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Name: Taylor, Teddy
Current Position: Previous Ambassador
Teddy B. Taylor, a career member of the Senior Foreign Service holding the rank of Minister Counselor, was sworn in as the U.S. Ambassador to Papua New Guinea, Solomon Islands and Vanuatu on September 21, 2009. In a move sure to win hearts and minds in Papua New Guinea, Taylor and his wife, fellow Foreign Service officer Antoinette Corbin-Taylor, have partnered with her college sorority, Delta Sigma Theta, in a project to develop mobile library services in and for Papua New Guinea. Born circa 1953 in Washington, DC, Taylor graduated High School in the D.C. public schools, earned his B.A. in Political Science at Florida A&M University in 1975, and is a brother in the Omega Psi Phi fraternity.
Taylor joined the Foreign Service in 1978, serving his first tour as a consular/economic officer at the American Embassy in Guatemala City, Guatemala, from 1978 to 1980. He also served as a consular officer at the American Embassies in Panama City, Panama, from 1981 to 1983, and Tegucigalpa, Honduras, from 1983 to 1985. Returning stateside in 1985, Taylor served in a succession of roles, including Deputy Director of Press and Public Affairs in the Bureau of Western Hemisphere Affairs from 1985 to 1987, Deputy Policy Officer for Latin America at the former United States Information Agency from 1987 to 1988, Deputy Director for East Asian and Pacific Assignments in the Bureau of Human Resources from 1988 to 1991, Deputy Examiner in the Board of Foreign Service Examiners, Bureau of Human Resources from 1991 to 1992, and Special Assistant in the Office of Visa Services in the Bureau of Consular Affairs from 1992 to 1993. After eight years in Washington, DC, Taylor was assigned overseas again, this time at the U.S. Embassy in Budapest, Hungary, where he served as consular affairs officer from 1995 to 1999. Back in Washington in 1999, Taylor was the first African American Director of the Orientation Division at the Foreign Service Institute to 2001. He then served as U.S. Consul General at the U.S. Interests Section in Havana, Cuba, from 2001 to 2003, and as Deputy Assistant Secretary of State and Director of the Office of Employee Relations in the Bureau of Human Resources.
Taylor has tried to play an active role in the lives of young people. During his tour at the US Embassy in Panama, he coached a 13-15 year old basketball team in the former Panama Canal Zone. While in Hungary, Taylor was the Chairperson of the Cub and Boy Scout parent organization, and also served as a merit badge instructor and Chairman of the Eagle Scout Board of Review committee.
Taylor speaks Spanish, Turkish, and Hungarian. He and his wife Antoinette have two children, Tina and Ashton.
Peaceful Protests: A True Reflection of Democracy (Speech by Teddy Taylor)
