 Ambassador Jeff Lunstead (photo credit: U.S. Embassy Colombo) |
Student & Staff Profiles
AU's Office of International Affairs (OIA) Welcomes Ambassador Jeff Lunstead
PRIOR TO HIS JUNIOR YEAR at the University of Notre Dame, Jeff Lunstead had not been outside the United States. During the next four decades he more than made up for that, spending almost half of those years overseas, most recently as U.S. Ambassador to Sri Lanka and Maldives. A career in the foreign service took Lunstead to postings throughout Asia, corresponding to his Ph.D. in Oriental Studies from the University of Pennsylvania.
Upon his retirement from the foreign service and return to Washington last fall, Lunstead sought a position within a university setting. As he explained, "Given the crucial need for better understanding of the rest of the world, and the important part that international education can play in that need, I was attracted to work in higher education." AU is convenient to Lunstead's Tenleytown home, where he and his family have lived during domestic postings over the past 25 years.
While U.S. Ambassador to Sri Lanka and Maldives, Lunstead oversaw relief and reconstruction activities following the December 2004 tsunami. Previous assignments included coordinating U.S. government activities in Afghanistan after the September 11, 2001 attacks and participating in efforts to develop the Kashmir peace process between India and Pakistan during 1999–2001.
Because of Dr. Lunstead's intimate knowledge of the region, especially India, his arrival was quite timely. "Just three weeks after joining OIA, he traveled to India with Dr. Ivy Broder, Don Myers, and me to assess the feasibility of a new university there," (see related story) noted Dr. Pastor. "Dr. Lunstead has been an invaluable resource, and I look forward to working with him on many future projects."
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