Carol Baker Tharp (May 13, 1952 – November 25, 2007) was an American

general manager A general manager (GM) is an executive who has overall responsibility for managing both the revenue and cost elements of a company's income statement, known as profit & loss (P&L) responsibility. A general manager usually oversees most or all of ...

and former executive director.

Biography

Early life

Carol Baker Tharp was born in

Charleston Charleston most commonly refers to: * Charleston, South Carolina * Charleston, West Virginia, the state capital * Charleston (dance) Charleston may also refer to: Places Australia * Charleston, South Australia Canada * Charleston, Newfoundlan ...

South Carolina )''Animis opibusque parati'' ( for, , Latin, Prepared in mind and resources, links=no) , anthem = " Carolina";" South Carolina On My Mind" , Former = Province of South Carolina , seat = Columbia , LargestCity = Charleston , LargestMetro = ...

, and later grew up in

Charlotte, North Carolina Charlotte ( ) is the most populous city in the U.S. state of North Carolina. Located in the Piedmont region, it is the county seat of Mecklenburg County. The population was 874,579 at the 2020 census, making Charlotte the 16th-most populo ...

. In the early 1970s, she received her bachelor's degree from Wake Forest University. In 1986, she and her husband, Michael, moved to

Los Angeles Los Angeles ( ; es, Los Ángeles, link=no , ), often referred to by its initials L.A., is the largest city in the state of California and the second most populous city in the United States after New York City, as well as one of the world' ...

California California is a U.S. state, state in the Western United States, located along the West Coast of the United States, Pacific Coast. With nearly 39.2million residents across a total area of approximately , it is the List of states and territori ...

, settling in

Eagle Rock Eagle Rock may refer to: Entertainment * "Eagle Rock" (song), a hit single in 1971 by Australian band Daddy Cool * "Eagle Rock", a song by Motörhead * Eagle Rock Entertainment, a record label Places * Eagle Rock (formation), in California * Eag ...

Managing and directing

Tharp earned a

Ph.D A Doctor of Philosophy (PhD, Ph.D., or DPhil; Latin: or ') is the most common Academic degree, degree at the highest academic level awarded following a course of study. PhDs are awarded for programs across the whole breadth of academic fields ...

in public policy and ethics from

Claremont Graduate University The Claremont Graduate University (CGU) is a private, all-graduate research university in Claremont, California. Founded in 1925, CGU is a member of the Claremont Colleges which includes five undergraduate (Pomona College, Claremont McKenna Co ...

in 2003. After receiving her PhD, she spent four years at the

University of Southern California The University of Southern California (USC, SC, or Southern Cal) is a Private university, private research university in Los Angeles, California, United States. Founded in 1880 by Robert M. Widney, it is the oldest private research university in C ...

School of Politics, Planning and Development as the deputy director of the Civic Engagement Initiative. At USC, Carol Baker Tharp managed a project to map neighborhood involvement throughout the region. Before becoming the deputy director of the Civic Engagement Initiative in January 2004, she was the executive director of

Coro Coro or CORO may refer to: Entertainment * ''Coro'' (Berio), a composition by Luciano Berio * Coro (music), Italian for choir * Coro TV, Venezuelan community television channel * Omweso (Coro), mancala game played in the Lango region of Uganda * ...

Southern California Southern California (commonly shortened to SoCal) is a geographic and Cultural area, cultural region that generally comprises the southern portion of the U.S. state of California. It includes the Los Angeles metropolitan area, the second most po ...

and was Community Relations director for

Eugene, Oregon Eugene ( ) is a city in the U.S. state of Oregon. It is located at the southern end of the Willamette Valley, near the confluence of the McKenzie and Willamette rivers, about east of the Oregon Coast. As of the 2020 United States Census, Eu ...

. The third general manager position of the Department of Neighborhood empowerment was filled in for an interim chief for about eleven months when Los Angeles mayor

Antonio Villaraigosa Antonio Ramón Villaraigosa (; né Villar Jr.; born January 23, 1953) is an American politician who served as the 41st Mayor of Los Angeles from 2005 to 2013. A member of the Democratic Party, Villaraigosa was a national co-chairman of Hillary ...

offered the position to her. During her time as Deputy Director at the USC School of Policy, Planning, and Development she worked with associate dean Rich Callahan to develop leadership programs and executive education programs. She also taught an ethics class for undergraduates. Upon being hired as General Manager for the City of Los Angeles Department of Neighborhood Empowerment, Baker Tharp said that she intended to focus on getting councils to achieve results in their neighborhoods. In a particular matter, she did not want neighborhood council members to overstep their roles.

Later years

Tharp left the Department of Neighborhood Empowerment in September 2007 due to an aggressive battle with

breast cancer Breast cancer is cancer that develops from breast tissue. Signs of breast cancer may include a lump in the breast, a change in breast shape, dimpling of the skin, milk rejection, fluid coming from the nipple, a newly inverted nipple, or a re ...

. She died at her home on November 25, 2007, at age 55. Los Angeles mayor Antonio Villaraigosa, in mourning her death, stated:

"Carol Baker Tharp loved the City of Los Angeles and spent the past year working to strengthen its neighborhoods as the General Manager of the Department of Neighborhood Empowerment. Through her entire professional career and decades of community involvement as leader of Coro, the acclaimed non-profit civic affairs leadership training institution, and during her service to USC, Carol maintained the belief that civic engagement is the cornerstone of democracy. She committed her life to expanding power of the people. Her integrity, intelligence, compassion and humor will be missed. Though we mourn her passing today, we take comfort in the fact that her work and ideas will continue to yield positive benefits for the people of Los Angeles."

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Tharp, Carol Baker 1952 births 2007 deaths Deaths from breast cancer in California Businesspeople from Charleston, South Carolina Wake Forest University alumni Claremont Graduate University alumni 20th-century American businesspeople