2021 CU Boulder Alumni Awards
CU Boulder’s Alumni Awards ceremony is among the university’s longest-standing traditions. Be fueled by the emotion, dedication and stories of the award winners and take renewed pride in your alma mater. Read about all of the 2021 CU Boulder Alumni Award Winners here.
Mary Ann Casey (IntlAf’70), 2021 Alumni Recognition Award
Coloradan Mary Ann Casey exemplifies what it means to be an internationalist, a trailblazer and a leader. After studying international affairs at CU Boulder, her education was a launchpad for her diplomatic career, during which she became the first woman U.S. ambassador in North Africa, serving in the countries of Algeria and Tunisia.
Following her tremendous international career — including two ambassadorships and a fellowship at Stanford University’s Hoover Institution — Casey returned to her alma mater in 1997 as a State Department Diplomat in Residence.
In that role, she taught international relations classes, mentored CU students who are now diplomats themselves, helped launch the Smith Hall International Program and helped power the international affairs committee for the Conference on World Affairs.
Casey also co-founded and generously contributes to the International Affairs Global Grants Endowment at CU, which annually funds over 20 scholarships for education abroad for Boulder-based international affairs majors.
She also chaired the Advisory Board for CU Boulder’s International Affairs Program for nearly a decade, building it up to become a model for alumni engagement in the College of Arts and Sciences.
“Ambassador Casey's dedication to CU Boulder is extraordinary in every way,” remarked Alexander F. Becker (Ger’06), chair of the Advisory Board for CU Boulder’s International Affairs Program. “From the mentoring of students to her unprecedented engagement with the International Affairs alumni community to the co-founding of and major financial support to the Global Grants Endowment, her leadership and service to CU Boulder will continue to make a lasting impact for decades to come.
“She established opportunities for future generations of Colorado students to create positive change around the globe. Her accomplishments and contributions indeed define what it means to serve Colorado and to be engaged in the world.”