Marc Grossman

In 2005, Ambassador Marc Grossman completed 29 years of distinguished public service when he retired from the State Department as the Under Secretary of State for Political Affairs. Ambassador Grossman served as the Department’s third-ranking official, supporting U.S. diplomacy worldwide. Following the September 11th attacks, he helped marshal international diplomatic support for the Global war on Terrorism and for the military campaigns in Afghanistan and Iraq. Ambassador Grossman previously served as the Director General of the Foreign Service and Director of Human Resources from 2000 to 2001. At the direction of the Secretary of State, he revamped the State Department’s human resource strategies, including the Department’s strategies for training, assigning, and retaining personnel both at home and abroad. As Assistant Secretary of State for European Affairs from 1997 to 2000, Ambassador Grossman was responsible for over 4,000 State Department employees posted in 50 sites abroad with a program budget of $1.2 billion. He played a lead role in orchestrating NATO's 50th anniversary Summit in Washington in 1999 and helped direct U.S. participation in NATO’s military campaign in Kosovo that same year. Ambassador Grossman was U.S. Ambassador to Turkey 1994-1997. In Turkey, he promoted security cooperation, human rights and democracy and a vibrant U.S.-Turkish economic relationship. Ambassador Grossman had previously served as the embassy’s Deputy Chief of Mission from 1989 to 1992. As the Executive Secretary of the State Department and Special Assistant to the Secretary of State from 1993 to 1994, Ambassador Grossman managed operations for the senior State Department leadership. He served as the Deputy Director of the Private Office of Lord Carrington, the NATO Secretary-General, from 1983 to 1986 and at the U.S. Embassy in Pakistan from 1976 to 1983. A native of Los Angeles, California, Ambassador Grossman graduated from the University of California, Santa Barbara and later received an MSc. in International Relations from the London School of Economics and Political Science. As a result of his outstanding service to his country, Ambassador Grossman is the recipient of numerous honors and awards. He attained the Foreign Service’s highest rank in 2004 when the President appointed him to the rank of Career Ambassador; he received the Secretary of State’s Distinguished Service Award the following year. Ambassador Grossman serves on the Board of Directors/Trustees of a number of non-profit and educational institutions.