From his humble roots in rural Georgia, Jimmy Carter ascended the political ladder straight to the top. He studied at Georgia Tech and the U.S. Naval Academy and served a term in the Georgia governor’s mansion along his way to the White House in 1977. Upon leaving the Oval Office in 1981, Carter set a new course, one oriented around philanthropy and humanitarian efforts. He and his wife, Rosalynn, founded the Carter Center, dedicated to “Waging Peace. Fighting Disease. Building Hope.” The center’s ongoing multifaceted programs reach the far corners of the globe and range from Guinea worm eradication to mental health treatment to conflict resolution. Carter was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize in 2002 for his “decades of untiring efforts to find peaceful solutions to international conflicts, to advance democracy and human rights, and to promote economic and social development.”