Alma Powell

Alma Vivian Powell (née Johnson) (born October 27, 1937 in Birmingham, Alabama) is an American audiologist and the wife of military and political figure Colin Powell, whom she married on August 25, 1962. She is a graduate of Fisk University. She is the mother of former chairman of the Federal Communications Commission, Michael Powell. She also has two daughters, Linda Powell, an actress, and Annemarie. Her father and uncle were principals of two high schools in Birmingham; Condoleezza Rice's father worked in her uncle's school as a guidance counselor. Alma Powell is the chair of America's Promise, the nation’s largest partnership dedicated to improving the lives of children and youth. She has also authored two children's books, America's Promise and My Little Red Wagon. A branch of the Kalamazoo Public Library system has been named after her and in 2011 was named the NASBE's National Education Policy Leader of the Year along with her husband.