Chelsia Hetrick

As a Foreign Service officer with the U.S. State Department, I have dedicated my career to representing American interests abroad while living and working in diverse international locations. My journey began when I joined the State Department under a diversity program, and I have been serving in this capacity since starting graduate school in 2004. Over the past two decades, I have completed assignments in Ecuador, Colombia, South Africa, and Burma, and I am currently based in the Dominican Republic. The nature of my work requires me to relocate every 3 years or so, which means I am almost always overseas. This lifestyle has not only shaped my professional perspective but has also provided my 3 children with the unique opportunity to experience different cultures and gain perspectives from different parts of the world. I am a member of the Pickering Wrangell Foreign Affairs Association, a cohort of individuals who came into the State Department under diversity programs.