President Patton Speaks at Council on Foreign Relations (Video)

MIDDLEBURY, Vt. – President Laurie Patton and Richard Haass, president of the Council on Foreign Relations, held a wide-ranging conversation on diplomacy and intercultural fluency for an audience of more than 100 Middlebury alumni, parents, and friends in New York recently. Cohosted by Alexandra Peterson Cart ’08, Aleksandra Janke ’98, and Megan Shattuck ’96, who are all members of CFR, the event took place at the think tank’s headquarters on 68th Street.

Patton spoke on the themes of Middlebury’s global network and communicating across difference, two ideas very familiar to anyone who has heard her speak. Haass, who is the father of 2016 graduate Francesca Haass, is a former official at the U.S. Department of State, where he was director of policy planning and a close advisor to Secretary of State Colin Powell.

Haass recounted some of his experiences working in international relations and in his current role as president of CFR, a position he has held since 2003. He discussed the important role institutions of higher education, and Middlebury in particular, can play in developing future global leaders.

Following a question-and-answer session, Haass and Patton joined the audience for a reception.

Photo by Don Pollard P’20