Date and time: Mon, October 24, 2022, 3:00 PM – 5:00 PM PDT

Location: Alumni & Visitors Center 3701 Canyon Crest Dr. Riverside, CA 92521

About this event

2 hours, Mobile eTicket

Considering a Career in International Public Service:

An Intergenerational Conversation with Giants Who Blazed the Trail

Join us for a Generations Dialogue based on the content and lessons learned from The Young Black Leader’s Guide to a Successful Career in International Affairs: What the Giants Want You to Know. Generations Fellow Leonard Cisneros (current George Washington University graduate student* from Southern California) will engage in conversation with Mr. Jesse Coronado, who blazed a trail in the US Foreign Service. The conversation will dive into Mr. Coronado’s experiences, challenges, and advice drawn from his career in international public service. This conversation will include topics such as the rewards of an international public service career, convincing your family it’s a good idea, imposter syndrome, being your authentic self, and more. This session is part of The Generations Dialogue Project for supporting a more representative American foreign policy.

Mr. Jesse I. Coronado served as a Foreign Service Officer with the U.S. Department of State in Bangladesh, Jordan, Belize, Brazil, Mexico, Honduras, Portugal, Haiti and Colombia. He served as interim Deputy Chief of Mission in Belize, Honduras and Portugal; led logistical support efforts for visits by Presidents Clinton, Bush and Obama; headed real estate acquisitions of new consulate general properties in Sao Paulo and Tijuana; and, purchased a large parcel for an embassy housing compound in Port-au-Prince after the 2012 earthquake. Jesse was the recipient of two Superior Group Awards, a Meritorious Step Increase and five Meritorious Honor Awards.

The Generations Dialogue Project aims to increase the number of under-represented youth who pursue and succeed in American foreign policy careers by connecting young Americans with giants who blazed a trail in American foreign policy and international affairs.

The Project seeks to:

• increase the number of participating high school students who pursue university study related to international affairs;
• increase the number of participating undergraduate students who pursue graduate study related to international affairs;
• create for all participants an informational and support network for careers in international affairs;
• and demonstrate a model for generating pipelines of under-represented groups and supporting them to successful American foreign policy careers.

* The George Washington University is home to the Elliott School of International Affairs, whose mission is to educate the next generation of international leaders.

Jesse I. Coronado served as a Foreign Service Officer with the U.S. Department of State in Bangladesh, Jordan, Belize, Brazil, Mexico, Honduras, Portugal, Haiti and Colombia. He served as interim Deputy Chief of Mission in Belize, Honduras and Portugal; led logistical support efforts for visits by Presidents Clinton, Bush and Obama; headed real estate acquisitions of new consulate general properties in Sao Paulo and Tijuana; and, purchased a large parcel for an embassy housing compound in Port-au-Prince after the 2012 earthquake. Jesse was the recipient of two Superior Group Awards, a Meritorious Step Increase and five Meritorious Honor Awards.

Jesse served as credit risk manager for the Citibank U.S. Consumer Bank in New York and as Director of Service Quality for the Choice SBU in Maryland. The Vice Chairman appointed him to a task force to review Citibank’s acquisition strategy. The report was presented to the Board of Directors and was promptly incorporated into the bank’s acquisition strategy playbook. During the 1990 housing crisis, Jesse recommended innovative ideas to keep people in their homes. He received the President’s Award for Excellence for his collaboration in the development of the Citibank Corporate Visa Card. It is now used by the federal government and COSTCO.

During his eight years In the Army, Jesse served as a Finance and Public Affairs specialist. While stationed in Germany, Jesse was coordinator of the Wurzburg German-American Kontakt Program, player/coach of the Los Amigos Soccer Club, President of the Wurzburg Hermanos Latinos Club and Secretary of the Federation of Latin American Clubs, Europe; representing 42 Latino clubs in seven NATO countries. The Federation was able to get Latino products, films, and entertainment to the bases, and to persuade the military brass to stop purchasing grapes during the UFW grape boycott. Jesse’s community outreach created much goodwill during turbulent times for the U.S. military in Germany and earned him the Army Commendation Medal.

At UCLA Jesse received a BA in Latin American Studies and an MBA in Finance and International Management. He was Editor-in-Chief of the Daily Bruin and La Gente newspapers. He served on the Community Services Commission, the UCLA Olympic Committee and was the senior student coordinator of the Partnership Program - targeting inner city and low-income schools. As President of the UCLA Chicano Management Student Association, he changed the name from Chicano to Latino - to be more inclusive. At graduation, Jesse was honored as a Chancellor’s Marshall.

He currently serves on the ASUCLA Communications Board, Club Degollado de California, Patronato Migrante de Degollado and the Habitat LA Catholic Coalition Board. He is an officer with the Knights of Columbus, an Ignatians West Volunteer, member of the Movimiento de Misioneros Católicos, American Foreign Service Association and the Dominguez Seminary, Venice High School and various UCLA alumni groups. Jesse is also a mentor and speaker to various student and young professional organizations.

Jesse was born in Degollado, Jalisco, Mexico and has lived in the U.S. since he was seven. He is married to Claudia Coronado and they have five daughters: Iliana (32), Katherine (28) Leidy and Mariana (27) Sofia (15) and the proud grandfather of Penelope (6) and Luca (4). His passions are baseball, basketball, boxing, soccer, concerts and movies.