Adrienne Eadie Adams was raised in Hollis, Queens, the daughter of two proud union workers. She attended St. Pascal Baylon Elementary School and Bayside High School. After briefly studying at CUNY’s York College, she earned her Bachelor’s Degree in Psychology from Spelman College in Atlanta, Georgia, minoring in Early Childhood Education. Prior to serving in the City Council, Speaker Adams worked professionally as a Corporate Trainer at several Fortune 500 companies, specializing in Executive Training, Telecommunications Management, and Human Capital Management. She also worked as a Childhood Development Associate Instructor, training child care professionals to obtain their Child Development Associate credentials in accordance with the standards set by the National Association for the Education of Young Children.
Speaker Adams first entered public service as a member of Queens Community Board 12, the second largest community board in the borough of Queens. She was appointed Chair of the Education Committee, advocating for education equity and opposing school closures and co-locations. In recognition of her leadership, Speaker Adams was elected to three consecutive terms as Chair of Community Board 12 by her members, serving from December 2012 to November 2017. She advocated for improved delivery of services, economic opportunities, and better quality of life in Southeast Queens. As a community advocate, Speaker Adams served in leadership positions for community-based organizations and advisory committees. She was appointed by then Queens Borough President Melinda Katz to the Queens Public Library Board of Trustees, overseeing a 62-branch institution that maintained the highest circulation of any municipal library system in the country. Additionally, she was appointed to the Local Planning Committee for the Jamaica Downtown Revitalization Initiative and served as Co-Chair of the Jamaica NOW Leadership Council. In these roles, Speaker Adams guided more than $150 million in funding and investments for workforce and business development, education, health and wellness, housing, and transportation for the Downtown Jamaica area.
Speaker Adams is an active member of Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority, Incorporated, the first sorority for Black college-educated women. She is also a longstanding member of the NAACP and National Action Network.
Adrienne Eadie Adams is the Speaker of the New York City Council. Elected in January 2022 by her colleagues, she leads the most diverse and the first women-majority Council in New York City history as the first-ever African American Speaker. Elected to the City Council in November 2017, she is also the first woman to represent District 28, which encompasses the Queens neighborhoods of Jamaica, Richmond Hill, Rochdale Village, and South Ozone Park.. Speaker Adrienne Eadie Adams is the first wife, mother, and grandmother to lead a historic women-majority New York City Council.