Richard J. Schmierer (born 1950) is a

United States The United States of America (USA), also known as the United States (U.S.) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It is a federal republic of 50 U.S. state, states and a federal capital district, Washington, D.C. The 48 ...

diplomat. He served as the United States Ambassador to Oman through August 2012.

Early life

Schmierer was born in the state of

New Jersey New Jersey is a U.S. state, state located in both the Mid-Atlantic States, Mid-Atlantic and Northeastern United States, Northeastern regions of the United States. Located at the geographic hub of the urban area, heavily urbanized Northeas ...

and graduated from Notre Dame High School in 1968; the school inducted him into its hall of fame in 2015. He graduated from

Lehigh University Lehigh University (LU), in Bethlehem, Pennsylvania, United States, is a private university, private research university. The university was established in 1865 by businessman Asa Packer. Lehigh University's undergraduate programs have been mixed ...

in 1974 and got his Master's and PhD from the

University of Massachusetts Amherst The University of Massachusetts Amherst (UMass Amherst) is a public land-grant research university in Amherst, Massachusetts, United States. It is the flagship campus of the University of Massachusetts system and was founded in 1863 as the ...

in 1975 and 1977, respectively. Schmierer is a career

Foreign Service Officer A Foreign Service officer (FSO) is a commissioned member of the United States Foreign Service. FSOs formulate and implement the foreign policy of the United States. They spend most of their careers overseas as members of U.S. embassies, cons ...

and a member of

Senior Foreign Service The Senior Foreign Service (SFS) comprises the top four ranks of the United States Foreign Service. These ranks were created by the Foreign Service Act of 1980 and Executive Order 12293 in order to provide the Foreign Service with senior grades ...

of the

State Department 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 ...

Political career

Schmierer started his diplomatic career in 1980 working in the diplomatic mission in

Bonn Bonn () is a federal city in the German state of North Rhine-Westphalia, located on the banks of the Rhine. With a population exceeding 300,000, it lies about south-southeast of Cologne, in the southernmost part of the Rhine-Ruhr region. This ...

Frankfurt Frankfurt am Main () is the most populous city in the States of Germany, German state of Hesse. Its 773,068 inhabitants as of 2022 make it the List of cities in Germany by population, fifth-most populous city in Germany. Located in the forela ...

and

Hamburg Hamburg (, ; ), officially the Free and Hanseatic City of Hamburg,. is the List of cities in Germany by population, second-largest city in Germany after Berlin and List of cities in the European Union by population within city limits, 7th-lar ...

from 1980 through 1984. He was then enrolled in an Arabic and Middle Eastern Studies program which lasted a year. Following its completion, he served as Public Affairs Officer at the U.S. Consulate in

Dhahran Dhahran (, ) is a city located in the Eastern Province, Saudi Arabia, Eastern Province, Saudi Arabia. With a total population of 143,936 as of 2022, it is a major administrative center for the History of the oil industry in Saudi Arabia, Saudi ...

Saudi Arabia Saudi Arabia, officially the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia (KSA), is a country in West Asia. Located in the centre of the Middle East, it covers the bulk of the Arabian Peninsula and has a land area of about , making it the List of Asian countries ...

. In 1988-1992, Schmierer worked at the headquarters of

United States Information Agency The United States Information Agency (USIA) was a United States government agency devoted to propaganda which operated from 1953 to 1999. Previously existing United States Information Service (USIS) posts operating out of U.S. embassies wor ...

, first as the head of the Middle East office of the International Visitor Program, then at the Office of European Affairs. In 1992-1996, he served as the Press Attaché at the U.S. Embassy in Bonn (relocated to

Berlin Berlin ( ; ) is the Capital of Germany, capital and largest city of Germany, by both area and List of cities in Germany by population, population. With 3.7 million inhabitants, it has the List of cities in the European Union by population withi ...

after

reunification of Germany German reunification () was the process of re-establishing Germany as a single sovereign state, which began on 9 November 1989 and culminated on 3 October 1990 with the dissolution of the German Democratic Republic and the integration of i ...

), capital of

West Germany West Germany was the common English name for the Federal Republic of Germany (FRG) from its formation on 23 May 1949 until German reunification, its reunification with East Germany on 3 October 1990. It is sometimes known as the Bonn Republi ...

. In 1996-1997, Schmierer took additional courses on Arabic and Middle Eastern Studies. In 1997, he was assigned to the U.S. Embassy in

Riyadh Riyadh is the capital and largest city of Saudi Arabia. It is also the capital of the Riyadh Province and the centre of the Riyadh Governorate. Located on the eastern bank of Wadi Hanifa, the current form of the metropolis largely emerged in th ...

, Saudi Arabia where he served a Counselor for Public Affairs until June 2000. From June 2000 to June 2004, he worked as the Minister-Counselor for Public Affairs at the U.S. Embassy in Berlin. From June 2004 through June 2005, he was the Embassy Counselor for Public Affairs in

Baghdad Baghdad ( or ; , ) is the capital and List of largest cities of Iraq, largest city of Iraq, located along the Tigris in the central part of the country. With a population exceeding 7 million, it ranks among the List of largest cities in the A ...

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 ...

. In July 2005, he started teaching at the Institute for the Study of Diplomacy of Edmund A. Walsh School of Foreign Service of

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 ...

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 ...

His lectures were on politics of Iraq. While at the university, he published a book titled ''Iraq: Policy and Perceptions''. In July 2007, Schmierer was appointed Director of the Office of Iraq Affairs in the Bureau of Near Eastern Affairs at the State Department. In 2008, he was appointed Deputy

Assistant Secretary of State for Near Eastern Affairs The assistant secretary of state for Near Eastern affairs is the head of the Bureau of Near Eastern Affairs within the United States Department of State. The assistant secretary guides the operation of the U.S. diplomatic establishment in vario ...

. On June 11, 2009, he was appointed United States Ambassador to Oman 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 ...

. The Senate confirmed the appointment on July 10, 2009. He was sworn in on August 20, 2009 replacing Gary A. Grappo who had served as Ambassador to Oman since March 6, 2006.

Personal life

Richard Schmierer is married to Sandra (Stanchick) Schmierer, a State Department employee. The couple has one daughter and two sons.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Schmierer, Richard J. 1950 births Living people Ambassadors of the United States to Oman Lehigh University alumni Notre Dame High School (New Jersey) alumni University of Massachusetts Amherst alumni United States Department of State officials United States Foreign Service personnel