DAWN Sweeney is the president and CEO of the National Restaurant Association and National Restaurant Association Educational Foundation in Washington, D.C.

Founded in 1991, the National Restaurant Association is the leading business association for the restaurant industry, which is comprised of 945,000 restaurant and foodservice outlets and a workforce of 13 million employees.

Together with the National Restaurant Association Educational Foundation, the association works to lead the U.S. restaurant industry into a new era of prosperity, prominence, and participation, enhancing the quality of life for all it serves.

A native of Portland, Maine, Sweeney earned a bachelor’s degree from Colby College in Maine, and a master’s from George Washington University.

Sweeney, a second generation Irish American, traces her Irish roots to Cork, Belfast and Galway. “From my earliest memories as a child, I have been enormously proud of my Irish heritage. My grandfather would tell me about his youth in Ireland and I remember bursting with pride that I was too Irish. To this day my favorite holiday is St. Patrick’s Day!” Sweeney says.

Married with one child, Sweeney is a board member of Save the Children, a member of the U.S. Chamber of Commerce “Committee of 100,” a member of the Women’s International Forum, and a ember of the Honor Society of the American Culinary Federation’s American Academy of Chefs.

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