In 1955, Jacob “Jack” Lew was born in Forest Hills. Growing up, he attended Forest Hills High School and become involved with politics at a young age. Now this Queens native has been nominated by President Barack Obama to be the next Treasury secretary.

When he was a high school student in Forest Hills, Lewhad aspirations of working as a journalist in an attempt to make the world a better place.

Sporting torn jeans, desert boots and long hair, he was an editor for the Forest Hills High School newspaper, the Beacon, and focused on issues such as public housing, anti-Vietnam War protests, the first Earth Day, and New York March on Hunger.

He was also a big New York Mets fan.

At 20 years old, Lew was a senior advisor to then House Speaker Tip O’Neil. He served as special assistant to President Bill Clinton on health care reform legislation in 1993, and was then named deputy director of the Office of Management and Budget.

Following his stay at the White House, Lew came back to New York and became executive vice president for operations at New York University.

There is a level of controversy that surrounds Lew. In 2006, he was appointed chief operating officer of Citigoup’s Alternative Investments Unit. He bet on the housing market to collapse, which caused many to criticize the decision to allow him back to the White House in 2009. Lew also received a $900,000 bonus from Citigroup after the government bailed it out.

On lighter note, Lew’s loopy and whimsical signature has become the focus of attention, as it could find it way onto United State currency.

“Jack assures me that he is going to work to make at least one letter legible in order not to debase our currency should he be confirmed as Secretary of the Treasury,” Obama joked at a press conference last week.