WASHINGTON, D.C. - On September 26th, Mara Rudman joined the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID) as the Assistant Administrator for the Middle East Bureau, having been confirmed by the United States Senate on September 13, 2011.

Nominated by President Obama in February, Rudman joins the USAID leadership team with an aim to ensure that the best and most innovative initiatives are implemented effectively in the Middle East region.

Working closely with the key foreign policy and national security agencies and the White House, Rudman looks forward to doing her part to see that development, diplomacy and defense efforts are mutually reinforcing, to meet the needs of the region and serve the interests of the United States.

"I cannot imagine a more challenging time to take on this assignment, or a better opportunity to show what USAID, as part of the US Government team, can do to make a difference in working with this region as it moves into a new era" said Rudman.

Rudman previously served as the Deputy Envoy and Chief of Staff to the Special Envoy for Middle East Peace at the Department of State. In early 2009, she served as Deputy Assistant to the President and Executive Secretary for the National Security Council. From 2005-2009, she led Quorum Strategies, LLC, an international strategic consulting firm, and was a Senior Fellow at the Center for American Progress, where she focused on national security issues and advised Middle East Progress. Rudman served as a deputy national security advisor and National Security Council Chief of Staff to President Clinton from 1999-2001, and earlier in her career, as chief counsel to the House Foreign Affairs Committee under Chairman Lee Hamilton (D-IN). She also has worked as a vice president and general counsel for The Cohen Group, a Washington-based consultancy founded by former Secretary of Defense William Cohen; and she worked previously for Rep. Gerry E. Studds (D-MA).

Rudman holds an A.B. summa cum laude from Dartmouth College and a J.D. cum laude from Harvard Law School. For more information about USAID, visit www.usaid.gov