Raised on a farm and trained as an attorney, with a particular focus on human rights and international legal systems, Ms. Schreiber Hughes joined the U.S. diplomatic service in 1985. Quito, Ecuador was her first overseas assignment. Later she was in charge of the U.S. Consulate General in Calgary, Canada, responsible for one of the largest consular districts in the world: the provinces of Alberta, Saskatchewan, Manitoba, and the Northwest Territories. Ms. Schreiber Hughes also served in Havana, Cuba.

Washington assignments at the Department of State have included Director, Office of Andean Affairs (Bolivia, Colombia, Ecuador, Peru, and Venezuela); Post Management Officer (Bahamas, Trinidad and Tobago); Economic Officer (Cuba); and Chief, Agricultural Development Division of the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations and the World Food Program, both headquartered in Rome. Outside of the Department of State, Ms. Schreiber Hughes served on the President’s staff at the White House, as Director for Consular Affairs and International Programs on the Homeland Security Council.

In 2006, Ms. Schreiber Hughes was selected to represent the Department of State as a fellow in the U.S. Department of Defense "Capstone" program for General Officers. In 1997, she earned her Master of Science Degree in National Security Strategy at the National War College at National Defense University in Washington, DC.

Ms. Schreiber Hughes is the recipient of various Department of State Superior Honor Awards. She is a member of Phi Beta Kappa. Prior to joining the Foreign Service, she earned her Juris Doctorate from Rutgers School of Law in New Jersey. She subsequently conducted research in International Commercial Arbitration for the Parker School of Foreign and Comparative Law at Columbia University in New York City. Ms. Schreiber Hughes is a member of the bars of New Jersey, Pennsylvania and the District of Colombia. She speaks Spanish, understands some French, and is working to improve her Dutch.