Julie A. Ruterbories, a senior foreign service officer with 21 years of experience in Europe, Central Asia, the Caucasus and Washington, D.C., will serve as the diplomat-in-residence for the southern mid-Atlantic region.
She will be hosted by Duke University and maintain regular office hours at UNC-Chapel Hill in the coming school year for students interested in foreign service and international relations.
Ruterbories began serving in her current position as the Consul General in Amsterdam in the summer 2009. During Ruterbories’ tours she has advanced foreign policy interests across a broad range of issues, including democratization and human rights, trade and investment and immigration. She began her foreign service career as a consular officer at the U.S. Embassy in Bishkek, she has also served additional consular tours in Baku, Azerbaijan; London, England; Skopje, Macedonia; and Pristina, Kosovo. In Washington, Ruterbories served as a congressional liaison officer, where she was awarded the Secretary’s Award for Public Outreach. She has also served in the State Department’s Operations Center. Most recently, she worked as special assistant to the Assistant Secretary of State for Consular Affairs.
“The Diplomat in Residence program is important to our campus and region,” said Ron Strauss, executive vice provost and chief international officer for the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. “We’re looking forward to the momentum Ms. Ruterbories will bring to our campus and region to further inspire our students’ interest in foreign service and international relations.”
Ruterbories earned an undergraduate degree in history and soviet studies from Georgetown University and a graduate degree in international affairs from Columbia University. She speaks several foreign languages, including German, French, Spanish, Russian and Macedonian. She has been studying Dutch.
She follows William Lucas ’73 as Diplomat in Residence. Lucas, a member of the UNC Global Advisory Board, taught a peace, war and defense class at UNC, in addition to serving as a professional resource for students via office hours and a physical residency in a campus residence hall.
Published June 12, 2012.