Robert E. Lamb (born November 17, 1936) was

Assistant Secretary of State for Administration The assistant secretary of state for administration is the head of the Bureau of Administration in the United States Department of State. The assistant secretary of state for administration reports to the Under Secretary of State for Management ...

within the U.S. State Department from 1983 to 1985. He also served as an

Assistant Secretary of State for Diplomatic Security The assistant secretary of state for diplomatic security is the head of the Bureau of Diplomatic Security in the United States Department of State. The assistant secretary of state for diplomatic security reports to the Under Secretary of State ...

from 1987 to 1989 and the United States Ambassador to Cyprus from 1990 to 1993.

Biography

Robert E. Lamb was born in

Atlanta, Georgia Atlanta ( ) is the List of capitals in the United States, capital and List of municipalities in Georgia (U.S. state), most populous city in the U.S. state of Georgia (U.S. state), Georgia. It is the county seat, seat of Fulton County, Georg ...

, on November 17, 1936. He was educated at the

University of Pennsylvania The University of Pennsylvania (Penn or UPenn) is a Private university, private Ivy League research university in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, United States. One of nine colonial colleges, it was chartered in 1755 through the efforts of f ...

, receiving a

Bachelor of Arts A Bachelor of Arts (abbreviated B.A., BA, A.B. or AB; from the Latin ', ', or ') is the holder of a bachelor's degree awarded for an undergraduate program in the liberal arts, or, in some cases, other disciplines. A Bachelor of Arts deg ...

in 1962. After college, Lamb joined the

United States Foreign Service The United States Foreign Service is the primary personnel system used by the diplomatic service of the United States federal government, under the aegis of the United States Department of State. It consists of over 13,000 professionals carr ...

beginning a career as a

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 ...

. A career diplomat, he rose through the ranks of the

United States Department of State The United States Department of State (DOS), or simply the State Department, is an United States federal executive departments, executive department of the U.S. federal government responsible for the country's foreign policy of the United State ...

to become director of the

United States Passport United States passports are passports issued to citizens and non-citizen nationals of the United States of America. They are issued exclusively by the U.S. Department of State. Besides passports (in booklet form), limited-use passport cards ...

Office in the

Bureau of Consular Affairs The Bureau of Consular Affairs (CA) is a bureau of the United States Department of State reporting to the under secretary of state for management. The mission of the Bureau is to administer laws, formulate regulations and implement policies rel ...

and director of Financial Services. In 1983, President

Ronald Reagan Ronald Wilson Reagan (February 6, 1911 – June 5, 2004) was an American politician and actor who served as the 40th president of the United States from 1981 to 1989. He was a member of the Republican Party (United States), Republican Party a ...

nominated Lamb as Assistant Secretary of State for Administration, and Lamb held this office from December 19, 1983, until July 1, 1985. He then became director of the

Bureau of Diplomatic Security The Bureau of Diplomatic Security, commonly known as Diplomatic Security (DS), is the security branch of the United States Department of State. It conducts international investigations, threat analysis, cyber security, counterterrorism, and pr ...

. In 1987, the head of the Bureau of Diplomatic Security was elevated to the rank of Assistant Secretary and President Reagan named Lamb as the first

. Lamb held this office from June 19, 1987, until August 9, 1989. President

George H. W. Bush George Herbert Walker BushBefore the outcome of the 2000 United States presidential election, he was usually referred to simply as "George Bush" but became more commonly known as "George H. W. Bush", "Bush Senior," "Bush 41," and even "Bush th ...

then nominated Lamb as United States Ambassador to Cyprus, with Lamb presenting his credentials on November 30, 1990, and serving as Ambassador to Cyprus until October 24, 1993. Lamb retired from the Foreign Service in 1994. He then became Executive Director of the American Philatelic Society in State College, Pennsylvania. He retired from that position in 2006. Under his administration, the Society moved its headquarters to an historic, former Match Factory in

Bellefonte, Pennsylvania The Borough of Bellefonte is a borough in and the county seat of Centre County, Pennsylvania, United States. It is approximately 12 miles northeast of State College and is part of the State College, Pennsylvania metropolitan statistical area. ...

. Upon his retirement, the Society named the Executive wing of the headquarters complex in his honor.

References

President Reagan's Nomination of Lamb as Assistant Secretary of State for Diplomatic Security

President Bush's Nomination of Lamb as Ambassador to Cyprus
{{DEFAULTSORT:Lamb, Robert E. 1936 births Living people Ambassadors of the United States to Cyprus People from Atlanta Sigma Alpha Epsilon members United States assistant secretaries of state United States Foreign Service personnel University of Pennsylvania alumni Politicians from Fairfax County, Virginia