George P. Shultz (1920-2021) had a distinguished career as a public servant, businessman, and scholar that spanned nearly eight decades. We are deeply saddened by his recent passing on February 6, 2021. He had been serving as an honorary director of the Diplomacy Center Foundation since it was established in 2000. Ambassador Thomas Pickering, DCF Board Chairman, says, “Secretary Shultz was one of the finest men I ever worked for. Deeply engaged, wise, thoughtful, and determined, he was a great delegator and scion of negotiation and personal chemistry, from whom I learned a great deal. He had mastered his role as Secretary of State to rank with the top of them all.”
During his career, Secretary Shultz became one of only two individuals with the honor of holding four federal cabinet positions. Under President Richard Nixon, he served as secretary of labor (1969-1970), director of the Office of Management and Budget (1972-1974), and secretary of the treasury (1972-1974). He held his fourth cabinet position under President Ronald Reagan, serving as secretary of state from 1982 to 1989.
Secretary Shultz’s life and accomplishments mark some of American history’s greatest and most challenging moments. During his nearly seven years as secretary of state, he played a key role in marshaling US foreign policy during the height of the Cold War. He signed landmark arms control treaties, and he helped create the foundation for a working relationship with Soviet leader Mikhail Gorbachev, all of which eventually led to the fall of the Soviet Union. He remains one of the most influential American diplomats of the 20th century.
Yet, Secretary Shultz’s contributions to the United States extend well beyond his tenure at the State Department. As secretary of labor, he implemented the federal government’s first use of quotas to hire people of color when a Pennsylvania construction union refused to accept Black members. After leaving government service, he was an educator and scholar working at Stanford University as a professor of international economics at the Graduate School of Business and as a distinguished fellow at the Hoover Institution.
On December 13, 2020, George P. Shultz celebrated his 100th birthday. To learn more about Secretary Shultz’s life and legacy, you can watch the Hoover Institution’s virtual celebration: George P. Shultz at 100: A Lasting Impact and a Singular Legacy.