Phyllis Elliott Oakley (November 23, 1934 – January 22, 2022) was an American diplomat who served as U.S. Assistant Secretary of State for Population, Refugees, and Migration (1994–1997) and Assistant Secretary of State for Intelligence and Research (1997–1999). She was married to former Ambassador

Robert B. Oakley Robert Bigger Oakley (March 12, 1931 – December 10, 2014) was an American diplomat whose 34-year career (1957–1991) as a Foreign Service Officer included appointments as United States Ambassador to Zaire, Somalia, and Pakistan and, in the ear ...

and was a member of the

American Academy of Diplomacy The American Academy of Diplomacy is a private, nonprofit, non-partisan, elected organization whose active membership is limited to men and women who have held positions of high responsibility in crafting and implementing American foreign policy. ...

and the

Council on Foreign Relations The Council on Foreign Relations (CFR) is an American think tank focused on Foreign policy of the United States, U.S. foreign policy and international relations. Founded in 1921, it is an independent and nonpartisan 501(c)(3) nonprofit organi ...

. Oakley was a graduate of

The Fletcher School of Law and Diplomacy The Fletcher School of Law and Diplomacy is the graduate school of international affairs of Tufts University, in Medford, Massachusetts. Fletcher is one of America's oldest graduate schools of international relations. As of 2017, the student b ...

, at

Tufts University Tufts University is a private research university in Medford and Somerville, Massachusetts, United States, with additional facilities in Boston and Grafton, as well as Talloires, France. Tufts also has several Doctor of Physical Therapy p ...

. Ms. Oakley held a variety of positions within the U.S. foreign service. She was a Staff Assistant to Under Secretary

Philip Habib Philip Charles Habib (February 25, 1920 – May 25, 1992) was an American career diplomat active from 1949 to 1987. During his 30-year career as a Foreign Service Officer, he had mostly specialized in Asia. In 1968, he was working to prevent the ...

, an Afghanistan Desk Officer and a Cultural Affairs Officer in Kinshasa (on loan to the United States Information Agency, USIA). She worked with the

Agency for International Development Agency may refer to: Organizations * Institution, governmental or others ** Advertising agency or marketing agency, a service business dedicated to creating, planning and handling advertising for its clients ** Employment agency, a business that s ...

(AID) Afghanistan's cross-border humanitarian assistance program in Pakistan and served in Congressional Affairs for the Near Eastern Bureau of the State Department. She was an adjunct professor at the Johns Hopkins’ School of Advanced International Studies, Phyllis Oakley was teaching a course on functional issues in American foreign policy. She has also been a visiting professor at

Mount Holyoke College Mount Holyoke College is a Private college, private Women's colleges in the United States, women's Liberal arts colleges in the United States, liberal arts college in South Hadley, Massachusetts, United States. It is the oldest member of the h ...

and

Northwestern University Northwestern University (NU) is a Private university, private research university in Evanston, Illinois, United States. Established in 1851 to serve the historic Northwest Territory, it is the oldest University charter, chartered university in ...

and served on the visiting board of the College of Arts and Sciences of Northwestern University and the advisory board for the Study of Diplomacy at

Georgetown University Georgetown University is a private university, private Jesuit research university in Washington, D.C., United States. Founded by Bishop John Carroll (archbishop of Baltimore), John Carroll in 1789, it is the oldest Catholic higher education, Ca ...

. She was chair of the board at

Americans for UNFPA Friends of UNFPA is a non-profit organization, headquartered in New York, that supports the work of the United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA), the sexual and reproductive health and rights agency of the United Nations. Friends of UNFPA advances UN ...

(United Nations Population Fund) from 2003 to 2007 while also serving as chair of the Public Affairs Committee and Nominating Committee at

. Oakley was born in

Omaha, Nebraska Omaha ( ) is the List of cities in Nebraska, most populous city in the U.S. state of Nebraska. It is located in the Midwestern United States along the Missouri River, about north of the mouth of the Platte River. The nation's List of United S ...

. She died of a heart attack at a hospital in

Washington, D.C. Washington, D.C., formally the District of Columbia and commonly known as Washington or D.C., is the capital city and federal district of the United States. The city is on the Potomac River, across from Virginia, and shares land borders with ...

, on January 22, 2022, at the age of 87.

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Oakley, Phyllis Elliott 1934 births 2022 deaths 21st-century American women People from Omaha, Nebraska United States assistant secretaries of state The Fletcher School at Tufts University alumni Johns Hopkins University faculty Mount Holyoke College faculty Northwestern University faculty Assistant secretaries of state for intelligence and research American women ambassadors American women academics