Sherry Mueller

publicdiplomacycouncil.org

Sherry Mueller, Ph.D.

Sherry L. Mueller, Ph.D.serves as an adjunct professor at the School of International Service (SIS), American University, Washington, D.C. She teaches an undergraduate course and a graduate Practicum entitled Cultural Diplomacy and International Exchange. Dr. Mueller provided leadership for the National Council for International Visitors (now Global Ties U.S.) since 1996, first as Executive Director and then as President until September 30, 2011.  The NCIV Board of Directors named Sherry President Emeritus October 27, 2011. Before coming to NCIV, she worked for the Institute of International Education (IIE) for eighteen years, first as a program officer and then as Director of the Professional Exchange Programs staff.  During this time she was also an adjunct professor, pioneering the first course on public diplomacy at SIS, American University.  Prior to joining IIE, Ms. Mueller served as an Experiment Leader to the former Soviet Union, an English Language Officer for the U.S. Department of State, and a lecturer at the University of Rhode Island.

Ms. Mueller is an active volunteer and has served on the boards of various nonprofit organizations including World Learning, the Public Diplomacy Council, Friendship Force International, Business for Diplomatic Action, and the U.S. Center for Citizen Diplomacy. Currently she serves on the boards of PYXERA Global and Sudan Sunrise. She is also a member of the SIS Dean’s Council and the Advisory Council of the International Student House in Washington, DC.

In May 2011, One To World presented Ms. Mueller with the Fulbright Award for Citizen Diplomacy for “lifelong contributions to global understanding and cooperation, one handshake at a time, in the Fulbright tradition.” In 2007, American University’s School of International Service presented Ms. Mueller with the Alumna of the Year Award at the German Embassy.  She received the U.S. Information Agency's Award for Outstanding Service in 1996, and the Distinguished Alumna Award from the Lake Park High School Educational Foundation in 1995.  In appreciation for her active role in alumni affairs at American University, Ms. Mueller received the Alumni Recognition Award in 1990.

Ms. Mueller has lived in Brazil, where she taught English; participated in an Experiment in International Living program in Germany; and has traveled extensively throughout Europe and Southeast Asia. She has served as a speaker for the U.S. Department of State in Saudi Arabia and Japan, giving lectures and conducting workshops on leadership development for nonprofit organizations.  Selected publications include “Professional Exchanges, Citizen Diplomacy, and Credibility” in America’s Dialogue with the World, published by the Public Diplomacy Council, and “A Half Century of Citizen Diplomacy:  A Unique Public Private Partnership,” published in The Ambassadors Review in Fall 2009.  In October 2008, Georgetown University Press released the book Working World: Careers in International Education, Exchange, and Development, written with coauthor Mark Overmann. The second edition will be published in April 2014. Ms. Mueller earned her M.A.L.D. and Ph.D. from the Fletcher School of Law and Diplomacy. She is a native of northern Illinois.