>> Well I went to Penn State University.
I was a 2004 graduate, and I had degrees in international politics and also media studies.
And I knew when I came to Penn State in, originally I guess in 2000 when I showed up,
that I was interested in foreign policy and national security issues.
And then obviously the events of September 11th happened, and so that really increased a lot
of attention and focus on the issues that I was already interested in.
So I was able through Penn State to get my first job in Washington DC, a summer internship
at a think tank called the Center for Strategic and International Studies.
And it was just a wonderful great first summer experience.
I worked for a really talented expert in a variety of issues.
He was working on a project in Afghanistan at the time which I worked on.
Also the debate about Iraq, whether or not there needed
to be an intervention there was beginning.
So I really, that was my first opportunity to sort of get my feet wet a bit
and experience life in Washington and work on these issues.
And then, as a result of that experience,
I was able to in subsequent summers while I was a student here at Penn State go back
to Washington and work at the state department over the summer on various issues.
Such as Iraq, Afghanistan.
And those experiences were really the foundation along with the coursework
and education I got here at Penn State for where I am today.
I went on to graduate school, I got master of public policy
from the Kennedy School of Government.
Spent some time working at the Central Intelligence Agency
as a political analyst before going back to the state department
as a presidential management fellow in 2006.
And I've essentially been with the state department since then.
Although, detailed to other U.S. government agencies so I've spent some time
at the White House Budget Office.
I've spent some time with the U.S. military working for General Petraeus
when he came into central command.
And all these experiences have just sort of built on each other.
And those initial experiences that I had as a Penn State student working unpaid internships
and the summer back about 10 years ago.