Tours: Kingston, Jamaica (consular – political rotation); Ankara, Turkey (economic officer); Kyiv, Ukraine (political officer); EUR special assistant to the Assistant Secretary; Senior Watch Officer – Ops; Deputy Director in EUR/CARC (Caucasus Affairs and Regional Conflicts); Lyon, France (principal officer)

Career Track: Political

Years of Service: 18

Prior Experience: I was the executive director of the Nashville, TN Sports Authority, the governmental body that owned the NFL stadium and the NHL hockey arena. I was responsible for liaising with the pro sports teams (Tennessee Titans and the Nashville Predators) and ensuring that the properties were managed properly. I was also responsible for contractual oversight to ensure the teams met their financial obligations to the city and state, who sold bonds to build the two facilities.

Languages: French, Turkish and studied Ukrainian

Education: BA political science from David Lipscomb University in Nashville, TN. MA political science (with an international relations focus) from Vanderbilt University (Nashville)

Interesting Experience: I have represented the United States at many WWI and WWII commemorations during my three years in France, but one event will stay with me forever. In a small town south of Lyon, we were honoring a group of U.S. airmen who’d been shot down by the Nazis while dropping supplies for the French Resistance during WWII. The airmen were saved by members of the Resistance, who hid them in safe houses and arranged for fake documents to keep them from being discovered by the Nazis and help them get out of France. The descendants of these airmen stood next to the descendants of the French Resistance fighters who had saved them. It was incredibly moving to see so many people who wouldn’t exist today if it weren’t for the bravery of the French, and it emphasized the important role the United States played in all of France during WWII, not just in Normandy. At the end of the event, parachutists representing the United States, the UK, and France jumped out of a WWII-replica plane displaying each of our flags and landed in the field where the original plane had crashed.

Last Post: Principal Officer, U.S. American Presence Post Lyon

Why I Chose a Foreign Service Career: When I was working on my Ph.D., I realized that I was envisioning myself implementing foreign policy more than I could see myself researching it. I decided to leave with my M.A. and pursue the Foreign Service. I wanted to serve my country, bring further peace and stability to the world, and represent the United States abroad. It was the best decision I ever made.