Diplomats in Residence (DIRs) are career Foreign Service Officers who are located throughout the United States and responsible for providing guidance and advice to students, professionals and the community about Department careers. DIRs are available to answer questions and share insight with those interested in Foreign and Civil Service careers, internships and fellowships.

Please take the time to get to know our site. When you’re ready, contact a DIR closest to your geographic location who will answer your questions. Just rollover the interactive map to the right and click on your region. You can also find local events under the "Engage" section.

Please refer to the Department’s privacy policy if providing personally identifiable information in your email inquiry.

DIR List

Ambassador Steve Browning, Diplomat in Residence
(AK, Northern CA, MT, OR, WA)

Region: Northwest
Location: University of California, Berkeley
Email: DIRNorthwest@state.gov
Facebook: Visit the DIR Facebook Page
Tours: Dominican Republic (Consular officer), Kenya (Management officer), Egypt (Management officer), Sri Lanka (Management officer), Tanzania (Deputy Chief of Mission), Malawi (Ambassador), Iraq (Management officer), Uganda (Ambassador) and the U.S. (multiple positions)
Career Track: Management
Years of Service: 31
Prior Career: Teacher, bartender, preacher, oil field laborer.
Languages: Spanish, Kiswahili
Education: BA, Baylor University (Theology); MEd, University of Houston (Philosophy of Education).
Interesting Experience: Interesting experiences for me always revolve around the people. What could be more interesting than discussing conservation with Jane Goodall while walking on the Indian Ocean beach? Or meeting Nelson Mandela and hearing him describe his vision for the future of South Africa? Or sitting with child soldiers in northern Uganda who had escaped the clutches of Joseph Kony and the Lord's Resistance Army as they described their experiences? Or hearing the stories (and expressions of gratitude) of thousands of men and women alive today because of the work of the American government in HIV/AIDS care and prevention? For me, in this career nothing's more interesting than the people, both American and foreigners, you get to meet.
Last Post: Washington, DC, as the Deputy Director General of the Foreign Service and Director of Human Resources.
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William Martin, Diplomat in Residence
(Southern CA, HI)

Region: Southern California
Location: UCLA
Email: DIRSouthernCalifornia@state.gov
Facebook: Visit the DIR Facebook Page
Tours: Japan, China (twice), Indonesia (twice), Philippines, Colombia, Pakistan
Career Track: Consular
Years of Service: 21
Prior Career: Business
Languages: Bahasa Indonesia and Spanish
Education: BA, UC Berkeley; Masters Intl. Management, American Graduate School of International Management (Thunderbird)
Interesting Experience: During my most recent tour, Pakistan experienced catastrophic floods which displaced more than 20 million persons and inundated thousands of square miles of urban and agricultural land. I helped to craft U.S. Government relief efforts, both military and civilian, which alleviated suffering and prevented many unnecessary deaths. I saw firsthand the generosity of the United States and its willingness to use its vast resources to protect the poor and powerless when they are most vulnerable.
Last Post: U.S. Consulate General, Karachi, Pakistan
2nd Interesting Experience:
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Philip Egger, Diplomat in Residence
(AZ, ID, NV, UT)

Region: Southwest
Location: Arizona State University – Phoenix
Phone: 480-727-7126
Fax: 480-965-3929
Email: DIRSouthwest@state.gov
Facebook: Visit the DIR Facebook Page
Tours:Africa, Latin America, Europe, Middle East
Career Track: Consular
Years of Service: 31 years
Languages: Spanish
Education: Vanderbilt University, BA 74; Industrial College of the Armed Forces, MS 96
Interesting Experience: There have been many in over three decades with the State Department, but here's an offbeat and recent one. In 2007 I was serving on a provincial reconstruction team in southern Iraq. We worked closely with the Australian battle group which was based in the province on reconstruction projects. They also provided our secure transport throughout the region. On one trip with the battle group to the provincial capital, we spent the night in the open desert, miles away from any habitation. It was a moonless night and for someone accustomed to the light pollution of southern California it was an incredible experience. I stayed awake for hours watching shooting stars streak across the sky. 
Last Post: Consul General, Rome Italy.
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Steve Maloney, Diplomat in Residence
(CO, NM, Northwest TX, WY)

Region: Rocky Mountains Southwest
Location: University of New Mexico
Email: DIRRockyMountainsSouthwest@state.gov
Facebook: Visit the DIR Facebook Page
Tours: Romania, Israel, Hong Kong, Pakistan and several countries in the Middle East.
Career Track: Consular
Years of Service: 31
Prior Career: Social Work
Languages: German, Arabic, Hebrew, and Romanian
Education: B.A. from the University of Maryland. M.S. from the National Defense University
Interesting Experience: In an un-nameable Middle Eastern country, I was faced with several dozen American women who were being abused or threatened by their husbands. Although our host country had zero sympathy for battered spouses (especially foreigners), we used numerous strategies to get them out of the country and safely back to the U.S. During my tour, we succeeded in helping more than 30 women (many with young children) escape those abusive situations.
Last Post: Islamabad, Pakistan
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Julie Connor, Diplomat in Residence
(Central TX)

Region: Central Texas
Location: University of Texas at Austin
Email: DIRCentralTexas@state.gov
Facebook: Visit the DIR Facebook Page
Tours: Tel Aviv, Israel (twice); Asuncion, Paraguay; Guatemala City, Guatemala; Jakarta, Indonesia; Bogota, Colombia (twice); Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia; Santiago, Chile.
Career Track: Public Diplomacy
Years of Service: 31 years
Prior Career: University lecturer, University of Houston
Languages: Spanish
Education: B.A. cum laude, Rice University, English and history double major; M.A., University of Houston, creative writing; M.S., National War College, National Security Studies.
Interesting Experience: In Chile, I served as the Public Affairs Officer at the Embassy in Santiago and was in charge of organizing commemorative events for the one-year anniversary of September 11, 2001. The embassy sponsored a national essay contest for high school students and a national art contest for younger students, both of which asked students for their vision of 9/11 and its aftermath. Hundreds of students from throughout Chile submitted essays and drawings. Chilean President Ricardo Lagos came to the Embassy for the ceremony and participated in giving out the awards to the winning students. This was the first (and only) time President Lagos visited the Embassy during his presidency.
Last Post: Bogota, where I served as Director of the Narcotics Affairs Section (NAS). Last domestic post: U.S. Diplomacy Center.
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Donna Blair, Diplomat in Residence
(LA, Southeast TX)

Region: Southeast Texas-Louisiana
Location: University of Houston
Phone: 713-743-3893
Fax: 713-743-3927
Email: DIRSoutheastTexasLou@state.gov
Facebook: Visit the DIR Facebook Page
Tours: Argentina, Mexico, Kenya, Venezuela, Ghana, Nigeria, Spain and Hong Kong
Languages: Spanish
Education: M.A. in Social Sciences from the University of Detroit and a B.A. in History from Dominican College in New Orleans
Last Post: My most recent, previous assignment was as Principal Officer/Consul General of U.S. Consulate General Lagos, Nigeria.
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Michael Yoder, Diplomat in Residence
(AR, KS, MO, NE, SD, OK)

Region: Central
Location: University of Oklahoma
Email: DIRCentral@state.gov
Facebook: Visit the DIR Facebook Page
Tours: Poland, the U.K, Uzbekistan, Jamaica, Mexico (twice) and India
Career Track: Consular
Years of Service: 22
Prior Career: Playwright
Languages: Russian, Polish, Spanish
Education: B.A. Political Science Indiana University, M.F.A. Playwriting University of Georgia, ABD Playwriting University of Texas at Austin
Interesting Experience: In Hyderabad I visited the Temple of the “Visa God”. Thousands of pilgrims visit every week and pray they will receive a visa to live, work or study in the United States.
Last Post: Hyderabad, India
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Ambassador John Nay, Diplomat in Residence
(IA, IL, IN, MN, Northern MO, ND, WI)

Region: Midwest
Location: University of Illinois at Chicago
Email: DIRMidwest@state.gov
Facebook: Visit the DIR Facebook Page
Tours: Taiwan (Consular officer), Singapore (Political/Economic officer), Calgary, Canada (Consular Chief), Taiwan (Consular Chief), Johannesburg (Deputy Principal Officer/Regional Consular officer), New Delhi, India (Consul General), Toronto, Canada (Consul General), Paramaribo, Suriname (Ambassador), and the U.S. (multiple positions)
Career Track: Consular
Years of Service: 35 years
Languages: Chinese (Mandarin)
Education: Andrews University, BA ’76; Andrews University, MA (History), ’83; National Defense University (National War College) MS ‘96
Interesting Experience: Searching out a missing young American woman in Cape Town, and helping her return to her family in the U.S.; helping a U.S. citizen girl forced into marriage in India to escape back to the U.S.; at the 1997 African-African American Summit introducing a young African-American girl and her parents to Nelson Mandela, and the next day spending an hour talking one-to-one with Coretta Scott King; implementing a visa appointment system across India, so visa applicants didn’t have to wait in line for hours in the heat; leading an Embassy team in biking some 700 miles across Suriname from east to west and through the interior to the end of the road to draw attention to environmental issues and the importance of fitness, and to visit Peace Corps Volunteers.
Last Post: Ambassador, U.S. Embassy Paramaribo, Suriname
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Jim Ellickson-Brown, Diplomat in Residence
(KY, MI, OH)

Region: North Central
Location: University of Michigan
Phone: 734-615-6975
Fax: 734-763-9181
Email: DIRNorthCentral@state.gov
Facebook:Visit the DIR Facebook Page
Tours: Cyprus, Greece, Haiti, Indonesia, Malaysia, Norway
Career Track: Public Diplomacy
Years of Service: 25
Prior Career: Public school teacher
Languages: French, German, Greek, Haitian Creole, Hungarian, Indonesian, Malay, Norwegian and Turkish
Education: Harvard, University of Oregon (B.S. in Sociology; University of Oregon (M.A. In Education)
Interesting Experience: Assisting foreign journalists in covering the U.S. presidential election process, from Iowa and New Hampshire through the conventions and debates up to election night.
Last Post: Public Affairs Officer at the U.S. Embassy in Nicosia, Cyprus, where I oversaw a wide-ranging program linking members of the Greek Cypriot and Turkish Cypriot communities based on shared interests including combating trafficking in persons, environment protection, history, and jazz.
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Hugh Williams, Diplomat in Residence
(Northern AL, Northern GA, TN, Northern MS)

Region: South
Location: Spelman-Morehouse
Email: DIRSouth@state.gov
Facebook: Visit the DIR Facebook Page
Tours: Jamaica, Belgium, Canada, Indonesia, India, Malaysia and Hong Kong.
Career Track: Consular
Years of Service: 35 years
Prior Career: Teacher, Peace Corps Volunteer
Languages: French, Malay
Education: M.A. Strategic Studies, Air War College; M.S. Math Education, Texas Southern University; B.S. Math, Delaware State University.
Interesting Experience: As a first-tour Vice Consul in Kingston I got to know Bob Marley and the Wailers, and meet a number of now legendary Reggae superstars.
Last Post: Hong Kong
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Andrew Passen, Diplomat in Residence
(Southern AL, Northern FL, Southern GA, Southern MS)

Region: Southeast
Location: FAMU-Tallahassee
Email: DIRSoutheast@state.gov
Facebook: Visit the DIR Facebook Page
Tours: Kaduna, Nigeria; Lusaka, Zambia; Bern, Switzerland (yes, a hardship posting!); Abidjan, Cote D’Ivoire; Montreal, Canada; Dakar, Senegal; Lusaka, Zambia (again); Baghdad, Iraq (PRT team leader in Baghdad); Johannesburg, South Africa; and Kabul, Afghanistan.
Career Track: Consular
Years of Service: Joined the U.S. Department of State in September 1986.
Prior Career: Teacher (in Peace Corps)
Languages: French, siSwati, siZulu, and a smattering of Spanish
Education: Masters Degree in International Development, Bachelors in Biology, both from University of Pennsylvania.
Interesting Experience:
Last Post: Kabul, Afghanistan
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Edward Loo, Diplomat in Residence
(Southern FL)

Region: South Florida
Location: FIU & Miami Dade College
Email: DIRSouthFlorida@state.gov
Facebook: Visit the DIR Facebook Page
Tours: Hungary, Colombia, Spain, Nicaragua, China, Taipei, the Philippines (some including multiple postings)
Career Track: Public Diplomacy
Years of Service: 25
Prior Career: Publishing, College admissions
Languages: Spanish, Chinese (Mandarin), Chinese (Cantonese), Hungarian; have also studied Filipino and French
Education: Bachelor's in History and English, Dartmouth College; Master’s in American History, Columbia University
Interesting Experience: Many, but one that still stands out even now is working on then-First Lady Hillary Clinton’s visit to Mongolia in 1995. It was an incredible sight to see the cloud of dust being kicked up by her huge motorcade, including armored SUVs, as it made its way across unpaved roads from the capital city of Ulaanbaatar to the nomadic camp in the vast grasslands where she would visit a slightly overwhelmed clan of herders. It was almost as incredible to see Hillary Clinton then greet the family warmly and participate in the Mongolian ritual of hospitality by sipping on the fermented mare’s milk offered to her.
Last Post: Budapest, Hungary, where we worked to keep Hungary committed to the Allied effort in Afghanistan, broaden civil society and citizen participation, and increase tolerance and respect for diversity. As part of this effort, we met with young people from all over Europe at the U.S. Embassy tent at the Sziget Festival, the largest summer music festival in all of Central Europe.
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Julie Ruterbories, Diplomat in Residence
(NC, SC, VA, W VA)

Region: Southern Mid-Atlantic
Location: Duke University
Email: DIRSouthernMidAtlantic@state.gov
Facebook: Visit the DIR Facebook Page
Tours: Soviet Union, Kyrgyzstan, Azerbaijan, England, Macedonia, Kosovo, and the Netherlands. TDY assignments in Mexico and Ukraine.
Career Track: Consular
Years of Service: 20
Prior Career: Academic
Languages: German, French, Spanish, Dutch, Russian, Macedonian, some Hungarian, Azeri and Albanian
Education: Georgetown University School of Foreign Service(undergraduate); Columbia University School of International and Public Affairs (graduate).
Interesting Experience: Advanced U.S.-Dutch relations across a broad spectrum of commercial, cultural and academic areas (2009-2012). Accompanied Consular Assistant Secretary on travel to more than 30 countries to promote the protection of American citizens and the facilitation of international travel and tourism (2006-2009). Served as the liaison between the Bureau of Consular Affairs and the U.S. Congress (2005). Assisted in the evacuation of American citizens from Baku during coups in 1994. First Vice Consul and GSO at the U.S. Embassy in Bishkek Kyrgyzstan (1992 – 94). Traveled extensively in the Soviet Union (1987 – 89) while working as a direct hire at the U.S. Embassy Moscow.
Last Post: Consulate General Amsterdam.
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Patricia Guy, Diplomat in Residence
(CT, NJ, NY, PA)

Region: New York Metro
Location: City College of New York
Email: DIRNewYorkMetro@state.gov
Facebook: Visit the DIR Facebook Page
Tours: Almaty, Kazakhstan; Minsk, Belarus; Berlin, Germany; Kyiv, Ukraine; Munich, Germany.
Career Track: Public Diplomacy
Years of Service: 18 (joined in March 1994)
Prior Career: I was a journalist. I started my career at the Anniston (Ala.) Star, then covered the court system and the judiciary for the Honolulu (Hi.) Star-Bulletin. I then worked at USA TODAY as a reporter covering the media business in the Money Section.
Languages: German, Russian, Ukrainian, Romanian
Education: I have an AB from Cornell University where I majored in international relations. I also have a Masters of Science in Journalism from Northwestern University's Medill School of Journalism and a Master of Studies of Law from Yale Law School
Interesting Experience: I gave my first official toast as a diplomat while sitting cross-legged in a yurt in Almaty, Kazakhstan.
Last Post: I was the Counselor for Public Affairs at the U.S. Embassy in Bucharest, Romania where I lead a section that included a Cultural Affairs Officer, an Information Officer and 17 locally employed staffers.
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Linda Cheatham, Diplomat in Residence
(MA, ME, NH, RI, VT)

Region: New England
Location: Tufts University
Email: DIRNewEngland@state.gov
Facebook: Visit the DIR Facebook Page
Tours: Nicosia, Cyprus; Bangkok, Thailand; Genoa and Milan, Italy; Valletta, Malta; Islamabad, Pakistan; Mumbai, India; Kabul, Afghanistan; Ottawa, Canada, and Washington, D.C. (three times)
Career Track: Public Diplomacy
Years of Service: 31 (as of November 2012)
Prior Career: I taught high school English, world history, and journalism in Texas.
Languages: Italian, French, Thai, some Greek and Spanish, and courtesy-level Urdu, Hindi and Dari
Education: Bachelor's in Education and Masters in English at the University of Texas at Austin
Interesting Experience: As U.S. Embassy Public Affairs Officer in Valletta, I got to accept a long, thunderous standing ovation for the captain and crew of the giant aircraft carrier USS America, which had come to the rescue of a disabled yacht and its badly injured crewman during a race around the Mediterranean. The race awards ceremony and banquet was conducted completely in German, which I don't speak, and was filmed in its entirety for a New Year's Eve broadcast on Austrian television. It took place in front of several hundred yachtsmen, none of whom spoke English, in a huge 16th-century fortress built by the Knights of Malta. The sailors' response to the USS America's story was tremendously heartwarming, and I could not have been more proud to represent our ship.

Of course, living and working in Pakistan for a year before 9-11 and for two years immediately thereafter was beyond interesting.
Last Post: Washington, as Coordinator of the State Department’s Diplomats in Residence program and Chief of its Recruitment Outreach Branch.
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Ambassador Teddy Taylor, Diplomat in Residence
(DC, DE, MD, Northern VA)

Region: DC Metro
Location: Howard University
Email: DIRDCMetro@state.gov
Facebook: Visit the DIR Facebook Page
Tours: Guatemala, Panama, Honduras, Budapest, Havana and Papua New Guinea
Career Track: Consular
Years of Service: 34
Languages: Spanish, Turkish, and Hungarian
Education: BS Florida A&M University
Interesting Experience: Many of the "Founding Fathers" of the young democracies in the Southwest Pacific are still living and remain active in the political life of the country. Having the opportunity to engage these men regarding their vision at the time of independence; and their use of the US Constitution and the Declaration of Independence as key documents in drafting their respective constitutions was a fascinating historical glimpse into these young democracies and their desire to guarantee individual liberties.
Last Post: US Ambassador, Papua New Guinea, Solomon Islands and Vanuatu
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