Fitzsimmons with the Dalai Lama

Elizabeth Noseworthy Fitzsimmons '91: Travels the World with the U.S. State Department

Kathy Warner, Director of Alumni Relations
This article appeared in the 2016 Fall issue of the Tower Hill Bulletin

Classmates of Elizabeth Noseworthy Fitzsimmons ‘91 remember her as a serious and successful student while at Tower Hill, which is part of why the diplomat was asked by Alisha Wayman Bryson ‘91 to speak at the Alumni Council Senior Dinner a decade ago. At the event, she described her life in Washington, D.C., her travels and experiences in Asia, and her work with then-Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice.
 
During her speech, Fitzsimmons gave Tower Hill credit for her early interest in travel and languages, recounting that her first exchange was the summer before her junior year when she was selected by then-Senator, now Vice President, Joe Biden as one of 50 Japan-U.S. Senate scholars for 1989-1990. 
 
Since that evening, Fitzsimmons has continued her now 21-year career at the State Department and traveled extensively. She joined the State Department in 1995, two months before her graduation from the University of Virginia, and at the time of her swearing in she was the youngest member of the U.S. Foreign Service. She has a very full family life with her husband, Richard Seipert, who is a Diplomatic Security Special Agent, and together they have five children.
 
She was promoted into the Senior Foreign Service in 2015 and is currently a Deputy Executive Secretary of State, a position she has held since May 2016. She has served overseas in Taiwan, Hong Kong, Cambodia, India and Bulgaria, as well as worked in a variety of positions at the State Department in Washington, D.C.  Some of her most memorable professional experiences include meetings with the Dalai Lama in Dharamsala, India; briefing former President Bush on the U.S.-India Civil Nuclear agreement; and breaking the news of the devastating South Asian tsunami to then-Secretary of State Colin Powell. 
 
Fitzsimmons said that she is grateful every day for the superb teaching she received at Tower Hill, especially in the English Department with Hugh Atkins and John Robinson, who taught her writing and editing skills that she still uses daily in support of U.S. diplomatic goals. She also credits former theater teacher Trina Tjersland with developing her public speaking skills, though she admits she still gets nervous doing live TV and radio interviews.
 
Fitzsimmons also built on her French studies at Tower Hill and now speaks French, Mandarin, Japanese and Bulgarian. In 2009, she was named a Fellow by the International Women’s Forum, one of only 25 women in the world to be so honored.
 
She said her current job as Deputy Executive Secretary is probably the most interesting, offering a unique window on how the United States conducts diplomacy with a global perspective. She ensures rapid communications and coordination throughout the State Department on behalf of Secretary of State John Kerry and serves as the primary point of contact for other Cabinet agencies and the National Security Council. As “the Dep,” she also plans all substantive aspects of the secretary’s travel and accompanies him on travel to manage information flow to and from him on the road.   
 
“I can tell it will be a terrific experience and chance to serve,” she said of her position.
 
Fitzsimmons has remained close to her THS roots and is grateful that Facebook offers her a way to stay connected with her ‘91 classmates and hear about their adventures in Wilmington and beyond. She is looking forward to her 25th THS class reunion this fall and hopes that world events and the Secretary’s schedule make it possible for her to be in Wilmington for the fun of reunion weekend.
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