SIA advisory board member to receive highest Penn State alumni honor

UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. -- Mary Beth Long, an accomplished Penn State alumna who serves on the advisory board for the School of International Affairs, has been selected by the University to receive the Penn State Distinguished Alumni Award.

Long, a graduate of the Schreyer Honors College who earned her bachelor’s degree in communications studies in 1985, was selected as a recipient of Penn State’s highest alumni honor for her extensive career accomplishments, which span the globe and the public and private sectors.

Long served as the first woman confirmed by the U.S. Senate as Assistant Secretary of Defense for International Security Affairs in the Office of the Secretary of Defense. She also served as Chair of NATO’s High Level Group responsible for NATO’s nuclear policy.

Long’s experience in foreign affairs also includes positions in the Department of Defense as Principal Deputy Secretary of Defense on the Middle East, Africa, the Western Hemisphere, Asia, and Southeast Asia. She also worked as the Deputy Secretary of Defense for Counter Narcoterrorism with a budget of over $1 billion, in addition to more than ten years of operational experience at the Central Intelligence Agency working on terrorism and other security issues.

Following her tenure at the CIA and Department of Defense, Long founded Metis Solutions LLC, which provides strategy and policy support, intelligence and operations support, program management, and international business development services to U.S. government and commercial clients around the globe. Under her leadership as CEO, Metis Solutions was recognized by Inc. Magazine as one of America’s fastest growing companies in 2014, 2015, and 2016. Long also has been featured in Forbes magazine as a Women Business Leader, and regularly advises several Fortune 500 companies on international defense markets.

In addition to her work with Metis Solutions, Long also founded M B Long & Associates, PLLC, a law firm that provides U.S. and foreign companies with assistance international markets, defense acquisition, security planning and compliance, and Askari Associates, LLC, which provides security support and defense planning in Middle East. Her latest business venture is Global Alliance Advisors, LLC, which brings together professionals with experience in complex international projects to find solutions to international political and market challenges.

Long has also advised several Presidential candidates, served as a Senior Subject Matter Expert for the Supreme Allied Commander of NATO and as a Senior International Advisor to the Minister of Defense of Colombia, worked as a civil ligation at Williams & Connolly LLP associate, and appears regularly on Fox News, BBC, CCN, Al Jazeera, and NPR to comment on Middle East issues and the intelligence community.

As one of the nation’s leading figures in international relations with decades of experience, Long brings an invaluable wealth of knowledge to the advisory board of the School of International Affairs. Long actively contributes to Penn State in a variety of other ways, including a recent talk at the Katz building on national security careers for women with fellow alumnus and School of International Affairs advisory board member Valerie Plame Wilson.

Long will receive her award from the Penn State Board of Trustees in June 2017.