Bernadette Mary Allen (born 1956)Bernadette Mary Allen (1956–)
/ref> is a United States

foreign service officer A Foreign Service Officer (FSO) is a commissioned member of the United States Foreign Service. Foreign Service Officers formulate and implement the foreign policy of the United States. FSOs spend most of their careers overseas as members of U ...

and

ambassador An ambassador is an official envoy, especially a high-ranking diplomat who represents a state and is usually accredited to another sovereign state or to an international organization as the resident representative of their own government or sov ...

. She is the former U.S. Ambassador to Niger.

Education and career

Allen was born in Washington, D.C. and raised in Seat Pleasant, Maryland. She earned a B.A. in French Civilization and Linguistics at Central College in Pella, Iowa in 1978. She studied abroad for a year in 1977, earning a Certificate in French Civilization from the Sorbonne in Paris. From 1987–1989 she completed an M.A. in Human Resources Management from George Washington University while handling her regular duties at the Department of State. She speaks French and Mandarin Chinese. Allen was commissioned into the U.S. diplomatic service in January 1980. On October 26, 2005, President George W. Bush nominated her to serve as U.S. Ambassador to the Republic of Niger. She was confirmed by the U.S. Senate on February 16, 2006, and sworn in as ambassador on March 28, 2006.

State Department career

Foreign assignments

*General Services Officer/Vice Consul at the U.S. Embassy in

Bujumbura Bujumbura (; ), formerly Usumbura, is the economic capital, largest city and main port of Burundi. It ships most of the country's chief export, coffee, as well as cotton and tin ore. Bujumbura was formerly the country's normal capital. In late ...

Burundi Burundi (, ), officially the Republic of Burundi ( rn, Repuburika y’Uburundi ; Swahili language, Swahili: ''Jamuhuri ya Burundi''; French language, French: ''République du Burundi'' ), is a landlocked country in the Great Rift Valley at the ...

(1980–1982) *Temporary duty assignment as Consul at the U.S. Consulate in Fukuoka,

Japan Japan ( ja, 日本, or , and formally , ''Nihonkoku'') is an island country in East Asia. It is situated in the northwest Pacific Ocean, and is bordered on the west by the Sea of Japan, while extending from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north ...

(1984) *Consul at the

U.S. Embassy, Manila The Embassy of the United States of America to the Philippines is the diplomatic mission of the United States in the Philippines. is situated in the Chancery Building of the Manila American Embassy along Roxas Boulevard (formerly Dewey Boulevard ...

, Philippines (1982–1984) *Consular Section Chief at the U.S. Consulate General in Guangzhou,

China China, officially the People's Republic of China (PRC), is a country in East Asia. It is the world's most populous country, with a population exceeding 1.4 billion, slightly ahead of India. China spans the equivalent of five time zones and ...

(1991–1994) *Chief of the Montreal Consular Section (2000–2002) * Consul General at the U.S. Consulate General in Montreal (2002–2005)

Domestic assignments

*Desk officer in the Africa Bureau’s Regional Affairs Office (1985–1987) *Visa officer in the Visa Office Coordination Division (1985–1989) *Studied Mandarin Chinese at

National Foreign Affairs Training Center The George P. Shultz National Foreign Affairs Training Center (NFATC) is one of several locations that house the Foreign Service Institute (FSI), the United States government's training school for members of the U.S. foreign affairs community. ...

(NFATC) (1989) and in Taipei, Taiwan (1990) *Deputy Director of Consular Training at the National Foreign Affairs Training Center (NFATC) (1994–1996) *Legislative Management Officer (1996–1998) *Director of the Visa Office Coordination Division (1998–2000)

Awards

Superior Honor Award The Superior Honor Award is an award of the United States Department of State. Similar versions of the same award exist for the former U.S. Information Agency, Arms Control and Disarmament Agency, and USAID. It is presented to groups or individ ...

for leadership as Consul General in Montreal *

Meritorious Honor Award The Meritorious Honor Award is an award of the United States Department of State. Similar versions of the same award exist for the former U.S. Information Agency, Arms Control and Disarmament Agency, and USAID. It is presented to groups or indi ...

for outstanding managerial and professional skills in Guangzhou, China *Superior Honor Award for outstanding leadership and performance as Visa Coordination Division Director

Affiliations and activities

*Lifetime membership in the U.S. Tennis Association * Big Sisters of the Washington, DC Metropolitan area volunteer *Usher Board Chairman at the Carmody Hills Baptist Church in Seat Pleasant, Maryland *President of the Central College African-American Student Organization (Pella, Iowa) *Member of service sorority Alpha Delta Epsilon (Pella, Iowa)

References

Sources

United States Department of State: Biography of Bernadette M. Allen
* . Gale Biography In Context. Gale Document Number: GALE, K2021365388 {{DEFAULTSORT:Allen, Bernadette Mary 1956 births Living people Ambassadors of the United States to Niger Central College (Iowa) alumni People from Washington, D.C. People from Seat Pleasant, Maryland George Washington University alumni African-American diplomats United States Foreign Service personnel American women ambassadors