Anne Woods Patterson is an American diplomat and career Foreign Service Officer. She served as the Assistant Secretary of State for Near Eastern Affairs from 2013 to 2017. She previously served as United States Ambassador to Egypt until 2013 and as United States Ambassador to Pakistan from July 2007 to October 2010.
Michele Jeanne Sison is an American diplomat and career member of the Senior Foreign Service serving as the assistant secretary of state for international organization affairs. She has previously served in various other diplomatic posts around the world on behalf of the United States, including ambassador to Haiti. Sison holds the personal rank of career ambassador.
The assistant secretary of state for international organization affairs is the head of the Bureau of International Organization Affairs within the United States Department of State that creates and executes policy in international organizations such as the United Nations. The U.S. Department of State created the position of Assistant Secretary of State for United Nations Affairs in February 1949, using one of the six assistant secretary positions originally authorized by Congress in 1944. On August 25, 1954, a Department administrative action changed the incumbent's designation to Assistant Secretary of State for International Organization Affairs. The current head of the Bureau is Ambassador Michele J. Sison.
Johnnie Carson is a diplomat from the United States who has served as United States Ambassador to several African nations. In 2009 he was nominated to become U.S. Assistant Secretary of State for African Affairs by President Barack Obama. He resigned in 2013 after four years in the role and following the resignation of Secretary of State Hillary Clinton. He is currently a Senior Advisor at Albright Stonebridge Group and the United States Institute of Peace.
Vicki J. Huddleston is a retired U.S. diplomat who served as Ambassador to Mali, and U.S. Ambassador to Madagascar.
Mary Burce Warlick is an Australian-born, American diplomat who was appointed Deputy Executive Director of the International Energy Agency in May 2021. A former United States career diplomat, she served as the United States Ambassador to Serbia from January 2010 to September 2012, as the U.S. Consul General in Melbourne, Australia from October 2012 to July 2014, as Principal Deputy Assistant Secretary in the Bureau of Energy Resources at the Department of State from August 2014 to September 2017, and as Acting Special Envoy and Coordinator for International Energy Affairs from January to September 2017.
African-Americans in foreign policy in the United States catalogs distinguished African Americans who have and continue to contribute to international development, diplomacy, and defense through their work with the U.S. Department of State, the U.S. Agency for International Development, the U.S. Information Agency, and the U.S. Congress, and other notable agencies and non-governmental organizations. The creators acknowledge the presence of the interagency contributions to the foreign affairs realm, and welcome additional content to showcase the achievements of African-Americans in other relevant USG agencies.
Roberta S. Jacobson is an American diplomat who was the United States Ambassador to Mexico from June 2016 to May 2018. She previously served as the Assistant Secretary of State for Western Hemisphere Affairs from March 30, 2012, to May 5, 2016. The United States Senate approved her nomination as U.S. Ambassador to Mexico on April 28, 2016. In March 2018, Jacobson announced her resignation effective May 5. Foreign Policy reported on January 18, 2021, that Jacobson would be in charge of Mexico–United States border affairs at the National Security Council under President Joe Biden.
Arlene Render is an American former diplomat. An officer of the United States Foreign Service, she served as the United States Ambassador to the Gambia, Zambia, and Ivory Coast. She was also noted for her role amidst the initial onset of the Rwandan genocide.
Stephanie Sanders Sullivan is an American diplomat and the previous ambassador to Ghana. She served as Deputy Assistant Secretary for Central African Affairs and Security Affairs for the Bureau of African Affairs from January 2017 to November 2018. She previously served as United States Ambassador to the Republic of the Congo, having been nominated by President Obama on June 13, 2013, confirmed by the Senate on August 1, 2013, and served through January 20, 2017.
Joan A. Polaschik is a diplomat who has served as Director of the Foreign Service Institute since 2022. She previously served as the United States Ambassador to Algeria from 2014 to 2017.
Mary Catherine "Molly" Phee is an American diplomat who has served as assistant secretary of state for African affairs since September 2021. She previously served as the U.S. ambassador to South Sudan from 2015 to 2017. She is a career member of the Senior Foreign Service with the rank of minister counselor.
Virginia Evelyn Palmer is an American diplomat who has served as the United States ambassador to Ghana since 2022. Palmer is the former United States ambassador to Malawi. She was nominated by President Barack Obama and confirmed by the Senate, beginning that assignment in January 2015.
Elizabeth Holzhall Richard is an American diplomat who served as United States ambassador to Lebanon from 2016 to 2020. She has served as coordinator for counterterrorism since December 29, 2023.
Christine Ann Elder is an American diplomat who served as the United States ambassador to Liberia from June 2016 to March 2020.
Makila James is an American diplomat who has been a career Foreign Service Officer within the U.S. State Department. Beginning in 1988, she has had a series of postings and roles related to the Caribbean and Africa, leading to her being the Director of the Office of Caribbean Affairs from 2009 to 2012. She then served as the United States Ambassador to Swaziland from 2012 to 2016. Later, she was Deputy Assistant Secretary for East Africa and the Sudans from 2018 to 2020.
Carol Zelis Perez is a career Foreign Service Officer, who previously served as the Director General of the Foreign Service. Perez served as the U.S. Ambassador to Chile from October 2016 to January 2019.
Anne S. Casper is an American diplomat who served as United States Ambassador to Burundi from 2016 to 2019.
Elizabeth Marie Allen is an American political advisor who served as under secretary of state for public diplomacy and public affairs in the Biden administration. She had previously served in his administration as assistant secretary of state for global public affairs. She was White House deputy communications director during the Obama administration. Allen resigned from the State Department on August 2, 2024, to take up a role as chief of staff to Tim Walz, the then-unannounced running mate of Democratic presidential candidate and incumbent Vice President Kamala Harris.
Yael Lempert is an American diplomat who has served as the United States ambassador to Jordan since September 2023. Lempert is a career member of the Senior Foreign Service, having served in various roles including Senior Director for the Levant, Israel, and Egypt at the National Security Council, and Deputy Chief of Mission at the U.S. Embassy in London. In 2023, she was nominated by President Biden and confirmed by the Senate to be the ambassador to Jordan.
