Biography
Madeleine Korbel Albright served as U.S. secretary of state from January 23, 1997, to January 20, 2001, the first women to hold that position.
Albright was born May 15, 1937, in Prague, Czechoslovakia. Her father, Josef, was a member of the Czechoslovak Foreign Service and served as press attaché in Belgrade, Yugoslavia, and later became ambassador to Yugoslavia. The family immigrated to Denver, Colorado, after the communist coup in 1948, with Albright becoming a U.S. citizen in 1957. She received a Bachelor of Arts in political science from Wellesley College in 1959 and a doctorate from Columbia University's Department of Public Law and Government in 1976.
Albright served as chief legislative assistant to Sen. Edmund Muskie from 1976 to 1978. From 1978 to 1981, she served as a staff member in the White House under President Jimmy Carter and on the National Security Council under National Security Advisor Zbigniew Brzezinski. In 1982 she was appointed research professor of international affairs at Georgetown University's School of Foreign Service and director of its Women in Foreign Service Program. In 1993 she was appointed ambassador to the United Nations by President Clinton and served in the position until her appointment as U.S. secretary of state.
Albright was a distinguished professor at Georgetown University's School of Foreign Service and the chair of the Albright Stonebridge Group. She chaired the National Democratic Institute for International Affairs, was president of the Truman Scholarship Foundation, and served on the board of the Aspen Institute. She was also a member of the U.S. Department of Defense’s Defense Policy Board. In 2012, Albright received the Presidential Medal of Freedom, the nation's highest civilian honor, from President Obama. She passed away on March 23, 2022.
Sources:
Albright Stonebridge Group (n.d.). Madeleine K. Albright. Retrieved on Feb. 25, 2020, from https://www.albrightstonebridge.com/team/madeleine-k-albright.
Department of State, Office of the Historian (n.d.). Biographies of the Secretaries of State: Madeleine Korbel Albright (1937–). Retrieved on Feb. 25, 2020, from https://history.state.gov/departmenthistory/people/albright-madeleine-k….
Speeches
- Columbia School of International and Public Affairs Commencement Address - April 28, 2021
- Commencement Address at UC San Diego - June 15, 2019
- Bucknell University Commencement Address - May 19, 2019
- Remarks at the memorial service of Zbigniew Brzezinski - June 9, 2017
- Remarks at the 2016 Democratic National Convention - July 26, 2016
- Scripps College Commencement Address - May 14, 2016
- Tufts University Commencement Address - May 17, 2015
- Dickinson College Commencement - May 18, 2014
- White House Address Commemorating International Women’s Day - March 8, 2010
- Remarks at the 2008 Democratic National Convention - Aug. 27, 2008
- Wellesley College Commencement Address - June 1, 2007
- Commencement Address at Smith College - May 18, 2003
- Address at the 10th Plenary Meeting of the United Nations General Assembly - Sept. 12, 2000
- Address to the People of Prague, "Obecni Dum--A Moment Of Celebration And Of Dedication" - July 14, 1997
- Remarks At Jewish Museum - July 13, 1997
- Remarks to the American Business Community in Vietnam - June 28, 1997
- Harvard University Commencement Address - June 5, 1997
- Policy Speech on Iraq - March 26, 1997
- American Leadership for the 21st Century - March 25, 1997
- NATO Expansion - February 18, 1997
- International Affairs Budget - Feb. 11, 1997
- Building a Bipartisan Foreign Policy - Feb. 7, 1997
- Wellesley College Commencement Address - June 2, 1995