THE WHITE HOUSE

                     Office of the Press Secretary 
                   (Martha's Vineyard, Massachusetts)
______________________________________________________________________ 
For Immediate Release                                  August 28, 1997 

                  PRESIDENT CLINTON NAMES THOMAS J. DODD FOR 
                U.S. AMBASSADOR TO THE REPUBLIC OF COSTA RICA

The President today announced his intent to nominate Thomas J. Dodd, current U.S. Ambassador to Uruguay, to be United States Ambassador to the Republic of Costa Rica.

Ambassador Dodd, of Washington, DC, was Professor of Latin American History and Diplomacy at Georgetown University's School of Foreign Service. Between l97l and l99l, Ambassador Dodd was a lecturer at several institutions, including the Foreign Service Institute, the Defense Intelligence College, the National Defense University and the Instituto Tecnologico de los Estudio Superiores in Guadalajara, Mexico. He worked for the Department of State as Chairman of the Advanced Seminar on Central America and the Spanish Caribbean at the Foreign Service Institute from l98l-l986. From l970-l972, Ambassador Dodd served as a consultant to the Policy and Coordination Staff in the Office of the Secretary of State. From l969-l973, he was the Director of the Latin American Studies Program for Georgetown's graduate school. Ambassador Dodd was a Second Lieutenant at Ft. Holabird in Baltimore, Maryland from l958-l959. From l960-l96l, he was a Captain in the U.S. Army, Military Intelligence Detachment with the 49th Armored Division. Ambassador Dodd was awarded the U.S. Army Commendation Medal in l96l.

Ambassador Dodd received his B.S. in l957 from Georgetown University School of Foreign Service. In addition to an M.A. in Latin American Studies from the Elliott School of International Relations and a Ph.D. in Latin American History from George Washington University, Ambassador Dodd has studied at the Universities of Barcelona and the Santander in Spain, Iberoamericana in Mexico, and the Johns Hopkins University School of Advanced International Studies in Washington, D.C., and has published many books and articles. He has three children, Abaigeal Greenough, Alison Curry, and Thomas Justin Dodd.

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