CHICAGO — Mayor Lori E. Lightfoot today announced Skyler Larrimore will serve as the City of Chicago’s Chief of Policy effective August 1, succeeding Dan Lurie who will remain in the role until July 31 after serving as Chief of Policy since the beginning of the first day of the administration in 2019. Larrimore, who has served as First Deputy Director of Policy to Lurie since January of 2021, brings a unique policy skillset focused on enhancing equity within Chicago’s social safety net, community economic development, and workforce policy, and a demonstrated track record of advocacy, nonprofit management, and community organizing. She will serve a vital role within the administration to advance the mayor’s policy objectives.

 “I am thrilled to have Skyler step into this new role during this critical juncture for our city,” said Mayor Lightfoot. “Throughout her time in the Mayor’s Office, Skyler has demonstrated a deep passion for public service, equity, and creative problem-solving. She brings an impressive set of leadership and project management skills to her work and will undoubtedly strengthen our ability to deliver policy outcomes for our residents. I also want to extend my gratitude to Dan Lurie. Dan has been one of my closest aids and strategic advisors and led the policy team through some of the City’s most challenging moments and has helped Chicago develop and implement more equitable and inclusive systems that target the fundamental issues facing our great city. His strong endorsement of Skyler to succeed him made this an easy choice. I wish him the best in all his future endeavors.”

Skyler Larrimore joined the City in January of 2021 with 10 years of experience in non-profit management and strategic planning, community organizing, and advocacy. She will report directly to Chief of Staff Sybil Madison and work closely with all City departments to craft and align high-priority policy goals, as well as manage external relationships with a range of stakeholders from community advocates to local and national policy experts.

“I am incredibly honored to be taking on this new role from Dan Lurie to lead Mayor Lightfoot’s policy team and I’m grateful to Dan for his distinguished leadership since 2019,” said Skyler Larrimore. “Together, the team Dan built has been critical to many major progressive milestones for this administration, including fines and fees reform, gender-based violence prevention policy, the food equity council, Equitable Transit-Oriented Development policy, the Climate Action Plan, the Chicago Recovery Plan, and much more. I am eager to work with advocates, researchers, City staff, City Council, and my tremendously talented team to build on these accomplishments in the months ahead.”

Larrimore’s achievements as First Deputy Director of Policy include:

• Shaping the administration’s $31.5 million Chicago Resilient Communities Pilot for monthly cash assistance alongside the Department of Family and Support Services.
• Co-leading the We Will Chicago policy development and community engagement process alongside the Department of Planning and Development to create the first citywide plan since 1966.
• Advancing the worker protection agenda within the Chi Biz Strong Ordinance in 2021, including wage theft prevention and protection for domestic workers
• Serving as a founding member of the Housing Stability Community Response Team for racial equity-focused eviction prevention.
• Crafting the City’s “Roadmap for A Second Chance City” with policy recommendations from the City’s Returning Residents Working Group.

Prior to her role in the Mayor’s Office, Larrimore served as the Director of Operations and Strategy for the Metropolitan Planning Council (MPC), an urban planning and policy nonprofit advocating for a more equitable, sustainable, and prosperous Chicago. Larrimore led organizational improvements in operations, finance, and project management, strengthened MPC’s core values and strategic goals, and enhanced their policy advocacy and diversity, equity, and inclusion strategies.  

Larrimore has extensive experience in community engagement and organizing. As a local advisor at Elevate, Larrimore implemented community-based outreach and education to inform residents about options to lower their monthly home energy costs and environmental impact. As a local organizer for Community Organizing and Family Issues (COFI), Larrimore supported Parent Action Teams in Austin, North Lawndale, and at Malcolm X College to collectively develop and implement projects for positive changes in their local institutions and communities.   

Larrimore holds a Bachelor of Arts in Sociology and Geography with a concentration in Urban Studies from Macalester College. She earned a certificate in Social Impact Strategy from the University of Pennsylvania and she was selected as a 2019 New Leaders Council Chicago Fellow.

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