BIOGRAPHY Charlotte (Charlie) Ponticelli Senior Coordinator, International Women's Issues Term of Appointment: 04/07/2003 to present

Charlotte (Charlie) Ponticelli was appointed Senior Coordinator for International Women's Issues at the U.S. Department of State on April 7, 2003. As Secretary Powell has pointed out, the office serves as the "focal point within the Bush Administration for the development and implementation of our pro-women foreign policy agenda;" it reports directly to the Under Secretary of State for Global Affairs. Prior to assuming her current position, Mrs. Ponticelli served as Deputy Senior Coordinator for International Women’s Issues. Before coming to the Department in September 2002, Mrs. Ponticelli was Director of Lectures and Seminars at The Heritage Foundation.

Mrs. Ponticelli has extensive government experience, serving previously at the White House (Director of Congressional Correspondence in the Office of Legislative Affairs), the U.S. Agency for International Development (Congressional Liaison Officer for Latin America and the Caribbean), and the U.S. Commission on Civil Rights (Commissioner Assistant).

During the Administration of President George H.W. Bush, Mrs. Ponticelli was Director of Human Rights and Women's Affairs in the State Department's Bureau of International Organization Affairs, and later moved to the International Republican Institute, where she designed and implemented several projects to assist democratic forces in the Balkans.

Mrs. Ponticelli is the recipient of numerous Superior Honor Awards from the State Department. She received the Veritas Award from Albertus Magnus College in 1996. In 1984, she was given the Outstanding Young Alumna Award at her alma mater, Hood College, in Maryland. In addition to her Bachelor of Arts degree (cum laude) from Hood College, Mrs. Ponticelli earned a Master of Arts degree in Spanish literature through New York University's program in Madrid and studied in the doctoral program in Spanish at The Catholic University of America.
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