Caroline Casagrande (born November 21, 1976) is a former American government official and political appointee in the administration of President Donald J. Trump who served as

Deputy Assistant Secretary of State Assistant Secretary of State (A/S) is a title used for many executive positions in the United States Department of State, ranking below the under secretaries. A set of six assistant secretaries reporting to the under secretary for political affairs ...

for Academic Programs at the

U.S. Department of State The United States Department of State (DOS), or State Department, is an executive department of the U.S. federal government responsible for the country's foreign policy and relations. Equivalent to the ministry of foreign affairs of other ...

overseeing global public diplomacy programs. Earlier, Casagrande served as a Deputy

Republican Republican can refer to: Political ideology * An advocate of a republic, a type of government that is not a monarchy or dictatorship, and is usually associated with the rule of law. ** Republicanism, the ideology in support of republics or agains ...

leader in the 

New Jersey New Jersey is a state in the Mid-Atlantic and Northeastern regions of the United States. It is bordered on the north and east by the state of New York; on the east, southeast, and south by the Atlantic Ocean; on the west by the Delaware ...

General Assembly A general assembly or general meeting is a meeting of all the members of an organization or shareholders of a company. Specific examples of general assembly include: Churches * General Assembly (presbyterian church), the highest court of presb ...

 representing the  11th Legislative District  from January 10, 2012 to January 12, 2016 and the 12th legislative district from January 8, 2008 through January 12, 2012.  Also an attorney, Casagrande is the youngest woman assembly member ever elected in New Jersey.

Early life and family

Casagrande was born in Point Pleasant, and grew up in nearby Spring Lake. She graduated from

Red Bank Catholic High School Red Bank Catholic High School is a four-year private coeducational Roman Catholic Church, Roman Catholic secondary education in the United States, high school, located in Red Bank, New Jersey, Red Bank in Monmouth County, New Jersey, Monmouth Co ...

, in

Red Bank, New Jersey Red Bank is a borough in Monmouth County, New Jersey, United States. Incorporated in 1908, the community is on the Navesink River, the area's original transportation route to the ocean and other ports. Red Bank is in the New York Metropolitan A ...

. While in college, Casagrande worked in the new democratic government of

South Africa South Africa, officially the Republic of South Africa (RSA), is the southernmost country in Africa. It is bounded to the south by of coastline that stretch along the South Atlantic and Indian Oceans; to the north by the neighbouring countri ...

during her time studying at the University of Kwa-Zulu Natal-

Pietermaritzburg Pietermaritzburg (; Zulu: umGungundlovu) is the capital and second-largest city in the province of KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa. It was founded in 1838 and is currently governed by the Msunduzi Local Municipality. Its Zulu name umGungundlovu ...

. Later, she was awarded a

Juris Doctor The Juris Doctor (J.D. or JD), also known as Doctor of Jurisprudence (J.D., JD, D.Jur., or DJur), is a graduate-entry professional degree in law and one of several Doctor of Law degrees. The J.D. is the standard degree obtained to practice law ...

from

Rutgers School of Law–Camden Rutgers Law School is the law school of Rutgers University, with classrooms in Newark and Camden, New Jersey. It is the largest public law school and the 10th largest law school, overall, in the United States. Each class in the three-year J.D. pr ...

. Casagrande currently lives in

Arlington, VA Arlington County is a county in the Commonwealth of Virginia. The county is situated in Northern Virginia on the southwestern bank of the Potomac River directly across from the District of Columbia, of which it was once a part. The county is ...

with her husband, Stephen Chance, and three children.

Education

Casagrande earned a

B.S. A Bachelor of Science (BS, BSc, SB, or ScB; from the Latin ') is a bachelor's degree awarded for programs that generally last three to five years. The first university to admit a student to the degree of Bachelor of Science was the University ...

degree from

Pennsylvania State University The Pennsylvania State University (Penn State or PSU) is a Public university, public Commonwealth System of Higher Education, state-related Land-grant university, land-grant research university with campuses and facilities throughout Pennsylvan ...

majoring in

Political Science Political science is the scientific study of politics. It is a social science dealing with systems of governance and power, and the analysis of political activities, political thought, political behavior, and associated constitutions and la ...

. She was elected as Undergraduate Student Government President, where she worked to reduce the cost of student transportation around campus, improve student health care services, and protect students from dramatic tuition increases. In 2010 and 2015 respectively, Pennsylvania State University awarded Casagrande the Young Alumni Achievement Award as well as the Young Alumni Political Science Award.Thirteen Young Penn Staters Honored With Alumni Achievement Award.
Penn State News. April 9, 2010. Casagrande is a double-alumni of the

Bureau of Educational and Cultural Affairs The Bureau of Educational and Cultural Affairs (ECA) of the United States Department of State fosters mutual understanding between the people of the United States and the people of other countries around the world. It is responsible for the Un ...

. She was an American Council for Young Political Leaders (ACYPL) delegate to

Nepal Nepal (; ne, नेपाल ), formerly the Federal Democratic Republic of Nepal ( ne, सङ्घीय लोकतान्त्रिक गणतन्त्र नेपाल ), is a landlocked country in South Asia. It is mai ...

in 2009. In 2015, Casagrande was awarded the ACYPL fellowship to the

East-West Center East West (or East and West) may refer to: *East–West dichotomy, the contrast between Eastern and Western society or culture Arts and entertainment Books, journals and magazines *'' East, West'', an anthology of short stories written by Salm ...

to study

India India, officially the Republic of India (Hindi: ), is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by area, the second-most populous country, and the most populous democracy in the world. Bounded by the Indian Ocean on the so ...

with parliamentarians from Asia.

Career

Legal

Casagrande was a partner and attorney with the law firm of Menna, Supko & Casagrande in Shrewsbury, N.J. Previously, she worked as a litigation associate for the firm Cleary, Alfieri Jones & Hoyle (now Cleary, Giacobbe, Alfieri, & Jacobs). Casagrande has also served as municipal attorney to

Manalapan Township Manalapan Township (, ) is a township in Monmouth County, New Jersey, United States. The township is centrally located within the Raritan Valley region and is a part of the New York Metropolitan Area. As of the 2010 United States Census, the t ...

and special counsel to Fair Haven. After graduating from law school, she clerked for

New Jersey Superior Court The Superior Court is the state court in the U.S. state of New Jersey, with statewide trial and appellate jurisdiction. The New Jersey Constitution of 1947 establishes the power of the New Jersey courts.Jeffrey S. Mandel, New Jersey Appellate Pra ...

Judge Robert O'Hagan.

New Jersey General Assembly

In 2007, Casagrande ran on the

ticket for New Jersey State Assemblywoman of the 12th district alongside Assemblyman

Declan O'Scanlon Declan Joseph O'Scanlon Jr. (born June 9, 1963) is an American politician who has served in the New Jersey Senate since 2018, representing the 13th Legislative District. A member of the Republican Party, he previously served in the New Jersey ...

. She defeated an incumbent Assemblyman ( Michael J. Panter), and became the youngest woman to ever be elected to the New Jersey General Assembly.Staff
"Assembly races: 12th and 30th"
''

The Times ''The Times'' is a British daily national newspaper based in London. It began in 1785 under the title ''The Daily Universal Register'', adopting its current name on 1 January 1788. ''The Times'' and its sister paper ''The Sunday Times'' (fou ...

'', October 28, 2009. Accessed May 1, 2013. "It is represented by two Republican first-termers: Declan O'Scanlon Jr., a wireless telecommunications consultant from Little Silver, and Caroline Casagrande, a lawyer from Colts Neck, who at age 30 was the youngest woman ever elected to the New Jersey Assembly."12the Legislative District Web page biography
, District 12. Accessed June 19, 2009. Casagrande served in the Assembly on the Appropriations Committee and the Women and Children Committee. In 2011 Casagrande was redistricted to the 11th Legislative District where she sought re-election along with Senator Jennifer Beck, who was also shifted out of the 12th district, and Assembly member

Mary Pat Angelini Mary Pat Angelini (born December 8, 1954) is an American Republican Party politician who served in the New Jersey General Assembly for the 11th legislative district from 2008 to 2016. Education Angelini graduated with a Bachelor of Social Wo ...

. They were the first trio of women to be elected as a team to the

New Jersey Legislature The New Jersey Legislature is the legislative branch of the government of the U.S. state of New Jersey. In its current form, as defined by the New Jersey Constitution of 1947, the Legislature consists of two houses: the General Assembly and the ...

. Casagrande served in various leadership positions within the

Republican Caucus A congressional caucus is a group of members of the United States Congress that meet to pursue common legislative objectives. Formally, caucuses are formed as congressional member organizations (CMOs) through the United States House of Represent ...

- eventually rising to Deputy Republican Leader. She also served as a Republican Commissioner on the

New Jersey Redistricting Commission The New Jersey Redistricting Commission is a constitutional body of the government of New Jersey tasked with redrawing the state's Congressional election districts after each decade's census. Like Arizona, Idaho, Hawaii, Montana, and Washington; t ...

, which was charged with redrawing the lines of the State's congressional districts following the

2010 United States census The United States census of 2010 was the twenty-third United States national census. National Census Day, the reference day used for the census, was April 1, 2010. The census was taken via mail-in citizen self-reporting, with enumerators servin ...

. Casagrande lost her 2015 bid for re-election to Democratic challengers Joann Downey and Eric Houghtaling. Casagrande finished fourth among the four major party candidates behind Houghtaling, Downey and her Republican running mate, Mary Pat Angelini.

United States Department of State

Starting in April 2018, Casagrande entered the

as a political appointee of the Trump Administration as the Special Advisor to Assistant Secretary

Marie Royce Marie Royce, born as Marie Therese Porter, is an American businesswoman, diplomat, and educator. She was the Assistant Secretary of State for Educational and Cultural Affairs from 2018-2021. She was nominated by President Donald Trump and was unan ...

in the

. Casagrande was sworn into the position of Deputy Assistant Secretary of Academic Programs in September 2018 with the responsibility of shaping policy across the interagency and stewarding resources in excess of 400 million dollars. In this role, Casagrande oversaw the flagship

Fulbright Scholarship The Fulbright Program, including the Fulbright–Hays Program, is one of several United States Cultural Exchange Programs with the goal of improving intercultural relations, cultural diplomacy, and intercultural competence between the people of ...

program, the Education USA Network of 435 global recruitment centers, 630 overseas American Spaces,

State Department The United States Department of State (DOS), or State Department, is an United States federal executive departments, executive department of the Federal government of the United States, U.S. federal government responsible for the country's fore ...

sponsored English language education programming, the

Humphrey Fellowship Hubert Horatio Humphrey Jr. (May 27, 1911 – January 13, 1978) was an American pharmacist and politician who served as the 38th vice president of the United States from 1965 to 1969. He twice served in the United States Senate, representing Mi ...

, Gilman Scholarships, undergraduate exchanges, and teacher exchanges. Casagrande also served on the National Security Education Board. As the Deputy Assistant Secretary for Academic Programs, Casagrande promoted the message that the United States welcomes

international student International students, or foreign students, are students who undertake all or part of their tertiary education in a country other than their own and move to that country for the purpose of studying. In 2019, there were over 6 million internati ...

s when questioned if the Trump administration's immigration policy had led to a decrease in foreign enrollment at US universities. Casagrande's State Department appointment ended with President Trump's term on January 20, 2021.

Countries visited to promote US academics for international students

, March 2019. *

Colombia Colombia (, ; ), officially the Republic of Colombia, is a country in South America with insular regions in North America—near Nicaragua's Caribbean coast—as well as in the Pacific Ocean. The Colombian mainland is bordered by the Car ...

, May 2019. *

Bahamas The Bahamas (), officially the Commonwealth of The Bahamas, is an island country within the Lucayan Archipelago of the West Indies in the Atlantic Ocean, North Atlantic. It takes up 97% of the Lucayan Archipelago's land area and is home to ...

, May 2019. *

Brazil Brazil ( pt, Brasil; ), officially the Federative Republic of Brazil (Portuguese: ), is the largest country in both South America and Latin America. At and with over 217 million people, Brazil is the world's fifth-largest country by area ...

, August 2019. *

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 ...

, September 2019. *

Austria Austria, , bar, Östareich officially the Republic of Austria, is a country in the southern part of Central Europe, lying in the Eastern Alps. It is a federation of nine states, one of which is the capital, Vienna, the most populous ...

, December 2019. *

Italy Italy ( it, Italia ), officially the Italian Republic, ) or the Republic of Italy, is a country in Southern Europe. It is located in the middle of the Mediterranean Sea, and its territory largely coincides with the homonymous geographical re ...

, December 2019. *

Mexico Mexico (Spanish: México), officially the United Mexican States, is a country in the southern portion of North America. It is bordered to the north by the United States; to the south and west by the Pacific Ocean; to the southeast by Guatema ...

, January 2020.

Rutgers University

Casagrande was a Visiting Associate of the

Rutgers Rutgers University (; RU), officially Rutgers, The State University of New Jersey, is a public land-grant research university consisting of four campuses in New Jersey. Chartered in 1766, Rutgers was originally called Queen's College, and was a ...

Eagleton Institute of Politics The Eagleton Institute of Politics at Rutgers University was established in 1956 with an endowment from Florence Peshine Eagleton (1870–1953), and it focuses on state and national politics through education and public service. Ruth Mandel serve ...

until 2019. In 2018, Casagrande was featured in a Rutgers television commercialHow Rutgers Is Getting Women 'Ready To Run'
BTN Livebig. By John Tolley, January 12, 2019. about training women running for public office.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Casagrande, Caroline 1976 births Living people Republican Party members of the New Jersey General Assembly New Jersey lawyers Pennsylvania State University alumni People from Colts Neck Township, New Jersey People from Point Pleasant, New Jersey People from Spring Lake, New Jersey Politicians from Monmouth County, New Jersey Politicians from Ocean County, New Jersey Red Bank Catholic High School alumni Rutgers School of Law–Camden alumni Women state legislators in New Jersey 21st-century American politicians 21st-century American women politicians United States Department of State United States Department of State officials Bureau of Educational and Cultural Affairs