Star Parker

Star Parker is one of the names on the short list of national black conservative leaders. Star Parker is the founder and president of the Center for Urban Renewal and Education (CURE), a Washington D.C. based public policy institute that promotes market-based solutions to fight poverty. Star consulted on federal Welfare Reform in the mid-90s and then founded CURE to bring new ideas to policy discussions on how to transition America's poor from government dependency. In 1996, she was a featured speaker at the 1996 Republican National Convention. Today, CURE leads a network of 800 pastors serving in at-risk communities across the country; and hosts BlackCommunityNews.com, a leading internet news network that has provided conservative information to more than two million viewers since 2015. Before involvement in social activism, she had seven years of first-hand experience in the grip of welfare dependency. After a Christian conversion, she changed her life. Now, Star regularly consults with both federal and state legislators on market-based strategies to fight poverty. In 2017, Star joined the White House Opportunity Initiative task force to share ideas on how to best fix our nation’s most distressed zip codes. In 2018, she was appointed to the U.S. Frederick Douglass Bicentennial Commission. Star has a bachelor's degree in Marketing and International Business from Woodbury University and has received numerous awards and commendations for her work on public policy issues. In 2016, CPAC honored her with the “Ronald Reagan Foot Soldier of the Year.” In 2017, Star was the recipient of the Groundswell Impact award, and in 2018, Bott Radio Network presented Star with its annual Queen Esther award. Many of national acclaim would agree that Star Parker has established herself as a thoughtful and energetic leader in Washington D.C. - and her CURE advisory board includes folks of note such as Generals John Ashcroft and Ed Meese; Drs. Marvin Olasky, George Gilder and Walter E. Williams, as well as Secretary Ken Blackwell and Economist Larry Kudlow. To date, Star Parker has spoken on more than 225 college campuses, including Harvard, Berkeley, Emory, Liberty, Franciscan, UCLA, and UVA. She has authored several books; is a regular commentator on national television and radio networks including the BBC, EWTN, and FOX News; and Star is a nationally syndicated columnist with Creators, reaching 7 million readers weekly.