Paul V. Applegarth

Paul Vollmer Applegarth (born April 21, 1946) is an American business executive, financial consultant, banker, and lawyer. He was the first chief executive officer of the Millennium Challenge Corporation, President George W. Bush's flagship project to provide development aid to poor countries.

Early life Applegarth was born in Wilkinsburg, Pennsylvania. He is the son of Alice (née Vollmer) and William "Bill" Francis Applegarth, an engineer, college professor, and manufacturer of air conditioners. The family moved to Atlanta, Georgia in 1947 where Applegarth was raised.

He attended the Christ the King School, before going to the Marist School where he was manager of the football team and graduated in 1964. Applegarth said the job “represents a culmination of an awful lot I’ve done in my life. The job and the whole mission seemed to be made for me.” He speaks Chinese, French, Spanish, Tagalog, and Vietnamese.