FitzGibbon '85 Named Ambassador to Niger
Last week, Kathleen FitzGibbon '85, officially took over her new position as the U.S. Ambassador to the Republic of Niger.
A Hartwick political science major, the appointment continues FitzGibbon’s distinguished career in public service. She has extensive experience in Africa, and previously served as the deputy chief of mission of the U.S. Embassy in Abuja, Nigeria.
FitzGibbon’s background also includes service as the deputy chief of mission of the U.S. Embassies in Sierra Leone and Gabon, and as chief of the political and economic section of the U.S. Embassy in Uganda. For the State Department in Washington D.C., she served as division chief of West and Southern Africa, then the director of the Office of Africa Analysis for the Bureau of Intelligence and Research.
During her career, FitzGibbon has also won multiple awards, including the James A. Baker Award for Outstanding Deputy Chief of Mission, and the Hero of U.S. Diplomacy Award for leadership during the West Africa Ebola crisis.
Before joining the Department of State, FitzGibbon taught African politics, international development, and American government at Mary Washington College in Fredericksburg, VA.
She was hoping to hold her official swearing-in at her high school in Caledonia, NY, where the Honorable Dick Wesley (Second Court of Appeals) and former President George H.W. Bush speechwriter Curt Smith would preside. However, recent events in Niger – including the military takeover of the democratically elected president – required FitzGibbon to have an immediate induction and go abroad. She hopes, however, to hold a ceremonial swearing-in at home sometime this fall.
FitzGibbon has strong affection for her alma mater.
As she told the Senate Committee on Foreign Relations, Hartwick is where her commitment to sub-Saharan Africa began. As an intern at InterAction, the largest U.S.-based alliance of international NGOs and partners, FitzGibbon worked with non-governmental organizations and the Select Committee on Hunger, mustering support during the Ethiopian famine in 1984.
Years later, upon receiving confirmation to her new post as Ambassador to Niger, she invited Hartwick officials to attend her then-planned public swearing-in ceremony.
For more on FitzGibbon, visit the U.S. Embassy in Niger’s webpage.
