[4] Five years of her youth were spent in Oberlin, Ohio, living next door to the Weltzheimer/Johnson House, which Pritzker cites as an establishing factor in her love for Frank Lloyd Wright, architecture, and preservation and restoration in general.

[6] Her ancestors immigrated to America with very little, with great grandfather Naphtali ben Yakov Pritzker escaping pogroms as a child in the Russian Empire in 1881 and working through poverty to see eventual success as head of a thriving law firm in Chicago.

[3] Pritzker's roles while enlisted included aviation repair parts clerk, rifleman, and fire team leader.

After completing military service in February 1977,[3] Pritzker enrolled at Loyola University of Chicago, majoring in history, and entered its Army Reserve Officers' Training Corps program.

"[11][12] In addition, Pritzker serves as Chairwoman of the Board of the Connecticut-based private equity firm Squadron Capital LLC, in which she has been identified a principal investor.[12][when?

[19] Jennifer Pritzker is part of a Chicago-based, women-led group headed by Laura Ricketts that purchased NWSL’s Chicago Red Stars in 2023.

[21] Pritzker created the Tawani Foundation in 1995,[24] which "provides support in the areas of arts and culture, historical preservation, health and wellness, LGBTQ+ and human rights, education and environmental initiatives.

"[15] In 2003, the Tawani Foundation made a $1.35 million donation to the Palm Center at the University of California, Santa Barbara, to study the feasibility of transgender people serving in the military and in the ranks of police and fire departments.

[12] In 2013, the Foundation donated $25 million to Norwich University, in Northfield, Vermont, the school credited with developing and establishing the first Reserve Officers' Training Corps (ROTC) program in the country.

[26] The renovation of the Illinois governor’s mansion, a project done completely through private donations, received a contribution from Jennifer Pritzker in 2018, in an amount upward of $250,000.

[29] Pritzker was a Republican[30] and major donor to candidates and organizations such as the National Rifle Association of America, John McCain, and Mitt Romney.

[34] In October 2020, Pritzker donated $100,000 to the Lincoln Project, led by Republican strategists, some of whom endorsed Joe Biden to prevent the re-election of Donald Trump.