John W. McCarter, Jr.

Born in Oak Park, Illinois, John W. McCarter, Jr. has served in leadership positions in government, business, and public purpose institutions.

McCarter is a Life Trustee and President Emeritus of the Field Museum of Natural History. He was President and Chief Executive Officer from 1996 to 2012. His tenure included the purchase of the Tyrannosaurus Rex “Sue,” expansion of modernization of facilities, A2 fold growth of the museum endowment, and doubling the size of the board of trustees to more appropriately represent Chicago’s diversity.

He served 12 years as a Regent of the Smithsonian Institution, including three years as Chair, during which the National Museum of African American History and Culture was opened. He served as president of the Lucas Museum of Narrative Art and continues as a trustee. McCarter’s career included three terms at Booz, Allen & Hamilton, concluding a senior vice president managing partner of the Chicago office a member of the board of directors focusing on strategy including war gaming, his clients included large corporations, governments, a religious order, hospitals, and universities.

He worked 15 years at DeKalb Corporation focusing on commodities futures trading, irrigation equipment manufacturing, and agricultural genetics across species – corn sorghum, soybeans, and wheat. He concluded as president and CEO prior to the sale of the company. In the State of Illinois under Governor Richard B. Ogilvie, he formed the State’s Bureau of the Budget and served as its first director, recruiting financial staff, designing the Illinois Income Tax, and organizing state agencies. He had served as a White House fellow in the Federal Budget Bureau in the administration of Lyndon B Johnson.

He is an Emeritus Trustee and former Chair of Chicago Public television – WTTW and WFMT. He has served as a Trustee of Princeton University and the University of Chicago. Currently, he is a Trustee of the Marine Biological Laboratory and the National Recreation Foundation. He has served on eight corporate boards. He is a fellow of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences and a Laureate of the Lincoln Academy of Illinois.

McCarter is a graduate of Princeton University and earned his MBA from Harvard University. He also attended the London School of Economics. While working for Booz-Allen, he took a leave of absence to serve in the United states Army Reserve for six months of active duty.

He and his wife Judy have three adult children, two daughters-in-law and four grandchildren.