UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. — All members of the Penn State community are invited to participate in a virtual panel discussion with alumnae working in foreign policy and diplomatic roles at the U.S. Department of State. Hosted by the Graduate School and Graduate School Alumni Society, the event is being held in recognition of Women’s History month.
From Dear Old State to the U.S. Department of State: Perspectives from Alumnae Leaders in Foreign Policy and Diplomacy will be an engaging discussion with Penn State alumni who have built successful careers strengthening our nation’s international relationships through their work at the U.S. Department of State. Panelists will share insights about working in diplomacy, what skills helped them excel in their careers, how they leveraged their Penn State degrees, and what it is like to have a career in foreign affairs.
The event will be held at 11:30 a.m. on Tuesday, March 14. Registration is free and open to all Penn State community members with a Penn State email address. Registration deadline is March 10.
Featured panelists include:
Jillian Bonnardeaux, Counselor for Public Diplomacy at the U.S. Embassy in Oslo, Norway. Bonnardeaux joined the U.S. Department of State's Foreign Service in 2006. She has held multiple positions including Acting Public Diplomacy Adviser at the Indo-Pacific Command in Honolulu, Hawaii, spokesperson at the U.S. Embassy in Bangkok, Thailand, and the Environment, Science, Technology and Health Officer in Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam. She holds a master’s degree in international peace and conflict resolution from American University’s School of International Service, and a bachelor’s degree in media studies and political science from Penn State’s Schreyer Honors College.
Susan Crystal, Consul General of the U.S. Consulate General in Toronto, Canada. Crystal is responsible for the full range of operations at the largest consulate in Canada, working with colleagues from the Departments of State, Commerce, Justice, Homeland Security, Agriculture, Defense, and Customs and Border Protection. Previously, she worked in Australia, Ecuador, Haiti, Mauritius, South Africa and Ottawa, Canada. Crystal holds a degree in international politics from Penn State.
Angela Kerwin, Deputy Assistant Secretary for Overseas Citizen Services. Kerwin previously served as the Director of the Assignments Division in the Office of Career Development and Assignments, and as the Director of the Korea Desk, leading the department team dealing with South and North Korean issues. Kerwin has also spent time as Consul General and Minister Counselor for Consular Affairs at U.S. Embassy Seoul, along with time at the U.S. Embassy Bogota, Colombia, and in roles in Mexico, India, and the Dominican Republic. She holds two degrees from Penn State: A juris doctor degree from Penn State’s Dickinson School of Law and a bachelor’s degree in life sciences. She also holds a master’s degree in strategic studies from the U.S. Army War College.
Sharon Melzer, Foreign Affairs Officer with State’s Bureau of International Narcotics and Law Enforcement Affairs (INL). Melzer is a criminologist with expertise in organized crime, terrorism, financial crimes, and illicit trade. Her career with the federal government spans three departments: State, Treasury, and Defense. Her additional State Department experience includes serving as a detailee to its Bureau of Counterterrorism and as Senior Adviser for Transnational Threats and Illicit Trade/Franklin Fellow with INL. Previously, Melzer served as a Strategic Policy Specialist with the Financial Crimes Enforcement Network (FinCEN), a bureau of the U.S. Department of the Treasury, and held an Adjunct Faculty appointment with the Department of Defense’s Africa Center for Strategic Studies at the National Defense University. She earned a master of public administration, and a bachelor’s degree in administration of justice and history from Penn State. She also holds a master’s in criminology from Florida State University and a doctoral degree in justice, law, and society from American University.
Deborah Miller, Consul General, overseeing consular services for both Kenya and Somalia. Since 2002, Miller has served in Russia, Georgia, India, Latvia, Kazakhstan, and Iraq. She previously worked in Washington as the Senior Political Officer in the Office of Russian Affairs, and the Director of the Hostage Affairs Unit in the Office of Overseas Citizens Services. Miller earned a bachelor’s degree in political science from Penn State, a master’s degree in international security affairs from National Defense University, and a juris doctor degree from George Washington University Law School.
Kristen Nagle, Foreign Service Officer in Frankfurt, Germany. Nagle’s first tour was in Ciudad Juarez, Mexico. Prior to that she was a Civil Servant with the State Department, first working as a Passport Specialist in the Philadelphia Passport Agency, and later as an analyst with Diplomatic Security’s Visa and Passport Analysis Unit. She earned a bachelor's degree in economics and Spanish from Penn State and a juris doctor degree from the Benjamin N. Cardozo School of Law
For more information about the panelists, and to register, visit here.