Diplomat and professor appointed to new role
The Fletcher School at Tufts University has appointed Ambassador Christopher R. Hill, Professor of Practice, as Executive Director of the Edward R. Murrow Center for Global Diplomacy. Ambassador Donald L. Heflin, who previously led the center, will continue as a Senior Fellow at Fletcher.
Entering the U.S. Foreign Service in 1977, Professor Hill is one of the United States’ most distinguished diplomats. He was a five-time ambassador across multiple regions in Senate-confirmed positions, including as ambassador to Iraq, the Republic of Korea, Poland, North Macedonia, and most recently to the Republic of Serbia until January 2025. He joined Fletcher as a Professor of Practice in August 2025 and is also currently a Distinguished Fellow at the Atlantic Council in Washington, D.C.
Professor Hill served as a professional American diplomat under seven presidents. He was also Assistant Secretary of State for East Asian and Pacific Affairs under Presidents George W. Bush and Barack Obama. As the senior U.S. negotiator, Professor Hill led U.S. efforts at the Six Party Talks to end North Korea’s nuclear weapons program in 2005-2009. Earlier, he was a lead State Department negotiator in the Dayton Peace Accords, the process that ended the war in Bosnia. Later, he was the U.S. special envoy in negotiations that led to the end of the Kosovo war. In addition, Professor Hill served as a Senior Director in the National Security Council staff and as a Special Assistant to President Clinton. He has received many State Department awards including the Secretary of State’s Distinguished Service Award and the Robert S. Frasure Award for Peace Negotiations. Outside of the foreign service, Professor Hill was the Dean of the Korbel School at the University of Denver and taught at Columbia University. He earned a BA at Bowdoin College and an MA from the Naval War College. He began his career as a Peace Corps volunteer in West Africa.
Ambassador Heflin led the Murrow Center since 2023. During his tenure, he helped guide the center through a period of renewed focus on public diplomacy and the role of communication in international affairs. Under his leadership, the center strengthened its collaboration with the U.S. Department of State, including hosting the department’s Edward R. Murrow Award for Excellence in Public Diplomacy on the Fletcher campus. He also expanded the center’s engagement with practitioners and policymakers, organizing events with British parliamentarians, diplomats from East Asia, and prominent figures in public diplomacy and strategic communications, including classical pianist Pauline Yang and former Obama speechwriter Terry Szuplat.
Learn more about The Edward R. Murrow Center for Global Diplomacy