Former Ponte Vedra Beach resident earns prestigious Rangel Fellowship

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On Dec. 4, former Ponte Vedra Beach resident Jane Viviano was awarded a 2021 Charles B. Rangel International Affairs Fellowship following a highly competitive nationwide selection process. 

The Rangel Fellowship, funded by the U.S. Department of State and administered by Howard University, supports extraordinary individuals who want to pursue a career in the Foreign Service of the U.S. Department of State. The fellowship will support Viviano through a two-year master’s degree in an area of relevance to the Foreign Service. It will also provide extensive professional development opportunities, including internships, mentors and skills training.

As part of the Rangel Program, Viviano will intern with a member of Congress on issues related to foreign affairs in summer 2021. In summer 2022, the U.S. Department of State will send her overseas to intern in a U.S. Embassy or Consulate to get hands-on experience in U.S. foreign policy and the work of the Foreign Service. Upon successful completion of the program, Viviano will become a U.S. diplomat in summer 2023. She will work to advance U.S. interests, protect American citizens, and promote peace and prosperity around the world.

Viviano was born in Massachusetts and raised in Ponte Vedra Beach. As a high school student, she studied abroad in Istanbul, Turkey.  At the University of Massachusetts Amherst, Viviano worked as an office assistant and research assistant for the Five College Center for the Study of World Languages, a center offering classes in lesser-spoken languages. She was also a Fulbright Scholar who taught business English at the National School of Architecture in Rabat, Morocco. 

Viviano’s journey has now led her to the Rangel Fellowship, and she is excited to prepare for her career in diplomacy. 

“I am thrilled to join the Foreign Service through the Rangel Fellowship and serve my country as a U.S. diplomat in the near future,” Viviano said. “In 2011, Rotary Youth Exchange presented me with an opportunity to live in Turkey, and since then, I’ve committed to studying, working and learning languages abroad.  I am immensely grateful to the mentors in my life and U.S. government-funded programs that recognized my potential to succeed in my endeavors.”