UNC graduates seek fulfillment in global service

UNC has a long history of producing foreign ambassadors.

The first was a professor of Greek, Eben Alexander, appointed by Grover Cleveland. He served as ambassador to Rumania, Serbia and Greece, where he aided in the revival of the Olympic Games.

Josephus Daniels, for whom the Student Stores building is named, served as U.S. ambassador to Mexico under Franklin Roosevelt.

More recently, UNC alumnus Anthony Harrington served as the U.S. ambassador to Brazil from 1999-2001, where he acted under a mandate from President Clinton to improve Brazilian-American relations.

The Order of Rio Branco, an award given to distinguished diplomats, was conferred on Harrington by the Brazilian government for his work there.

"There's hardly a better job than representing the U.S. abroad in an interesting country," Harrington said.

Last week, coinciding with the groundbreaking of UNC's Global Education Center, Harrington's donation of $600,000 to the University's Institute of Latin American Studies was announced. His donation, along with $200,000 from other donors, is being matched by the Andrew W. Mellon Foundation for a $1.6 million endowment fund for the program.

"My experience in Chapel Hill opened my eyes to the country and, to some extent, other countries and the world," Harrington said. "I would say it began the process of seeing and understanding (the United States') place in the world."

Harrington said he hopes the Global Education Center will provide a similar experience for today's students.

"A career in the foreign services is incredibly exciting and rewarding," said David Litt, diplomat-in-residence at Duke University and former U.S. ambassador to the United Arab Emirates.

"As an ambassador, I most enjoyed promoting U.S. political and economic interest abroad."

Litt said his experiences at UNC influenced his view of the world and his career direction. He majored in history, studying German, French and Norwegian on campus and Russian in Lyon, France, during his junior year abroad. Litt served in the United States Foreign Service for 20 years before he was nominated as ambassador to the UAE, where he served from 1995 to 1998.

"The most interesting part of being a foreign service officer is the continual change and constant learning - learning new skills, new cultures, new languages," Litt said. "And public service to our nation is also an important aspect of it, which, in the age of terrorism, is understandable."

U.S. ambassadors are responsible for a range of issues, including security, trade, fiscal issues, health care issues, the environment and transnational threats such as drugs and terrorism.

From 2001 to 2003, Earl "Phil" Phillips, class of 1962, served as the U.S. ambassador to Barbados and the eastern Caribbean. He was a political appointee of George W. Bush.

"I loved my Carolina experience," Phillips said. He said that this undergraduate experience did not prepare him for his ambassadorship, but that his major in business administration was pertinent considering the financial woes of the Caribbean.

"My primary mission was to clean up the banking system there - many banks were not conforming to international law, so we cleaned up, cleaned out or closed down 60 banks," he said.

Litt, Harrington and Phillips said that the Global Education Center's impact will be substantial.

"Every Carolina student, especially the undergraduates, needs an international experience," Phillips said. "We have to think globally. It's an eye-opening experience."

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