Maymi, Carmen Rosa, 1938-

Dates:

Active 1973

Active 1977

Birth 1938-03-17

Gender:

Female

Nationality: Puerto Ricans, Americans

Language: Spanish; Castilian, English

Biographical notes:

Carmen Rosa Maymi (born March 17, 1938) was the Director of the Women's Bureau of the Department of Labor from 1973-1977. She was the first Women's Bureau Director appointed from within the ranks and the first Hispanic Director.

Maymi was born and raised in Santurce, Puerto Rico. She received B.A. and M.A. degrees from DePaul University in Chicago and also attended the University of Chicago Graduate School. Maymi developed programs for Chicago police, social workers and teachers who served that city's 80,000 Puerto Rican residents. She joined the Office of Economic Opportunity in 1966 and later was a consultant on the Model Cities program.

At the time of her appointment as director of the Women's Bureau, Maymi was highest‐ranking Puerto Rican woman in the Federal government and the youngest director the Bureau had ever had. During her directorship, a new Department of Labor building was designed with space set aside for a childcare center, self-supported by parental fees and governed by a parental board. This model center paved the way for childcare centers at other Government and private sector offices. Maymi also used her position as director to call attention to the unique barriers faced by Hispanic women. She also developed the Bureau's links with private organizations to help working women realize their full potential.

After her work at the Women's Bureau in the Department of Labor, Maymi became a United States representative to the United Nations. She also held a post at the National Labor Organization in Geneva where she worked to improve the conditions of working women globally. From 1980-1986, Maymi directed the Office of Equal Opportunity within the Office of Personnel Management. In 1986, she became the director of Equal Opportunity for the Department of the Interior. As a director of Equal Opportunity, Maymi's focus was to enforce the Disability Rights Program and to make its programs fully accessible to the disabled.