Barbara Jean Stephenson (born 1958) is an American diplomat and university official. Stephenson served as president of the

American Foreign Service Association The American Foreign Service Association (AFSA), established in 1924, is the professional association of the United States Foreign Service. With over 15,000 due-paying members, AFSA represents 28,000 active and retired Foreign Service employees ...

from 2015 to 2019. She was formerly the Dean of the Leadership and Management School of the Foreign Service Institute in Arlington, Virginia. Formerly, she was

Deputy Chief of Mission A deputy chief of mission (DCM, in Europe the term deputy head of mission – DHoM or DHM is used instead) is the number-two diplomat assigned to an embassy or other diplomatic mission. The deputy chief of mission is usually considered the second ...

at the US Embassy in London, and acted as

Chargé d'Affaires A (), plural ''chargés d'affaires'', often shortened to ''chargé'' (French) and sometimes in colloquial English to ''charge-D'', is a diplomat who serves as an embassy's chief of mission in the absence of the ambassador. The term is Frenc ...

following the departure of Ambassador

Louis Susman Louis B. Susman (born November 19, 1937) is an American lawyer, retired investment banker, and the former United States Ambassador to the United Kingdom. Nominated by President Barack Obama, he was confirmed by the Senate on July 10, 2009, and s ...

. She is the former

United States Ambassador Ambassadors of the United States are persons nominated by the president to serve as the United States' diplomatic representatives to foreign nations, international organizations, and as ambassadors-at-large. Under Article II, Section 2 of th ...

to the

Republic of Panama Panama, officially the Republic of Panama, is a country in Latin America at the southern end of Central America, bordering South America. It is bordered by Costa Rica to the west, Colombia to the southeast, the Caribbean Sea to the north, and ...

. She was confirmed by the

U.S. Senate The United States Senate is a chamber of the bicameral United States Congress; it is the upper house, with the U.S. House of Representatives being the lower house. Together, the Senate and House have the authority under Article One of the ...

and was appointed by President

Barack Obama Barack Hussein Obama II (born August 4, 1961) is an American politician who was the 44th president of the United States from 2009 to 2017. A member of the Democratic Party, he was the first African American president in American history. O ...

in the Summer of 2010.

Biography

Stephenson received her bachelor's degree, Masters, and Ph.D. in English all from the

University of Florida The University of Florida (Florida or UF) is a public university, public land-grant university, land-grant research university in Gainesville, Florida, United States. It is a senior member of the State University System of Florida and a preem ...

. She is married to Matthew Furbush. They have two children.

Career

Stephenson is a career member of the Senior Foreign Service and holds the rank of Minister Counselor at the Foreign Service. She joined in 1985 and began her career in Panama as an economic and then political officer. Stephenson served as Deputy Coordinator for

Iraq Iraq, officially the Republic of Iraq, is a country in West Asia. It is bordered by Saudi Arabia to Iraq–Saudi Arabia border, the south, Turkey to Iraq–Turkey border, the north, Iran to Iran–Iraq border, the east, the Persian Gulf and ...

at the

U.S. Department of State The United States Department of State (DOS), or simply the 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 o ...

. For her work - particularly the development and implementation of the civilian surge in Iraq - she won the State Department's

Distinguished Honor Award The Distinguished Honor Award is an award of the United States Department of State and USAID. Similar versions of the same award existed for the former U.S. Information Agency and Arms Control and Disarmament Agency. It is presented in recogniti ...

. In August 2009, Stephenson wrote in a leaked diplomatic cable that Panamanian president

Ricardo Martinelli Ricardo Alberto Martinelli Berrocal (born 11 March 1951) is a Panamanian politician and businessman who served as the 36th President of Panama from 2009 to 2014. In 2024, Martinelli was sentenced to ten years in prison for embezzlement of pu ...

had asked her for wiretaps on his political opponents in which she noted his "bullying style" and "autocratic tendencies". Martinelli's administration stated after the leak that "help in tapping the telephones of politicians was never requested" and that Stephenson was "mistaken" in her interpretation. Ambassador Stephenson's assessment was vindicated when the Panamanian government ruled to press corruption charges against Martinelli and to prosecute two former Secretaries of Panama's National Security Council on illegal wiretapping charges. Stephenson became the first woman to be appointed deputy ambassador and acting ambassador at the U.S. Embassy in London. After retiring from the Foreign Service, she presently serves as the Vice Provost for Global Affairs and Chief Global Officer at the

University of North Carolina The University of North Carolina is the Public university, public university system for the state of North Carolina. Overseeing the state's 16 public universities and the North Carolina School of Science and Mathematics, it is commonly referre ...

References

External links

''University of Florida'' Press Release about being named U.S. Ambassador

Inside UF announcement
{{DEFAULTSORT:Stephenson, Barbara Jean 1958 births Living people Ambassadors of the United States to Panama University of Florida College of Liberal Arts and Sciences alumni United States Foreign Service personnel American women ambassadors 21st-century American women