Amrit Mehra serves as Director of Employment and Opportunity Youth at Thrive Chicago, overseeing several youth employment initiatives including a citywide campaign to reconnect Chicago’s 16-24 year-olds back to school and work.
Prior to Thrive, Amrit served in the Bloomberg Philanthropies Innovation Team in the Office of Mayor Rahm Emanuel, where he provided analytical and project management support on youth violence, high school transition, and multi-agency performance management initiatives. Previously, Amrit worked in a various appointed roles in the Obama Administration, including policy advisor in the Appalachian Regional Commission, an independent agency focused on promoting sustainable economic development in the historically distressed region, and special assistant to the Administrator of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration. Amrit was also a legislative aide in the Office of Senator Barack Obama, and an Emerson National Hunger Fellow placed at the Hunger Task Force in Milwaukee and the Center on Budget and Policy Priorities, a think tank focused on federal anti-poverty policy.
Amrit holds a B.A. with honors and Masters of Public Policy with a certificate in municipal finance from the University of Chicago. He likes Korean BBQ and making pancakes for his family.
Amrit Mehra is a member of the Chicagoland Workforce Leadership Academy, Class of 2019, one of several Workforce Leadership Academies in localities across North America.
The Workforce Leadership Academies are part of the Economic Opportunity Fellows Network, a network of leadership and fellowship programs run by the Aspen Institute Economic Opportunities Program. Within this Network, EOP connects national and local leaders from across sectors — nonprofit, government, business, philanthropy, academia, and more — to advance policies and practices with the potential to help low- and moderate-income Americans thrive in today’s economy. Learn more at as.pn/eofn.