President George W. Bush nominated Stephen Seche, the U.S. State Department diplomat in residence at USC Annenberg's Center on Public Diplomacy, to be the next ambassador to the Republic of Yemen. Seche's nomination is pending confirmation by the Senate.

Seche is a 27-year veteran of the U.S. foreign service with postings to Peru, Bolivia, Guatemala, Canada, India and most recently as Charge d'Affaires at the U.S. Embassy in Damascus, Syria. During the last year, he taught a course in the public diplomacy master's program and advised graduate students interested in pursuing careers in foreign service.

"If I am confirmed by the Senate, the principal opportunity and challenge I will face is to do my best to advance foreign policy interest with a nation we’ve forged a strong relationship with, and to strengthen those relationships and do everything we can to make Yemen a stronger partner," he said. "Hopefully, this can turn into a model in some respects for other countries in the Middle East.”

He said he learned a lot during his time at USC that he can apply to his term in Yemen.

"This is an environment I'd like to create in my workplace," he said. "The students and faculty are collegial, inventive, smart and trying to do good things. Everyone is open to ideas and new experiences, which speaks very well of USC as an institution."

More on Seche
White House press release
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