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The White House welcomed Raffi Freedman-Gurspan, the first openly transgender official, to the staff today.

Freedman-Gurspan, a former policy adviser for the National Center for Transgender Equality‘s racial and economic justice initiative, will serve in the White House as the outreach and recruitment director for presidential personnel in the Office of Personnel.

During her time with the NCTE, Freedman-Gurspan worked hard on improving the lives and experiences of transgender people of color and individuals living in poverty. She worked on improving conditions for trans prisoners, bias policing against trans communities, rights for undocumented trans immigrants, and solutions for addressing violence against trans women of color.

“A transgender person was inevitably going to work in the White House,” NCTE Executive Director Mara Keisling said in a statement. “That the first transgender appointee is a transgender woman of color is itself significant. And that the first White House transgender appointee is of a friend is inspiring to me and to countless others who have been touched by Raffi’s advocacy.”