Maribel, Information Management Specialist
My name is Maribel. I'm a Foreign Service Information Management Specialist.
My most memorable moment was when I worked for Undersecretary for Management Henrietta Fore, and I was her special assistant. There was an oversight, and the speech that the undersecretary needed to give was not written, and I was asked to prepare a speech for her the night before that she would present at the Travel and Tourism Board, and being an IT specialist cone, it was just, I thought, an amazing opportunity that I was able to broaden my skill set and do something that was outside my normal area of expertise. It was amazing to me because she actually read it word for word. And it just so exciting, I wrote that, that's my words (laughter) that she actually stated at the Travel and Tourism Board.
I first learned about the State Department when I was doing an internship with HACU, which is Hispanic Associations of Colleges and University.
I actually have a business degree in management information systems, so for me, the State Department is kind of like a playground because I can go from one area to another if I want to expand upon my business background.
I was actually working for Secretary Rice first, went through the administration teams, and now Secretary Clinton. And, they're very different in how they want their IT requirements, and their focus is very unique from one to the other. It's been an interesting challenge. It's been fun for my team to figure out how they can support her specific requirements for one or the other and --it's been a lot of fun.