Blake Thorkelson joined the Office of the Secretary and Vice President for University Life in 2018. He works with a broad range of staff, students, faculty, and alumni on actions and programs that sustain a welcoming community. He holds a B.A. with distinction in political science from Yale College and an M.A. in religion from Yale Divinity School. After college, he earned an M.A. in international relations at Johns Hopkins’ School of Advanced International Studies. In fifteen years at the U.S. Department of State, he served in political, economic, and public affairs roles related to Europe, the Middle East, South Asia, and North America, and on temporary assignments at the U.S. Mission to the United Nations and overseas posts including Paris and Kabul. Before enrolling at the Divinity School in 2016, Blake was a project manager at Vanderbilt University, helping a new vice chancellor with his initial programming and communications.