Rebecca Eliza Gonzales (born May 19, 1963) is an American diplomat who serves as the director of the Office of Foreign Missions since 2022. She served as the

United States ambassador to Lesotho This is a list of ambassadors of the United States to Lesotho. Prior to 1965, the area of southern Africa that is now Lesotho was a Crown colony by the name of Basutoland. Along with most of the empire's other colonies and protectorates, Basutola ...

from 2018 to 2022.

Early life and education

Gonzales was born on May 19, 1963 in

Sumter, South Carolina Sumter ( ) is a city in and the county seat of Sumter County, South Carolina, United States. Known as the Sumter Metropolitan Statistical Area, the namesake county adjoins Clarendon and Lee to form the core of Sumter-Lee-Clarendon Tri-county (o ...

. She earned a Bachelor of Arts and a Master of Business Administration from the George Washington University and a Master of Science from the

Dwight D. Eisenhower School for National Security and Resource Strategy The Dwight D. Eisenhower School for National Security and Resource Strategy (Eisenhower School), formerly known as the Industrial College of the Armed Forces (ICAF), is a part of the National Defense University. It was renamed on September 6, 20 ...

Fort Lesley J. McNair Fort Lesley J. McNair is a United States Army post located on the tip of Greenleaf Point, the peninsula that lies at the confluence of the Potomac River and the Anacostia River in Washington, D.C. To the peninsula's west is the Washington Cha ...

Career

Gonzales is a career member of the Senior Foreign Service; she has been a diplomat since 1992. Gonzales has served diplomatic assignments in Panama City, Athens,

Bogotá Bogotá (, also , , ), officially Bogotá, Distrito Capital, abbreviated Bogotá, D.C., and formerly known as Santa Fe de Bogotá (; ) during the Spanish period and between 1991 and 2000, is the capital city of Colombia, and one of the larges ...

, New Delhi, Riyadh, Gaborone, and Pretoria. She previously served as chief of staff of the

Bureau of Administration In the United States Government, the Bureau of Administration is part of the U.S. Department of State. The Bureau is responsible for administrative support operations, including procurement; supply and transportation; real property and facilit ...

at the United States Department of State. On September 7, 2017, President Donald Trump announced Gonzales as the nominee to serve as the United States ambassador to Lesotho. On November 1, 2017, a hearing on her nomination was held before the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, and her nomination was reported out of committee on November 14, 2017. On November 16, 2017, her nomination was confirmed in the Senate by voice vote. On August 4, 2021, President Joe Biden announced his intent to nominate Gonzales to serve as the director of the Office of Foreign Missions. On September 13, 2021, her nomination was sent to the

Senate A senate is a deliberative assembly, often the upper house or chamber of a bicameral legislature. The name comes from the ancient Roman Senate (Latin: ''Senatus''), so-called as an assembly of the senior (Latin: ''senex'' meaning "the el ...

. On March 15, 2022, a hearing on her was held before the Senate Foreign Relations Committee and she was reported out of committee on March 23. On May 19, 2022, her nomination was confirmed in the Senate by voice vote. She assumed office on May 31, 2022.

Personal life

Gonzales speaks Spanish and Greek.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Gonzales, Rebecca Eliza 1963 births Living people 20th-century American diplomats 21st-century American diplomats 21st-century American women Ambassadors of the United States to Lesotho American women ambassadors Directors of the Office of Foreign Missions Dwight D. Eisenhower School for National Security and Resource Strategy alumni George Washington University alumni People from Sumter, South Carolina Trump administration personnel United States Foreign Service personnel