Retired as a career diplomat

Head of the Political and Economic Section at the U.S. Embassy in Skopje, North Macedonia. Led a 14-person section in advancing the U.S. relationship with North Macedonia, including enhancing the country’s readiness as a NATO Ally, expanding investment opportunities, and fighting corruption.

Political Officer at the U.S. Mission to the European Union. Served as the primary U.S. representative to the European Parliament. Overall responsibility for issues of U.S. interest before the parliament, liaising at all levels with Members of the European Parliament and political group families; worked closely with several committees and Parliament's Delegation for Relations with the United States. Also covered U.S.-EU relations with the European Commission and European External Action Service related to the Western Balkans, Turkey, and the Eastern Mediterranean. Managed a 22-person team of political officers and staff as acting Political Counselor.

Held a one-year Transatlantic Diplomatic Fellowship from the U.S. Department of State to work at the European External Action Service as an EU Diplomat. Served as a policy advisor in the Western Balkans Division working on EU relations with Montenegro and EU public diplomacy towards the region. Worked in close coordination with the Council of the EU, European Parliament, and European Commission.

Developed U.S. policies and programs to advance constitutional and electoral reform in Bosnia and Herzegovina. Coordinated closely with U.S. interagency and international partners.

Political Officer at the U.S. Mission to the United Nations. Drafted and negotiated UN Security Council and UN General Assembly resolutions related to Europe, particularly the Balkans, and parts of Africa, including authorizations for peacekeeping missions in Cyprus (UNFICYP) and Darfur (UNAMID); drafted the UN resolutions on Russia's invasion of Crimea, which Russia vetoed in the Security Council but the UN General Assembly passed by a 100-11 vote, preventing international recognition of Russia's illegal annexation of Ukrainian territory. Led U.S. negotiations on overall UN peacekeeping policy.

Served as Special Assistant to the Ambassador for Rule of Law and Law Enforcement. Responsible for coordinating programs and reporting for 200+ U.S. law enforcement officers (Department of Justice; Federal Bureau of Investigation; Drug Enforcement Agency; U.S. Marshals Service; U.S. Secret Service; and Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearms) and an interagency rule of law team to develop judicial, prosecutorial, and prison systems in Afghanistan. Worked closely with the U.S. military on the Embassy's interagency team and at NATO headquarters; my direct supervisor was a brigadier general.

Political Officer at the U.S. Embassy in Zagreb, Croatia. Responsible for anticorruption programs, rule of law, and demining efforts. Worked closely with Croatia's Chief Prosecutor, anticorruption prosecutor, police, courts, as well as U.S. law enforcement agencies to develop the host institutions capacities to investigate, prosecute, and convict corruption cases, leading to the imprisonment of the former prime minister and several other officials. Assisted Croatia to develop specialized anticorruption police units and court system. Managed a $5 million annual budget to remove landmines left over from the Balkan wars of the early 1990s.

Consular Chief at the U.S. Embassy in Banjul, The Gambia. Responsible for all visa operations and American Citizen Services. Instituted a visa call center and offsite fee collection to maximize revenues and reduce opportunities for malfeasance. Led efforts to uncover human rights abuses and treatment of prisoners by the Gambian president and other authorities, leading to a revocation of The Gambia's eligibility for U.S. Millennium Challenge Corporation assistance.

Economic Officer at the U.S. Consulate in Guangzhou, China. Responsible for analyzing and reporting on macroeconomic conditions; environment, science, technology, and health issues; and protection of intellectual property (IP). Coordinated with the American Chamber of Commerce, industry groups such as the Motion Picture Association, and individual companies, including Proctor and Gamble, Cisco, and Intel on copyright and IP enforcement.

Vice Consul at the U.S. Embassy in Guangzhou, China. Managed the Non-Immigrant Visa section.