By Joan C. McKinney, news and publications coordinator
CAMPBELLSVILLE, Ky. - Campbellsville University will host Aaron Snipe, spokesperson and deputy director for the U.S. Department of State Foreign Service's Bureau of Near Eastern Affairs (NEA) Monday, April 8 and Tuesday, April 9.
Snipe, who is a career member of the U.S. Department of State Foreign Service, is coming to Kentucky through the work of the International Institute of Louisville (IIL), will speak at a public session at 9:30 a.m. Tuesday, April 9 in the Banquet Hall of the Badgett Academic Support Center at 110 University Drive, Campbellsville, Ky.
“We are fortunate to have such a knowledgeable person as Mr. Snipe,” Richard Top, CEO of the International Institute of Louisville, said. “He speaks extensively to the United States, regional and international press to explain U.S. policy in the Middle East, particularly on Iran, Iraq, the Middle East Peace Process and Syria.”
While in Campbellsville, Snipe will meet with CU students, high school students and the media. Students will gain information about the potential for a career in the U.S. Department of State and its associated agencies and corresponding departments.
To schedule a media appearance, contact Dr. Keith Spears, vice president for graduate and professional studies, at (270) 403-0505 or hkspears@campbellsville.edu.
Spears said Snipe's visit is being noted as “Windows on U.S. Middle East Relations.” He said, “Community members and students will have an opportunity for direct interaction with a U.S. diplomat who has intimate knowledge of the U.S. role in the Middle East.”
Snipe has worked for the U.S. Department of State since March 2003. Snipe's most recent Foreign Service assignments include two tours in Iraq where he served as the public diplomacy officer and spokesperson for the Provincial Reconstruction Team in Muthanna Providence from 2008 to 2009 and as the deputy spokesperson at the U.S. Embassy in Baghdad where he coordinated the U.S. Government's civilian media and messaging efforts in Iraq from 2010 to 2011.
Prior to his Iraq service, Snipe worked in the State Department's Office of Iranian Affairs where he worked with the Department's Press Office, as well as with Western and foreign media organizations, to coordinate U.S. Government policy messaging on Iran.
Snipe also worked as a watch officer in the Department's Executive Secretariat Operations Center where he routinely briefed the Secretary of State and other senior department officers.
In addition to his work in the Middle East and Washington, Snipe also served as a consular/political-economic officer at the United States Embassy in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, from 2003 to 2005.
In his capacity as second secretary, Snipe managed the relations of the four U.S. Government agencies implementing the President's Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief (PEPFAR) programs in Ethiopia as post's interagency PEPFAR coordinator.
Before joining the state department, Snipe worked in the financial services industry as an analyst at UBS PaineWebber and more recently as an assistant compliance director at MetLife Securities in New York City.
His commitment to public service began in 1994 when he served as a National Park Service park ranger in his hometown of Boston, Mass., where he conducted historical walking tours of the City of Boston, along with writing and research on the 19th Century community of Beacon Hill.
Snipe graduated from Suffolk University Law School with a juris doctor degree. He is also a graduate of Emerson College and Arlington High School. He speaks Arabic and some Japanese.
Campbellsville University is a widely acclaimed Kentucky-based Christian university with more than 3,600 students offering 63 undergraduate options, 17 master's degrees, five postgraduate areas and eight pre-professional programs. The website for complete information is campbellsville.edu.