Joe Kennedy

Joe Kennedy is a lifelong basketball player, coach, and sports leader with extensive experience across athletics, public service, and the nonprofit sector. He is the inaugural Director of Athletics and Sports Leadership at the Obama Presidential Center (OPC), where he leads programming that empowers communities through health and well-being, leadership development, career exploration, and relationship-building through sports and play. Under his leadership, Home Court, a 60,000-square-foot athletic center at the OPC, opened to the community in June 2026.

A 2007 Northwestern University graduate, Kennedy was a four-year letterman and team captain of the men’s basketball team and a three-time Academic All-Big Ten honoree. He began his career in public service as an intern for Senator Obama, later serving as campaign staff and as a special assistant in the White House Office of Public Engagement, where he helped advance national initiatives including Michelle Obama’s Let’s Move campaign.

Kennedy later held basketball operations and coaching roles at Northwestern, Oregon State, and with the Sacramento Kings. As lead assistant coach at the College of the Holy Cross, he helped lead the team to the 2016 Patriot League Championship and NCAA Tournament. In 2022, Kennedy co-founded The Team. As its first executive director, he helped develop civic and community engagement programming across more than 400 college campuses, engaging over 250,000 athletes, coaches, and administrators.