Newswise — American University has appointed Anita B. McBride, former chief of staff to First Lady Laura Bush, as executive-in-residence for the Center for Congressional and Presidential Studies at American University’s School of Public Affairs.
McBride has a distinguished career in American politics and government spanning more than 20 years and three administrations. From 2005 to 2009, she served as assistant to President George W. Bush and chief of staff to First Lady Laura Bush. She developed the first lady’s global and domestic platform in support of presidential policies and initiatives, including global health, education, historic preservation, and human rights.
As a Center for Congressional and Presidential Studies (CCPS) fellow, McBride will also work with the university’s Women & Politics Institute. As a faculty fellow, she will host guest lectures and teach one-credit weekend classes. McBride will organize conferences including the recent African First Ladies Fellowship Program cosponsored with the RAND Corporation’s Washington office and host events to bring university professors and policy makers together to talk about the pressing issues of the day such as a recent Global Health Policy discussion.
McBride’s new role at American University has her returning to a familiar place. McBride studied foreign policy for a semester in American University’s Washington Semester Program, as an undergraduate at the University of Connecticut,
“Having participated in the Washington Semester Program as a student, I have a very special place in my heart for American University,” said McBride. “In my new role at American University, I am going back to a university that helped launch my public service career in Washington, D.C.”
McBride joined the Reagan Administration in 1984 and served as White House personnel director, from 1987 to 1992, under presidents Ronald Reagan and George H. W. Bush. From 2001 to 2004, McBride served President George W. Bush in White House management, at the State Department as senior advisor to the Secretary of State and White House liaison, and as senior advisor in the Bureau of International Organization Affairs. She was a United States delegate to the U.N. Commission on the Status of Women, the U.N. Commission on Human Rights, and the U.N. Special Session on HIV/AIDS.
In 2009, President Bush appointed McBride to the J. William Fulbright Foreign Scholarship Board, which she now chairs. In her role as a Fulbright Chair she intends to build upon the strong relationship between the university and the Fulbright program. McBride is a member of the United States–Afghan Women’s Council, a historic public-private partnership that mobilizes resources to empower Afghan women and children. In 2010, she was appointed to the Presidential Advisory Council on HIV/AIDS. She also serves on the board of the National Italian American Foundation.
As a member of the American University faculty McBride is available for press interviews on the following topics:
• Role of the First Lady: the role of the first lady and her office in domestic policy and global diplomacy
• Presidential Transitions & Good Governance: McBride has been through four presidential transitions on both sides - (incoming and outgoing). On the global side, she has been an election monitor for several international elections, (Afghanistan and Ukraine) for international NGO’s. • Global Health and Education: McBride is a Chair of the Fulbright Scholarship Board and Member of the President's Advisory Council on HIV/AIDS. She developed the global health and education platforms for Mrs. Bush in her role as chief advocate for the Bush Administration initiatives-specifically PEPFAR and the President's Malaria Initiative, and the African Education Initiative. McBride also managed her role as UN Ambassador for the Decade of Literacy and will continue to assume role until 2012. • Women's Empowerment: McBride has a particular expertise on women in Afghanistan and Africa and has been active in efforts to increase their economic and political participation.
Located in Washington, D.C., American University, recently ranked by Princeton Review as the most politically active campus, is a leader in global education, enrolling a diverse student body from throughout the United States and more than 150 countries. The university provides opportunities for academic excellence, public service, and internships in the nation's capital and around the world.
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