Christopher Bancroft Burnham was appointed Under-Secretary-General of the United Nations for Management by Kofi Annan

Kofi Annan

Kofi Atta Annan is a Ghanaian diplomat who served as the seventh Secretary-General of the UN from 1 January 1997 to 31 December 2006...

 on June 1, 2005, after serving as acting Under Secretary of State for Management for Condoleezza Rice

Condoleezza Rice

Condoleezza Rice is an American political scientist and diplomat. She served as the 66th United States Secretary of State, and was the second person to hold that office in the administration of President George W. Bush...

, and as Assistant Secretary of State for Resource Management and Chief Financial Officer of the State Department for General Colin Powell

Colin Powell

Colin Luther Powell is an American statesman and a retired four-star general in the United States Army. He was the 65th United States Secretary of State, serving under President George W. Bush from 2001 to 2005. He was the first African American to serve in that position. During his military...

. Mr. Burnham joined the Department of State in September 2001. As a Connecticut

Connecticut

Connecticut is a state in the New England region of the northeastern United States. It is bordered by Rhode Island to the east, Massachusetts to the north, and the state of New York to the west and the south .Connecticut is named for the Connecticut River, the major U.S. river that approximately...

 State Representative and a Captain in the Marine Corps

United States Marine Corps

The United States Marine Corps is a branch of the United States Armed Forces responsible for providing power projection from the sea, using the mobility of the United States Navy to deliver combined-arms task forces rapidly. It is one of seven uniformed services of the United States...

 reserves, he was one of seven state legislators called to serve in military during the Gulf War

Gulf War

The Persian Gulf War , commonly referred to as simply the Gulf War, was a war waged by a U.N.-authorized coalition force from 34 nations led by the United States, against Iraq in response to Iraq's invasion and annexation of Kuwait.The war is also known under other names, such as the First Gulf...

. He served as minority leader in the legislature, and after his third term was elected Treasurer of Connecticut, where he served from 1995 - 1997. Within two years he restructured the state pension funds, performance went from being the worst performing in the country to the top 25%, where it remained for eight years.

Work at the UN

One of Burnham's first tasks at the UN was handling the "procurement department scandal." "We cannot modernize and rebuild the United Nations on a foundation that has corruption in it. This is not just my priority; it is the secretary-general's Kofi Annan priority," he said in a Foxnews interview.

Education

Burnham graduated from high school at Kent School

Kent School

Kent School is a private, co-educational college preparatory school in Kent, Connecticut, USA. The Reverend Frederick Herbert Sill, Order of the Holy Cross, established the school in 1906 and it retains its affiliation with the Episcopal Church of the United States.Students at Kent come from more...

 in 1975. He completed his B.A. in Political Science at Washington & Lee University in 1980 and a National Security Studies Program from Georgetown University

Georgetown University

Georgetown University is a private, Jesuit, research university whose main campus is in the Georgetown neighborhood of Washington, D.C. Founded in 1789, it is the oldest Catholic university in the United States...

 from 1987-88. He then completed his M.P.A. from Harvard University

Harvard University

Harvard University is a private Ivy League university located in Cambridge, Massachusetts, United States, established in 1636 by the Massachusetts legislature. Harvard is the oldest institution of higher learning in the United States and the first corporation chartered in the country...

in 1990.

Awards

• 2007 One To World Fulbright Award for Global Public Service;
• 2005 United States Secretary of State's Award for Distinguished Service (highest award in the Department);
• 2004 Presidential Award for Management Excellence for “Innovative and Exemplary Practices in Budget and Performance Integration;”
• 2004 Association of Government Accountants “CEAR” Award for excellence in financial reporting (one of only four Federal departments);
• 2003 Association of Government Accountants “CEAR” Award for excellence in financial reporting (one of only three Federal departments);
• 2002 Association of Government Accountants “CEAR” Award for excellence in financial reporting (first ever awarded to the Department of State);
• 2000 Finalist, Ernst & Young “Entrepreneur of the Year” Award;
• 1997 “Individual Excellence Award” by the New England Association of Comptrollers;
• 1996 National Government Finance Officer's Association Award for excellence in financial reporting (first ever awarded to any state treasury);
• 1996 “Outstanding Citizen” Award, Greenwich Chambers of Commerce;
• 1995 “Friend of Democracy Award” by Connecticut Common Cause for authoring legislation to stop “Pay to Play;”
• 1991 Combat Action Ribbon, Navy Unit Citation, Meritorious Unit Citation;
• 1988 “Legislator of the Year,” Connecticut Children's Coalition.