Topic: Susan Rice

Susan Elizabeth Rice (born November 17, 1964) is an American diplomat, former think tank fellow, and civil servant. She is an American foreign policy advisor and United States Ambassador to the United Nations. Rice served on the staff of the National Security Council and as Assistant Secretary of State for African Affairs during President Bill Clinton's second term. Rice was confirmed as UN Ambassador by the U.S. Senate by unanimous consent on January 22, 2009.

Rice was born in Washington, D.C., and grew up in the Shepherd Park area. Her father, Emmett J. Rice (1919-2011), was a Cornell University economics professor and governor of the Federal Reserve System. Her mother is education policy scholar Lois Dickson Fitt, currently at the Brookings Institution. Her brother, John Rice, received an M.B.A., from Harvard Business School, and is the founder of Management Leadership for Tomorrow (an organization committed to developing top minority talent for leadership roles in the business and non-profit sector).

Rice was a three-sport athlete, student council president, and valedictorian at National Cathedral School in Washington, D.C., a private day girls' school. She played point guard in basketball and directed the offense, acquiring the nickname "Spo," short for "Sportin'."