Mari Carmen Aponte
Encyclopedia
Mari Carmen Aponte is a Washington DC-based Puerto Rico
-born attorney who serves, due to a recess appointment by President
Barack Obama
, as ambassador
to El Salvador
.
. Her M.A. in Theatre is from Villanova University
and she obtained her Juris Doctor
at Temple University
, one of a few female law students enrolled under an affirmative action program, after serving a stint as a public school teacher. However, probably her best education was obtained in 1979 as a White House Fellow under President Jimmy Carter
, serving as a Special Assistant to former New Orleans Mayor Moon Landrieu
, who served as Secretary of Housing and Urban Development.
A close friend of former Resident Commissioner
and Governor
Aníbal Acevedo Vilá
, she actually was his landlord and housemate during his four years of Congressional service in Washington, DC. She is also a close friend of Supreme Court
Associate Justice
Sonia Sotomayor
, who swore her in as only the eleventh Puerto Rican
United States Ambassador since 1898.
Sila Calderón as Executive Director of the Puerto Rico Federal Affairs Administration
, a post she held until 2004.
Prior to that experience, she was appointed by President Bill Clinton
to serve as Ambassador to the Dominican Republic
, but she asked that her nomination be withdrawn from consideration by the Senate.
She served as a member of the District of Columbia Judicial Nominations Commission when President Obama sent to the United States Senate
her nomination to serve as Ambassador to El Salvador. Several months after the Senate failed to act upon her nomination, the President extended a recess appointment, allowing her to assume the post, pending confirmation.
In 2010 she helped organize and hosted President Obama's state visit to El Salvador as part of a Latin American tour that also included Brazil and Chile.
In addition to practicing law for decades, she is a vice chair of the National Alliance for Hispanic Health and a consultant to the Hispanic Information and Telecommunications Network
(HITN).
She has served as a director at the National Council of La Raza
, the Puerto Rican Legal Defense and Education Fund, the University of the District of Columbia
and Rosemont College
. She presided over the Hispanic Bar Association of the District of Columbia and the Hispanic National Bar Association Hispanic National Bar Association
.
http://www.elnuevodia.com/blog-pioneras-785837.html
Puerto Rico
Puerto Rico , officially the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico , is an unincorporated territory of the United States, located in the northeastern Caribbean, east of the Dominican Republic and west of both the United States Virgin Islands and the British Virgin Islands.Puerto Rico comprises an...
-born attorney who serves, due to a recess appointment by President
President
A president is a leader of an organization, company, trade union, university, or country.Etymologically, a president is one who presides, who sits in leadership...
Barack Obama
Barack Obama
Barack Hussein Obama II is the 44th and current President of the United States. He is the first African American to hold the office. Obama previously served as a United States Senator from Illinois, from January 2005 until he resigned following his victory in the 2008 presidential election.Born in...
, as ambassador
Ambassador
An ambassador is the highest ranking diplomat who represents a nation and is usually accredited to a foreign sovereign or government, or to an international organization....
to El Salvador
El Salvador
El Salvador or simply Salvador is the smallest and the most densely populated country in Central America. The country's capital city and largest city is San Salvador; Santa Ana and San Miguel are also important cultural and commercial centers in the country and in all of Central America...
.
Personal life
Born in Puerto Rico, Mrs. Aponte went to school on the United States mainland but never severed her roots to Puerto Rico. She obtained a B.A. in Political Science from Rosemont CollegeRosemont College
Rosemont College is a coeducational college located in Rosemont in Lower Merion Township, Pennsylvania. It was originally founded as a women's college. A Catholic college, it is operated by the Society of the Holy Child Jesus...
. Her M.A. in Theatre is from Villanova University
Villanova University
Villanova University is a private university located in Radnor Township, a suburb northwest of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, in the United States...
and she obtained her Juris Doctor
Juris Doctor
Juris Doctor is a professional doctorate and first professional graduate degree in law.The degree was first awarded by Harvard University in the United States in the late 19th century and was created as a modern version of the old European doctor of law degree Juris Doctor (see etymology and...
at Temple University
Temple University
Temple University is a comprehensive public research university in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, United States. Originally founded in 1884 by Dr. Russell Conwell, Temple University is among the nation's largest providers of professional education and prepares the largest body of professional...
, one of a few female law students enrolled under an affirmative action program, after serving a stint as a public school teacher. However, probably her best education was obtained in 1979 as a White House Fellow under President Jimmy Carter
Jimmy Carter
James Earl "Jimmy" Carter, Jr. is an American politician who served as the 39th President of the United States and was the recipient of the 2002 Nobel Peace Prize, the only U.S. President to have received the Prize after leaving office...
, serving as a Special Assistant to former New Orleans Mayor Moon Landrieu
Moon Landrieu
Maurice Edwin "Moon" Landrieu is a Democratic politician from Louisiana who served as Mayor of New Orleans from 1970–1978. He also is a former judge...
, who served as Secretary of Housing and Urban Development.
A close friend of former Resident Commissioner
Resident Commissioner
Resident Commissioner is the title of several, quite different types of Commissioner in overseas possession or protectorate of the British Crown or of the United States.-British English:...
and Governor
Governor
A governor is a governing official, usually the executive of a non-sovereign level of government, ranking under the head of state...
Aníbal Acevedo Vilá
Aníbal Acevedo Vilá
Aníbal Salvador Acevedo Vilá is a Puerto Rican politician and lawyer. He served as the eighth Governor of the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico, a Commonwealth of the United States, from 2005 to 2009. He is a Harvard University alumnus and a graduate of the University of Puerto Rico School of Law,...
, she actually was his landlord and housemate during his four years of Congressional service in Washington, DC. She is also a close friend of Supreme Court
Supreme Court of the United States
The Supreme Court of the United States is the highest court in the United States. It has ultimate appellate jurisdiction over all state and federal courts, and original jurisdiction over a small range of cases...
Associate Justice
Associate Justice
Associate Justice or Associate Judge is the title for a member of a judicial panel who is not the Chief Justice in some jurisdictions. The title "Associate Justice" is used for members of the United States Supreme Court and some state supreme courts, and for some other courts in Commonwealth...
Sonia Sotomayor
Sonia Sotomayor
Sonia Maria Sotomayor is an Associate Justice of the Supreme Court of the United States, serving since August 2009. Sotomayor is the Court's 111th justice, its first Hispanic justice, and its third female justice....
, who swore her in as only the eleventh Puerto Rican
Puerto Rico
Puerto Rico , officially the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico , is an unincorporated territory of the United States, located in the northeastern Caribbean, east of the Dominican Republic and west of both the United States Virgin Islands and the British Virgin Islands.Puerto Rico comprises an...
United States Ambassador since 1898.
Public service
In 2001, she was appointed by Puerto Rico GovernorGovernor
A governor is a governing official, usually the executive of a non-sovereign level of government, ranking under the head of state...
Sila Calderón as Executive Director of the Puerto Rico Federal Affairs Administration
Puerto Rico Federal Affairs Administration
The Puerto Rico Federal Affairs Administration represents the Government of Puerto Rico before federal, state, and local governments, promotes the Governor of Puerto Rico's economic and public policy initiatives to achieve a better quality of life for the four million U.S...
, a post she held until 2004.
Prior to that experience, she was appointed by President Bill Clinton
Bill Clinton
William Jefferson "Bill" Clinton is an American politician who served as the 42nd President of the United States from 1993 to 2001. Inaugurated at age 46, he was the third-youngest president. He took office at the end of the Cold War, and was the first president of the baby boomer generation...
to serve as Ambassador to the Dominican Republic
Dominican Republic
The Dominican Republic is a nation on the island of La Hispaniola, part of the Greater Antilles archipelago in the Caribbean region. The western third of the island is occupied by the nation of Haiti, making Hispaniola one of two Caribbean islands that are shared by two countries...
, but she asked that her nomination be withdrawn from consideration by the Senate.
She served as a member of the District of Columbia Judicial Nominations Commission when President Obama sent to the United States Senate
United States Senate
The United States Senate is the upper house of the bicameral legislature of the United States, and together with the United States House of Representatives comprises the United States Congress. The composition and powers of the Senate are established in Article One of the U.S. Constitution. Each...
her nomination to serve as Ambassador to El Salvador. Several months after the Senate failed to act upon her nomination, the President extended a recess appointment, allowing her to assume the post, pending confirmation.
In 2010 she helped organize and hosted President Obama's state visit to El Salvador as part of a Latin American tour that also included Brazil and Chile.
Private sector activities
Aponte has served as a member of the Board of Directors of Oriental Group, a major financial and banking services enterprise in Puerto Rico, from 1998 to 2001 and from 2005 on.In addition to practicing law for decades, she is a vice chair of the National Alliance for Hispanic Health and a consultant to the Hispanic Information and Telecommunications Network
Hispanic Information and Telecommunications Network
The Hispanic Information and Telecommunications Network, Inc. was established in 1983 as a private, non-profit organization to create a network of non-commercial telecommunications facilities to advance the educational, social, cultural, and economic circumstances of Hispanics.HITN-TV, established...
(HITN).
She has served as a director at the National Council of La Raza
National Council of La Raza
The National Council of La Raza is a non-profit and non-partisan advocacy group in the United States, focused on improving opportunities for Hispanics. It is sometimes confused with La Raza Unida...
, the Puerto Rican Legal Defense and Education Fund, the University of the District of Columbia
University of the District of Columbia
The University of the District of Columbia is a historically black, public university located in Washington, D.C. UDC is one of only a few urban land-grant universities in the country and a member of the Thurgood Marshall Scholarship Fund...
and Rosemont College
Rosemont College
Rosemont College is a coeducational college located in Rosemont in Lower Merion Township, Pennsylvania. It was originally founded as a women's college. A Catholic college, it is operated by the Society of the Holy Child Jesus...
. She presided over the Hispanic Bar Association of the District of Columbia and the Hispanic National Bar Association Hispanic National Bar Association
Hispanic National Bar Association
The Hispanic National Bar Association is a non-profit, non-partisan organization representing Hispanics in the legal profession, including attorneys, judges, law professors, legal assistant and paralegals, and law students in the United States and its territories.The current National President and...
.
Sources
http://people.forbes.com/profile/maricarmen-aponte/60727http://www.elnuevodia.com/blog-pioneras-785837.html