Jennifer Spande is a career diplomat who has served in the U.S. State Department under four presidential administrations (two Republican, two Democratic).  She has been posted to Mexico, Cambodia, Chile, and Malaysia, in addition to assignments in Washington DC in the State Department’s Operations Center (911 for foreign policy crises), directing $375 million in foreign assistance to Ukraine and Belarus, and managing relations with Australia, New Zealand, and the Pacific Islands.  She is currently in a one-year fellowship as a foreign policy advisor to Senator Tim Kaine, and will become the Director of the State Department’s Haiti office this summer.

Jennifer has seen firsthand the impact and personal fulfillment that a diplomatic career offers, and she is excited about joining us on Your Future, Your Path to share and interact with students who are curious about work overseas or federal service.

During this session we will get an insider’s perspective on topics such as what it is like to work at an embassy or the State Department in Washington, DC, what the variety of career options even are in an embassy setting, other paths for international careers and foreign policy work, and even tips for young women exploring historically male-dominated career options.

Jennifer is a summa cum laude graduate of Gustavus Adolphus College.  As an undergraduate, she was selected as a Truman and a Marshall Scholar, and went on to earn a master’s degree in International Relations from Oxford University.  More recently, she earned a master’s degree in National Security Strategy from the National War College, attending alongside U.S. Army, Air Force, and Marine colonels and Navy captains.  She has asked that we structure this evening as an ‘ask me anything’ format, so attendees will be asked for their questions on the event registration form and we will also monitor chat for your questions during the session. No questions are off limits, and we will do our best to incorporate a variety of questions from attendees.

Zoom Meeting Information will be emailed to registered families prior to the event.

Register here: https://forms.gle/FFMFoPBn2pcUwpkq6