Priscilla will share her perspective not only as someone who served as a China Analyst at the State Department’s Bureau of Intelligence and Research, but also as a child of parents who had been missionaries in China and maintained a lifelong love of Chinese culture and the Chinese people. Over her 35 years at the US Department of State, Priscilla learned to shed ideological filters to focus on history, context, and facts. China faced many challenges during that time, and more challenges lie ahead. In Priscilla’s view, China has three unique characteristics that give it an advantage moving forward. The challenge for the US will be to form and maintain a relationship with China that is mutually productive.
The daughter of American missionaries to China, Priscilla has had a lifelong interest in Chinese culture, history, and development. She attended Wellesley for the opportunity to study Chinese with “Lin Taitai.” At Wellesley, she majored in East Asian Studies and History, studied Chinese language for 3.5 years, and wrote her Senior Honors Thesis on Mei-ling Soong (Mme. Chiang Kai-shek). After a year’s study in Taiwan, she moved to Washington, DC to pursue an MA in International Affairs and Economics at the Elliott School of International Affairs of the George Washington University. Upon obtaining her degree, she found her life’s work at the US Department of State, where she served as a civil servant for 35 years.
During her career she worked in increasingly senior positions as an economist, refugee program analyst, and deputy director of the Department’s Office of Economic Analysis. Her policy and intelligence analyses routinely informed the highest levels of the Department and the US government. In travels to East Asia and Africa she helped inform field staff while gaining invaluable insights to share with officials in Washington. She spoke truths about China and East Asia, some of them unwelcome, to administrations of both parties. Since retiring from full time work in 2013, she has worked part-time responding to Freedom of Information requests with the twin goals of protecting sensitive material while transparently providing all information possible. Priscilla is married with two adult daughters and one adorable grandson.
