Amb. John E. Reinhardt (Wikimedia Commons)
The family of the Ambassador John Reinhardt says his burial will occur on Tuesday, 7 June 2016 at Arlington National Cemetery. Participants are invited to join the family at 8:00 am at Arlington cemetery’s administrative building. He died on 18 February in Silver Spring, Maryland.
Amb. Reinhardt was named director of U.S. Information Agency by President Jimmy Carter in 1977 and led the agency to its larger role under a new name: U.S. International Communications Agency. The expanded agency included cultural exchange functions performed at State Department. Under President Ronald Reagan, the agency’s name reverted to U.S. Information Agency, but the expanded functions remained.
Amb. Reinhardt was the first career diplomat to lead the agency. John Reinhardt was named U.S. ambassador to Nigeria by President Nixon and later served as Assistant Secretary of State for Public Affairs. He joined the foreign service after receiving a doctorate in American literature from University in Wisconsin, and teaching at Virginia State College in Petersburg. Before being named ambassador, he served in Philippines, Japan, and Iran, as well as USIA’s assistant director for Africa and East Asia.
* * *
