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Armed with a
Doctorate in International Education, (Ed.D.) Cynthia Shepherd Perry moved between academe, consulting, and diplomacy depending upon which political party was in power. She honed her leadership skills in increasingly responsible positions, culminating in two challenging ambassadorships
507:
In
November 1946, Perry married James Shepard, a mechanic. When she was invited to join the postgraduate program in Massachusetts in 1968, her husband, hoping to keep her home, demanded a divorce. Her divorce from Shepard was finalized in 1971, and she married James Olden (J.O.) Perry; he died in
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In 2001, President George W. Bush appointed her U.S. Executive
Director of the African Development Bank in Abidjan, Ivory Coast and later, Tunis, Tunisia. She held this position until her retirement in 2007. Perry returned to Houston, where she continued to support education and development in
354:, the sixth of nine children. She was one of the few blacks who graduated from Otter Creek High School in 1946. Perry credits her white high school principal with laying out for her what she needed to do to accomplish her dream of becoming an ambassador.
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presented Perry with its
President's Award. In 1988, UMass awarded Perry an honorary doctorate of Public Service. In 2002 she received a Distinguished Alumni Award, and in 2014 a Salute to Service Award for outstanding contributions to public service.
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Before starting doctoral work Perry already had secretarial, banking, and computer skills because of work she had done while attending school and raising her children. While working on her doctorate, she managed 34 returned
457:. She was responsible for establishing policies and educational programs for the 43 Sub-Saharan nations receiving U.S. assistance at the time. In 1986, Pres. Reagan appointed Perry U.S. Ambassador to
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volunteers who had served in Africa to develop and test
African Studies curricula using their own first-hand experience and the latest research into black history and affective education.
380:' Center for International Education to study for a doctorate in education, which she completed in 1972. For her doctoral degree, Perry proposed to improve race relations by developing
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in Kenya, Nigeria, and Zambia. In 1974, She served as a member of diplomatic delegations to Sierra Leone, Ghana, Nigeria, and
Liberia. In 1976, she was appointed to the staff of the
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at the
University of Nairobi in Kenya. During his three-year tenure, she trained Peace Corps paramedical volunteers, lectured at the University, and served as a consultant to the
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413:. She also helped graduates of her program get jobs as teachers, and oversaw those who worked training teachers for The Federal Desegregation Center in Miami.
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763:, Association for Diplomatic Studies and Training (ADST), Foreign Affairs Oral History Project, copyright 2000, FAOH, accessed March 9, 2019.
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In 1982, President Ronald Reagan appointed Perry chief of the
Education and Human Resources Division in the Africa Bureau of the
338:. Throughout her career Perry promoted racial and gender equality, international cooperation, and African economic development.
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In 1973, Perry returned to Africa for three years with her second husband, Dr. J.O.Perry, who had taken a position with
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http://www.indstate.edu/sites/default/files/media/student-affairs/images/ambassador-cynthia-shepard-perry-essay.pdf
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652:"Association for Diplomatic Studies and Training Foreign Affairs Oral History Project AMBASSADOR CYNTHIA S. PERRY"
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volunteers and coordinated with the Public
Schools of Worcester, Mass. She served as director of the National
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Cynthia married James
Shepard, a mechanic, after graduating from high school. She worked for a bank and for
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November 11, 1928 – June 13, 2024) was an American educator and diplomat. She served as U.S. Ambassador to
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Perry and her husband returned to Texas in 1978 and she was appointed dean of international affairs at
461:; she held this position until 1990, when President George H.W. Bush appointed her U.S. Ambassador to
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In 1993, Perry returned to her position at Texas Southern University and in 1996 she moved to
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curricula for public schools. She had never been to Africa, so she recruited over 30 former
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to Ethiopia and Kenya on a summer secretarial training project. The trip was part of the
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Perry, Cynthia Shepard, interviewed by Charles Stuart Kennedy starting March 21, 1999,
532:"Ambassador Cynthia Shepard Perry Returns to CIE | Center for International Education"
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In 1969 Perry visited Africa for the first time when she accompanied students from
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and an international development bank position under three Republican presidents.
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Mikel-Reynolds, Crystal Ph.D. with Ambassador Cynthia Shepard Perry, Ed.D.
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350:. She grew up in a segregated community called Lost Creek, Indiana, near
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and completed a B.A. in political science from the university in 1968.
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632:"Perry, Cynthia Shepard – Special Collections and University Archives"
465:. During this time Perry also served as Honorary Counsel General for
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Perry, Cynthia Shepard, interviewed by Crystal Mikel-Reynolds,
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Dr. Cynthia Shepard Perry: A Sycamore Destined for Greatness
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Dr. Cynthia Shepard Perry: A Sycamore Destined for Greatness
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UMAss College of Education Archives, Cynthia Shepard Perry
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Perry was born on November 11, 1928 in the mining town of
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693:. Houston, Tex.: Stonecrest International Publishers.
455:United States Agency for International Development
361:, developing skills. The couple started a family.
792:Ambassadors of the United States to Sierra Leone
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659:Association for Diplomatic Studies and Training
113:February 12, 1990 – February 28, 1993
441:United Nations Economic Commission for Africa
511:Perry died June 13, 2024, at the age of 95.
485:All Things Being Equal: One Woman's Journey.
59:November 20, 1986 – August 30, 1989
787:Ambassadors of the United States to Burundi
690:All things being equal: one woman's journey
586:All Things being Equal: One Woman's Journey
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817:University of Massachusetts Amherst people
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334:and as American Executive Director of the
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247: 1971; died 2006)
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483:In 1998, Perry published her memoirs,
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369:Cynthia Shepard won a scholarship to
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258:Donna, Jim, Milo, Paula, Mark, James
842:21st-century African-American women
832:20th-century African-American women
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411:University of Massachusetts Amherst
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722:"Ambassador Cynthia Shepard-Perry"
560:"Cynthia Shepard Perry (1928- ) •"
450:, a position she held until 1982.
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812:Texas Southern University faculty
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558:Collins, Minnie A. (2015-01-25).
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309:Expertise in Africa and education
802:Texas Woman's University faculty
668:from the original on 3 July 2024
437:United States Information Agency
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827:20th-century American diplomats
797:Indiana State University alumni
761:Interview with Cynthia S. Perry
687:Perry, Cynthia Shepard (1998).
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293:B.A. Indiana State University
16:American diplomat (1928–2024)
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320:Cynthia Helena Shepard Perry
98:United States Ambassador to
44:United States Ambassador to
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588:, Stonecrest, Houston, TX,
422:Operation Crossroads Africa
378:University of Massachusetts
301:Diplomat, Professor, Banker
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336:African Development Bank
272:Flossi Phillipa (mother)
503:Personal life and death
376:In 1968 she joined the
269:George Norton (father)
426:University of Nairobi
163:Cynthia Helena Norton
133:James Daniel Phillips
23:Cynthia Shepard Perry
223: 1946;
79:Arthur Winston Lewis
210:James Otto Shepard
661:. 21 March 1999.
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234:James Olden Perry
173:November 11, 1928
122:George H. W. Bush
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68:Ronald Reagan
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729:. Retrieved
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459:Sierra Leone
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328:Sierra Leone
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188:(2024-06-13)
139:Succeeded by
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90:Johnny Young
85:Succeeded by
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46:Sierra Leone
782:2024 deaths
777:1928 births
490:Recognition
476:as regent.
403:Peace Corps
386:Peace Corps
352:Terre Haute
144:Bob Krueger
129:Preceded by
75:Preceded by
771:Categories
637:2020-02-23
594:0967557100
565:2020-02-23
541:2020-02-23
515:References
342:Early life
298:Occupation
289:Alma mater
199:Republican
169:1928-11-11
365:Education
306:Known for
280:Education
205:Spouse(s)
118:President
109:In office
64:President
55:In office
699:43975905
663:Archived
494:In 1987
480:Africa.
255:Children
731:25 July
672:31 July
596:, 2001.
467:Senegal
463:Burundi
409:at the
332:Burundi
324:Norton;
263:Parents
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100:Burundi
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612:, 2017
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508:2006.
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392:Career
178:, U.S.
666:(PDF)
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496:NAACP
322:(née
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96:11th
42:10th
733:2024
695:OCLC
674:2024
590:ISBN
330:and
225:div.
183:Died
159:Born
359:IBM
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Text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License. Additional terms may apply.
