:

Married 19 years with three children

Daughter of UC Berkeley Professor of History Emeritus, and Musician, still residing in District 5

Admitted to the Bar, New York State (retired)

Fluent in Spanish & French