Photographs from Kids’ State Dinners at the White House, 2012-2016

First Lady Michelle Obama hosted a Kids’ State Dinner at the White House from 2012 through 2016.  Participants included children who won a healthy and affordable cooking contest.  Each year included performances from musical groups or plays.

There are photographs of the First Lady delivering remarks in the East Room and greeting participants in the Green Room; of each year’s performances; and of preparations made by the White House staff.  President Barack Obama joined each dinner from 2012 through 2015 for a surprise visit.  There are photos of President Obama delivering remarks and greeting the participants.

6,351 assets
 

  • Photographs

The Executive Office of the President (EOP) instance of the Electronic Records Archive (ERA) contains electronic records created or received by Obama administration staff. These records are stored in Search and Access Sets (SAS) that represent their originating computer program, such as the White House Photo System.

The photographs are a subseries of a larger series, which includes all photographs taken by White House photographers during the Obama administration.  This subseries is arranged chronologically by the photo identifier (P number), which is formatted as PMMDDYYXX-####:

  • P (for Presidential photographs)
  • MMDDYY (Date of image capture)
  • XX (Photographer’s initials)
  • [dash]
  • Frame number

Electronic Records

  • 2012 Kids' State Dinner Photos contains 1,287 photos, of which 1,287 are released in full.
  • 2013 Kids' State Dinner Photos contains 1,050 photos, of which 1,050 are released in full.
  • 2014 Kids' State Dinner Photos contains 1,073 photos, of which 1,063 are released in full and 10 are withheld in full.
  • 2015 Kids' State Dinner Photos contains 1,477 photos, of which 1,473 are released in full, and 4 are withheld in full.
  • 2016 Kids' State Dinner Photos contains 1,464 photos, of which 1,456 are released in full and 8 are withheld in full.
     

Collection is open to all researchers. Access to Barack Obama Presidential Records is governed by the Presidential Records Act (PRA) (44 USC 2201) and the Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) (5 USC 552, as amended) and therefore records may be restricted in whole or in part in accordance with legal exemptions.

Audiovisual materials in this collection that were prepared by officials of the United States government as part of their official duties are in the public domain. Researchers are advised to consult the copyright law of the United States (Title 17, USC) which governs the making of photocopies or other reproductions of copyrighted material.

Official records of Barack Obama’s presidency are housed at the Barack Obama Presidential Library and administered by the National Archives and Records Administration (NARA) under the provisions of the Presidential Records Act (PRA).

Staff Archivists, 2025.