Coffee chats are small, informal gatherings with SFS alumni and guests hosted by SFS Dean Joel Hellman or a Vice Dean. The guest briefly talks about his/her academic and professional path, before students ask questions about professional experience, and guests offer advice.
2023-2024
Fall Semester
- Schuyler Moore (SSP’20), Chief Technology Officer for the U.S. Central Command
- James Filippatos (C’93), Vice President for Global Public Policy at The Walt Disney Company
- Tasia Filippatos (L’99), Senior Vice President for Communications at Disney Consumer Products, The Walt Disney Company
- Alexia Latortue (SFS’93), Assistant Secretary for International Trade and Development, U.S. Department of the Treasury
- Nasser Judeh (SFS’83), former Minister of Foreign Affairs of Jordan
- Goli Sheikholeslami (SFS’89), CEO of POLITICO
- Tim Hughes (SFS’94), Senior Vice President of Global Business and Head of Government Affairs, SpaceX
- Andrew Steer, President and CEO of the Bezos Earth Fund
- H.R.H. Prince Turki bin Faisal Al Saud (B’68), former Director General of Saudi Arabia’s General Intelligence Presidency and Saudi Arabian Ambassador to the United States
Spring Semester
- Alex Marquardt (SFS’04), CNN Chief National Security Correspondent
- Enrico Letta, Former Prime Minister of Italy
- Ellen Johnson Sirleaf, former President of Liberia
- Maher Bitar (SFS’06, L’12), Deputy Assistant to the U.S. President and U.S. National Security Council Coordinator for Intelligence & Defense Policy
- Anthony Fauci, Former Director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases and Georgetown Distinguished University Professor
- Stéphane Dujarric, United Nations spokesperson for Secretary-General António Guterres
2022-2023
Fall Semester
- Ambassador Masood Khan, Pakistani Ambassador to the U.S.
- Nina Jankowicz (MAERES’13), Former Executive Director, Disinformation Governance Board (Department of Homeland Security)
- Tzipi Livni, Former Vice Prime Minister of Israel
- Mayu Ávila, Former Foreign Minister of El Salvador
- Margot Wallström, Former Deputy Prime Minister of Sweden
- Jason Matheny, President and CEO, RAND Corporation
- Tessie San Martin (SFS’80), CEO, FHI 360
- Ken Ofori-Atta, Minister for Finance and Economic Planning of Ghana
- Ambassador Lianys Torres Rivera, Cuban Ambassador to the U.S.
- H.R.H. Prince Turki bin Faisal Al Saud (B’68), former Saudi Arabian Ambassador to the U.S.
Spring Semester
- Kathleen Kingsbury (SFS’01), Opinion Editor, The New York Times
- Stéphane Dujarric (SFS’88, P’23, ’25), Spokesperson for the United Nations Secretary-General António Guterres
- Representative Ami Bera, M.D., 6th district of California and ranking member of the Subcommittee on Asia, the Pacific, Central Asia, and Nonproliferation
- H.E. Esteban Moctezuma Barragán, Mexican Ambassador to the United States
- Ani Dasgupta, CEO and President of World Resources Institute
- Meroë Park (SFS’89), Former Acting Director of the United States Central Intelligence Agency
- Ambassador Taranjit Singh Sandhu (P’23), Indian Ambassador to the United States
2021-2022
Fall Semester
- Dexter Goei (SFS’93), Chairman and CEO of Altice USA, President of the Board of Altice NV
- Jason Matheny, Deputy Assistant to the President for Technology and National Security
- Maher Bitar (SFS’06, L’12), Senior Director for Intelligence Programs, National Security Council
- Ambassador Peter Wittig, Former German Ambassador to the U.K.
- Ambassador Roya Rahmani, Former Afghan Ambassador to the U.S.
Spring Semester
- Ambassador John Sullivan, U.S. Ambassador to Russia
- Congresswoman Stephanie Murphy (MSFS’04), U.S. Representative (FL-7th)
2020-2021
Fall Semester
- Katrina O’Connell (SFS’90), Chief Financial Officer at Gap Inc.
- Adam Norwitt (SFS’91), CEO, Amphenol
- Mary Beth Powers (SFS’84), CEO, Catholic Medical Mission Board (CMMB)
- Kai Ryssdal (SSP’93, P’20), Host and Senior Editor of NPR’s Marketplace
- Tony Coscia (SFS’81, P’10, ’12, ’16), Partner, Windels Marx Lane & Mittendorf LLP
- Brian Newman (SFS’90 , P’21), Chief Financial Officer, UPS Inc
- Madeleine Albright, former U.S. Secretary of State and Mortara Distinguished Professor of Diplomacy
- Antonio Gracias (SFS’92, MSFS’ 93), Founder and CEO, Valor Equity Partners
Spring Semester
- Stéphane Dujarric (SFS’88, P’23), Spokesperson for the United Nations Secretary-General António Guterres
- Alexander Marquardt (SFS’04), Senior National Security Correspondent, CNN
- Kathleen Kingsbury (SFS’01), Opinion Editor, New York Times
- Ambassador Todd Robinson (SFS’85), former U.S. Ambassador to Guatemala
- Antwaun Sargent (SFS’11), Art Critic and Writer
- Margaret Huang (SFS’91), President and CEO of Southern Poverty Law Center
- Senator Nasser Judeh (SFS’83, P’18), Former Minister of Foreign Affairs of Jordan
- Mary Ellen Iskenderian (SFS’81), President and CEO of Women’s World Banking
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John Sullivan, U.S. Ambassador to Russia
- Alexander S. Vindman, Lieutenant Colonel (ret.), U.S. Army
2019-2020
Fall Semester
- Goli Sheikholeslami (SFS’89), President and CEO of New York Public Radio, National Public Radio
- Margaret Huang (SFS’91), Executive Director, Amnesty International
- Robert Cardillo, Former Director of the National Geospatial-Intelligence Agency
- Ambassador Bonnie Jenkins, Joint Visiting Fellow at Brookings Institution and the University of Pennsylvania’s Perry World House
- Tim Hughes (SFS’94), Senior Vice President, Global Business and Government Affairs, SpaceX
- Sheba Crocker, CARE USA’s Vice President for Humanitarian Policy and Practice
- John Cohen, Senior Expert on Global Threats – Argonne National Laboratory
- Maksym Eristavi, Research Fellow at the Atlantic Council’s Eurasia Center and Co-Founder of the Russian Language News Exchange
- Congressman Andy Levin (MI-9), U.S. Representative from the 9th District of Michigan
- Jill Dougherty (S’13), SFS Centennial Fellow, Global Fellow at the Woodrow Wilson International Center for Scholars and a CNN Contributor on Russia issues
- Zaid Zaid (SFS’97), Public Policy, Strategic Response at Facebook
- Tom Purcell (SFS’93), Public Securities and Private Business, Lake Trail Capital
Spring Semester
- Gurbir S. Grewal (SFS’95), Attorney General of the State of New Jersey
- Ricardo Michel, Managing Director, FHI Partners
- Gyude Moore (MSFS’09), Visiting Fellow at the Center for Global Development and Former Minister of Public Works for Liberia
- Ellen Clarke (BSFS’09), Associate Security Counsel, Google
2018-2019
Fall Semester
- Dr. Scott Guggenheim, former Senior Advisor to Afghan President Ashraf Ghani
- Ambassador Jeffrey DeLaurentis (SFS’76) (ret.), former U.S. Chargé d’Affaires to Cuba
- James Politi (SFS’99), World Trade Editor at the Financial Times
- Valla Vakili (SFS’95), Director, Head of Ventures Studio, Citi Ventures
- Meroë Park (SFS’89), former Executive Director of the United States Central Intelligence Agency (“CIA”)
- Stéphane Dujarric (SFS’88), Spokesperson for the United Nations Secretary-General António Guterres
- Greg Miller, National Security reporter at The Washington Post
- General Wesley Clark (ret.), SFS Centennial Fellow
- Frederic Wehrey, Senior Fellow at the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace
- Sarah Margon (MSFS’05), Washington Director at Human Rights Watch
- Catherine Novelli, former Under Secretary of State for Economic Growth, Energy, and the Environment
- Molly K. McKew, CEO of Fianna Strategies, narrative architect at New Media Frontier
- Kara Swisher (SFS’84), Executive Editor of Recode, host of the Recode Decode podcast
- Kathleen H. Hicks, Senior Vice President at Center for Strategic and International Studies (CSIS)
- Tom Purcell (SFS’93), former Co-Chief Investment Officer at Viking Global Investors
Spring Semester
- Adolfo Jimenez (SFS’85) Partner, Holland & Knight
- Gary Perlin (SFS’72), former CFO of Capital One and The World Bank
- Alex Marquardt (SFS’04), Senior National Correspondent for CNN
- Jeffrey Feltman, John C. Whitehead Visiting Fellow in International Diplomacy in the Foreign Policy program at the Brookings Institution
- Dr. Azar Nafisi, SFS Centennial Fellow
- Susan Reichle, President and Chief Executive Officer for the International Youth Foundation
- William Priestap, Former Assistant Director of the FBI’s Counterintelligence Division
2017-2018
Fall Semester
- Claudia Escobar, Former Magistrate, Court of Appeals of Guatemala
- Kimberly Nelson (SFS’84), Senior Vice President, External Relations; President, General Mills Foundation
- Ambassador Bonnie Jenkins, Coordinator for Threat Reduction Programs, U.S. Department of State
- The Honorable Nasser S. Judeh (SFS’83, P’18), Former Foreign Minister of Jordan
- Ambassador Kristie Kenney, Career Ambassador, U.S. Department of State
- Colin Kahl, Associate Professor, Security Studies Program and former National Security Advisor to Vice President Joe Biden
- Dr. Joachim von Amsberg, Vice President for Policy and Strategy at the Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank
- Prasenjeet Yadav, Molecular Ecologist and Photographer
- Ambassador Peter Wittig, German Ambassador to the United States
- Ambassador Nancy McEldowney, Director, Master of Science in Foreign Service (MSFS) and Distinguished Professor of the Practice
Spring Semester
- Ambassador Hamdullah Mohib, Afghan Ambassador to the United States
- Ellen Goldstein, World Bank Country Director for Myanmar, Cambodia, and Lao
- Mark Landler (SFS’87), White House Correspondent at The New York Times
- Ambassador Ben Rowswell (SFS’93), Canada’s Ambassador to Venezuela (2014-2017)
- Ambassador Richard Verma (L’98), U.S. Ambassador to India (2014-2017)
- Benjamin Wittes, Senior Fellow in Governance Studies at The Brookings Institution
- Anne Richard (SFS’82), Assistant Secretary of State for Population, Refugees and Migration in the Obama Administration
- Ambassador Dana Smith, Former U.S. Ambassador to Qatar
- Shéhérazade Semsar-de Boisséson (SFS’89, MSFS’90), Managing Director at Politico Europe
- Tim Hughes (SFS’94), Senior Vice President and General Counsel at SpaceX
- Dr. Christina Hanna, (SFS’08, M’14)
- Dr. Mara Karlin, Associate Professor of the Practice of Strategic Studies at Johns Hopkins-SAIS and Nonresident Senior Fellow for Security and Strategy at Brookings
- Ambassador Gérard Araud, French Ambassador to the United States
2016-2017
Fall Semester
- Ambassador Jeffrey DeLaurentis (SFS’76), Chargé d’Affaires at the U.S. Embassy in Havana, Cuba
- Alexis Early, Associate at Steptoe and Johnson
- Lauren Gaffney, Assistant General Counsel for TerraForm Power
- Ludmilla Savelieff, Associate at Squire Patton Boggs
- H.R.H. Prince Turki bin Faisal Al Saud (B’68), Former Ambassador of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia to the United States
- Tamara Kofman Wittes, Senior Fellow and Director of the Center for Middle East Policy at Brookings
- Ambassador Peter Wittig, German Ambassador to the United States
- Jeffrey Goldberg, Editor-in-Chief for The Atlantic
- Ambassador James Dobbins, Senior Fellow, Distinguished Chair in Diplomacy and Security
Spring Semester
- Sarah McAvoy (SFS’88), Managing Director in Corporate Treasury at Bank of America
- Dexter Goei (SFS’93), Chairman and CEO of Altice USA and President of the Board of Altice NV
- Samantha Vinograd (SSP’07), Director of Public Policy at Stripe
- Anastasia Norton, Intelligence Analyst
- Kaya Henderson (SFS’92), Former Chancellor of DC Public Schools
- Luke Murry, Staff Director of the Terrorism, Nonproliferation, and Trade Subcommittee for the House Foreign Affairs Committee
- Jamie Geller (SSP’15), Professional Staff Member and Deputy Communications Director for the House Committee on Foreign Affairs
- Susan Hennessey, Fellow in National Security in Governance Studies at the Brookings Institution and Managing Editor of Lawfare blog
2016
Spring Semester
- Andrew Steer, President of the World Resources Institute
- HH Sheikh Abdullah bin Zayed Al Nahyan, Minister of Foreign Affairs of the United Arab Emirates
- Michael Williams (SFS’98, L’01), Partner, Kirkland & Ellis LLP
- Shanta Devarajan, Chief Economist for Middle East and Africa, The World Bank
- Trae Stephens (SFS’06), Principal at Founders Fund