Experts

Mara Rudman

Fast Facts

  • Served in both the Obama and Clinton administrations, including as deputy assistant to the president for national security affairs
  • Director, Ripples of Hope Project
  • Former deputy envoy and chief of staff for the Office of the Special Envoy for Middle East Peace, U.S. Department of State
  • Expertise in foreign affairs, diplomacy, national security, the Middle East

Areas Of Expertise

  • Foreign Affairs
  • American Defense and Security
  • War and Terrorism
  • Middle East
  • Governance
  • The Presidency

Mara Rudman is the James R. Schlesinger Distinguished Professor at the Miller Center, where she directs the Ripples of Hope Project aimed at identifying practical approaches to help democratic leaders resolve key challenges. 

She serves on the 2022 National Defense Strategy Commission and the Howard University College of Arts and Sciences board of visitors. Rudman also consults for Democracy Forward. 

Rudman’s government positions have included serving as deputy assistant to the president for national security affairs in the Obama and Clinton administrations; deputy envoy for the Office of the Special Envoy for Middle East Peace at the U.S. Department of State; assistant administrator for the Middle East at the U.S. Agency for International Development; and chief counsel to the House Foreign Affairs Committee.  

Previously, Rudman was executive vice president for policy at the Center for American Progress and senior vice president for policy/projects at Business Executives for National Security. She also led Quorum Strategies, a geopolitical strategic advisory firm. Rudman has been a guest on numerous TV and radio shows and has written for and been quoted in various print publications. She received her BA from Dartmouth College and a law degree from Harvard Law School.

Mara Rudman News Feed

"This visit will represent a breakthrough on humanitarian aid getting in," said Mara Rudman.
Mara Rudman BBC News
"I think this is a matter of navigating a path frankly along the edge of it. In other words, Israel needs to be able to move forward with its military aims to protect its security to deter further action of the horrendous sort that happened last Saturday," said Mara Rudman.
Mara Rudman BBC World News
"People compare it to the Yom Kippur War, but for the Israeli civilian population this is far, far worse," Mara Rudman, a former Middle East peace envoy in the Obama administration, told Newsweek.
Mara Rudman Newsweek
“This will slow considerably if not kill the Saudi Abraham Accords deal,” said Mara Rudman, a former Middle East peace diplomat under President Barack Obama.
Mara Rudman New York Times
Retired U.S. Navy Adm. Charles A. Richard, the former commander of United States Strategic Command, and former U.S. diplomat and Middle East expert Mara Rudman have been appointed James R. Schlesinger Distinguished Professors at the University of Virginia’s Miller Center of Public Affairs.
Mara Rudman UVA Today