Currently Reading:
PLU to spend March 1 remembering Ambassador Chris Stevens and exploring international diplomacy and service
PLU to spend March 1 remembering Ambassador Chris Stevens and exploring international diplomacy and service
Image: Ryan M. Gliha, Diplomat in Residence – Northwest, U.S. Department of State (photo courtesy of Ryan M. Gliha)
Pacific Lutheran University’s Wang Center for Global and Community Engaged Education will host the sixth biennial Ambassador Chris Stevens Celebration of Service on March 1. The celebration offers a day of events focused on international service, highlighted by a Peace Corps service panel and keynote address by United States diplomat Ryan Gliha.
Established in 2013, the Ambassador J. Christopher Stevens Celebration of Service uplifts the extraordinary public servant who was killed on Sept. 11, 2012, in Benghazi, Libya. “The program highlights individuals and organizations dedicated to innovative pathways to peace,” said Wang Center Executive Director Tamara Williams. “It’s a day spent thinking thoughtfully about the vision, creativity, empathy and kindness that characterized Ambassador Stevens’ public service career.”
Keynote Speaker Ryan Gliha
Titled “The Servant Diplomat: Reflections on a Career in Diplomacy,” Gliha’s talk will include reflections on his extensive public service in places like Lebanon, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, Yemen, the United Kingdom and Washington, D.C.
Gliha currently serves as the U.S. Department of State’s Diplomat in Residence for the Northwest, headquartered at the University of California, Berkeley. In this role, Gliha provides guidance and advice on U.S. Department of State careers, internships and fellowships for students and professionals in Northern California, Oregon, Washington and Alaska.
“PLU has many students interested in pursuing careers in global health, education and business in international contexts,” said Williams. “Ryan’s talk and the Q&A session after it will be really illuminating and inspiring for them.”
Alumni Peace Corps Panel
Prior to the keynote address, PLU economics professor Priscilla St. Clair will host a panel discussion featuring PLU alumni who have served in the Peace Corps. The event will spotlight PLU’s Peace Corps Prep Certificate Program, an undergraduate certificate program that prepares students for Peace Corps service and other international and domestic service-oriented programs.
Panelists will include Shella Biallas ’04, who worked on ecotourism in Belize; Haley Ehlers ’16, who worked on personal finance programs in Timor-Leste; Lucas Gillispie ’16, who worked on agricultural development in Senegal; and Sam Rise ’11, MA ’12, who taught at a secondary school in Namibia.
“The Peace Corps experience is different for every person who serves,” said St. Clair, who directs PLU’s Prep program. “This panel will provide valuable insight on the range of experiences our alumni have had, and how their service has influenced their lives after the Peace Corps.”
The Sixth Biennial Ambassador Chris Stevens Celebration of Service
March 1 at Pacific Lutheran University
Peace Corps Alumni Panel: 4 – 5:30 p.m.
Keynote “The Servant Diplomat: Reflections on a Career in Diplomacy”: 7 – 8:15 p.m.
Both events are free and open to the public and will be held in PLU’s Scandinavian Cultural Center. Please visit the event website to register.