Stephen Mark Studdert (born 1948) is a geopolitical strategist and international problem solver. He served on the

White House The White House is the official residence and workplace of the president of the United States. Located at 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue Northwest (Washington, D.C.), NW in Washington, D.C., it has served as the residence of every U.S. president ...

staff as Advisor to United States presidents

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 ...

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 ...

, and

Gerald Ford Gerald Rudolph Ford Jr. (born Leslie Lynch King Jr.; July 14, 1913December 26, 2006) was the 38th president of the United States, serving from 1974 to 1977. A member of the Republican Party (United States), Republican Party, Ford assumed the p ...

and had special assignments in the Clinton, George W Bush, and Trump administrations.

Early life

Studdert was born in 1948 in

Petaluma Petaluma is a city in Sonoma County, California, United States, located in the North Bay region of the San Francisco Bay Area. Its population was 59,776 according to the 2020 census. Petaluma's name comes from the Miwok village named ''Péta ...

California California () is a U.S. state, state in the Western United States that lies on the West Coast of the United States, Pacific Coast. It borders Oregon to the north, Nevada and Arizona to the east, and shares Mexico–United States border, an ...

, to Harry and June Graham. He earned a

bachelor's degree A bachelor's degree (from Medieval Latin ''baccalaureus'') or baccalaureate (from Modern Latin ''baccalaureatus'') is an undergraduate degree awarded by colleges and universities upon completion of a course of study lasting three to six years ...

public administration Public administration, or public policy and administration refers to "the management of public programs", or the "translation of politics into the reality that citizens see every day",Kettl, Donald and James Fessler. 2009. ''The Politics of the ...

Brigham Young University Brigham Young University (BYU) is a Private education, private research university in Provo, Utah, United States. It was founded in 1875 by religious leader Brigham Young and is the flagship university of the Church Educational System sponsore ...

in 1971.

Career

From 1973 to 1975, Studdert was

chief Chief may refer to: Title or rank Military and law enforcement * Chief master sergeant, the ninth, and highest, enlisted rank in the U.S. Air Force and U.S. Space Force * Chief of police, the head of a police department * Chief of the boat ...

of the

Brigham City, Utah Brigham City is a city in Box Elder County, Utah, Box Elder County, Utah, United States. The population was 19,650 at the 2020 United States Census, 2020 census, up from the 2010 figure of 17,899. It is the county seat of Box Elder County. It l ...

police department. He served as a Bountiful City Council member from 1978 to 1980, and as the 1975

United States Junior Chamber The United States Junior Chamber, also known as the Jaycees, JCs or JCI USA, is a leadership training service organization and civic organization for people between the ages of 18 and 40. It is a branch of Junior Chamber International (JCI). ...

President. Studdert has represented U.S. Presidents in diplomatic assignments to over one hundred nations. Between 1983 and 1987 he served on the

President's Export Council The President's Export Council (PEC) is an American government organization that serves as the principal national advisory committee on international trade. The Council advises the president of the United States on policies and programs that affect ...

, the Export Advisory Now Council and the Foreign Trade Practices and Negotiations Subcommittee. He was a United States Delegate to the

United Nations The United Nations (UN) is the Earth, global intergovernmental organization established by the signing of the Charter of the United Nations, UN Charter on 26 June 1945 with the stated purpose of maintaining international peace and internationa ...

Energy Conference in Africa and to the 40th anniversary

NATO Summit A NATO summit is a summit (meeting), summit meeting that is regarded as a periodic opportunity for head of state, heads of state and head of government, heads of government of NATO member countries to evaluate and provide strategic direction ...

. He has been extensively involved in post-conflict reconstruction efforts in Iraq and Kurdistan since 2005. Since 2016, he has served as a senior advisor to the World Energy Forum. As a strong advocate of

affordable housing Affordable housing is housing which is deemed affordable to those with a household income at or below the median, as rated by the national government or a local government by a recognized housing affordability index. Most of the literature on ...

, Studdert headed the national Native American Housing Initiative from 1985 to 1995. He chaired the Housing and Community Development efforts of a $44 billion

Federal Home Loan Bank The Federal Home Loan Banks (FHLBanks, or FHLBank System) are 11 U.S. government-sponsored banks that provide liquidity to financial institutions to support housing finance and community investment. Overview The FHLBank System was chartered by ...

, where he served on the

Board of Directors A board of directors is a governing body that supervises the activities of a business, a nonprofit organization, or a government agency. The powers, duties, and responsibilities of a board of directors are determined by government regulatio ...

as its Chairman. He was elected by his peers to chair the Federal Home Loan Bank System Council of Chairs. He directed the 1989 Presidential inauguration of Bush, having previously served as an advisor to the

1981 Events January * January 1 ** Greece enters the European Economic Community, predecessor of the European Union. ** Palau becomes a self-governing territory. * January 6 – A funeral service is held in West Germany for Nazi Grand Admiral ...

and

1985 The year 1985 was designated as the International Youth Year by the United Nations. Events January * January 1 ** The Internet's Domain Name System is created. ** Greenland withdraws from the European Economic Community as a result of a n ...

inaugurations of Reagan. He provided counsel to the

2001 The year's most prominent event was the September 11 attacks against the United States by al-Qaeda, which Casualties of the September 11 attacks, killed 2,977 people and instigated the global war on terror. The United States led a Participan ...

and

2005 2005 was designated as the International Year for Sport and Physical Education and the International Year of Microcredit. The beginning of 2005 also marked the end of the International Decade of the World's Indigenous Peoples, Internationa ...

inaugurations of George W. Bush. In 1992, during the

Clinton Administration Bill Clinton's tenure as the 42nd president of the United States began with his first inauguration on January 20, 1993, and ended on January 20, 2001. Clinton, a Democrat from Arkansas, took office following his victory over Republican in ...

, he was appointed a

Federal Home Loan Banks The Federal Home Loan Banks (FHLBanks, or FHLBank System) are 11 U.S. government-sponsored banks that provide liquidity to financial institutions to support housing finance and community investment. Overview The FHLBank System was chartered by ...

Director in Seattle. Studdert remains active in international religious liberty issues. Studdert was national Co-Chair of the New American Revolution, a foundation for helping youth in need, between 1992 and 1993. He served as chair of the Utah Statehood Centennial Commission between 1993 and 1996 and Chair of This is the Place Foundation between 1996 and 2001. Studdert helped create the

Fortune 500 The ''Fortune'' 500 is an annual list compiled and published by ''Fortune (magazine), Fortune'' magazine that ranks 500 of the largest United States Joint-stock company#Closely held corporations and publicly traded corporations, corporations by ...

Forum for senior executives and has participated in the 1999 '' TIME magazine’s'' leaders’ world news-tour. From, 2004 until 2010, he served on the Executive Committee of

Boy Scouts of America Scouting America is the largest scouting organization and one of the largest List of youth organizations, youth organizations in the United States, with over 1 million youth, including nearly 200,000 female participants. Founded as the Boy Sco ...

's Utah National Parks Council. He served as Chairman of the George Washington Center for Freedom and Understanding from 2005 till 2008. He also served on the Board of Trustees of

Southern Virginia University Southern Virginia University (SVU) is a private liberal arts college in Buena Vista, Virginia. The college, though not officially affiliated with a particular faith, embraces the values of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (LDS C ...

from which he was awarded an Honorary Doctorate of Public Service. Studdert is author of ''America in Danger'' (2007).

Personal life

Studdert and his wife, Bonnie Beck, are the parents of six children. He is member of

the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, informally known as the LDS Church or Mormon Church, is a Nontrinitarianism, nontrinitarian Restorationism, restorationist Christianity, Christian Christian denomination, denomination and the ...

and served in the church as a

mission president Mission president is a Priesthood (LDS Church), priesthood leadership position in the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (LDS Church). A mission president presides over a geographic area known as a Mission (LDS Church), mission and the M ...

from 2001 to 2004.

Awards and decorations

He was awarded the Distinguished Citizen Award from the

, the

National Guard National guard is the name used by a wide variety of current and historical uniformed organizations in different countries. The original National Guard was formed during the French Revolution around a cadre of defectors from the French Guards. ...

Minuteman Award, the People of Vision award, the

Farm Bureau The American Farm Bureau Federation (AFBF), more informally called the American Farm Bureau (AFB) or simply the Farm Bureau, is a United States–based 501(c)(5) tax-exempt agricultural organization and lobbying group. Headquartered in Wash ...

’s Friend of Agriculture Award, and the citizen

Distinguished Service Medal Distinguished Service Medal (DSM) is a high award of a nation, state or country. Examples include: *Distinguished Service Medal (Australia) (established 1991), awarded to personnel of the Australian Defence Force for distinguished leadership in act ...

from the

United States Army The United States Army (USA) is the primary Land warfare, land service branch of the United States Department of Defense. It is designated as the Army of the United States in the United States Constitution.Article II, section 2, clause 1 of th ...

. He was awarded an

honorary doctorate An honorary degree is an academic degree for which a university (or other degree-awarding institution) has waived all of the usual requirements. It is also known by the Latin phrases ''honoris causa'' ("for the sake of the honour") or '' ad hon ...

by SVU.

Notes

References

short bio of Studdert

article on Studdert's appointment to the Reagan administration
* ''

Church News The ''Church News'' (formerly ''LDS Church News'') is a multi-platform supplement and subdivision of the ''Deseret News'', a Salt Lake City, Utah newspaper owned by the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (informally, the LDS Church). ...

'', January 13, 1995; November 7, 1992. {{DEFAULTSORT:Studdert, Stephen M. 1948 births Utah Republicans People from Brigham City, Utah American leaders of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints Brigham Young University alumni Weber State University faculty Mission presidents (LDS Church) Living people American police chiefs Law enforcement officials from Utah People from Bountiful, Utah People from Petaluma, California Recipients of the Distinguished Service Medal (US Army) United States presidential advisors Latter Day Saints from Utah Latter Day Saints from California Latter Day Saints from Virginia