Yucatán’s new Consul General has had a fascinating career

Dorothy Ngutter is the new U.S. consul in Yucatán. Photo: U.S. Consulate

Diplomat Dorothy Ngutter is the new head of the U.S. Consulate for the Yucatán Peninsula.

No personal background was shared about the new consul, but her resume contains an extensive, wide-ranging career with a focus on narcotics, refugees, and immigration.

The United States Department of State announced her appointment following the exit of Courtney Beale, who spent three years at the helm.

The choice of a diplomat with a much higher profile than her predecessor suggests renewed interests of the U.S. State Department in the Yucatán Peninsula region, writes journalist Eduardo Infolliteras

She also arrives as a new, high-tech consulate building is under construction in the city’s north, replacing smaller quarters near the hotel zone.

Ngutter last served as director of International Narcotics Affairs and Law Enforcement. The career diplomat was also recently deputy political counsel at the U.S. Embassy in Ankara, Turkey.

Dorothy Ngutter is the new U.S. consul in Yucatán. Photo: U.S. Consulate

Aside from English, Ngutter speaks not only Spanish but also Turkish, and basic French, and Swahili. She is the first Black American to preside over the U.S. Consulate in Yucatán.

She holds a double BA in political science and communication studies from Northeastern University and an MA in Law and Diplomacy from the Fletcher School at Tufts University.

Previously, she was a public diplomacy officer at the U.S. Mission to NATO in Brussels, Belgium, and a consular and political officer at the U.S. Embassy in Bamako, Mali. She also served as special assistant to Ambassador William J. Burns in the office of the undersecretary of state for political affairs covering Africa and global affairs, as a diplomatic officer for Peru in the State Department’s Office of Western Hemisphere Affairs, and as surveillance officer at the department’s 24/7 crisis management center.

A rendering of the new U.S. Consulate in Merida shows a mix of modern and organic elements. Photo: Courtesy

In 2009, she was nominated to join the Atlantik-Bruecke German-American Young Leaders Conference, which focused on fostering stronger transatlantic ties. The same year, she was selected to participate in the Aspen Institute’s International Professional Advancement Program.

Ngutter joined the Foreign Service after completing the Pickering Foreign Affairs Fellowship with the State Department. Prior to that, she worked for the Massachusetts Immigrant and Refugee Advocacy Coalition.

Regarded as one of only 16 resident diplomats nationwide, Ngutter provided guidance and advice on careers, internships, and scholarships with the Department of State for students, professionals, and potential candidates throughout Alaska, Northern California, Oregon and Washington.

With national and international experience in the US Diplomatic Service, Dorothy recently represented her country’s State Department as a member of National Security Affairs at the Hoover Institution at Stanford University.

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