Who is Ben Bernanke?

Ben S. Bernanke was the chairman of the United States Federal Reserve (the Fed) from 2006 to 2014. As Fed chairman, Bernanke also chaired the Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve and the Federal Open Market Committee (FOMC).

Ben Bernanke Background

Ben Shalom Bernanke was born in Georgia in 1953. His father was a pharmacist and a mother was teacher. A gifted student, he was valedictorian of his high school and went on to earn an A.B. degree in Economics from Harvard University and a Ph.D. in Economics from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology.

Between 1979 and 2002, Bernanke held full-time teaching positions at Stanford University and Princeton University as well as a visiting professorship at New York University. He left academia in 2002 after being elected to the Federal Reserve Board of Governors.

Bernanke served as chief of the President's Council of Economic Advisors (during President George W. Bush's administration) before succeeding Alan Greenspan as Federal Reserve Chairman in early 2006.

Why Does Ben Bernanke Matter?

Ben Bernanke's role as Chairman of the Federal Reserve was to maintain stability in the United States economy through monetary policy. Bernanke worked with members of the Board of Governors as well as the Federal open Market Committee to determine interest rate adjustments and the sales and purchase of government securities.

To learn more about Bernanke and the Federal Reserve, click here to read 15 Insider Facts to Demystify the Federal Reserve.