Mabel Smythe-Haith

Distinguished Alumnae Award Recipient, 1983

MA 1940 American diplomat
In 1962 President John F. Kennedy appointed Smythe to the State
Department’s Advisory Council for African American Affairs. In 1977
President Jimmy Carter selected her as the U.S. Ambassador to
Cameroon and the Republic of Equatorial Guina. She was also appointed
Deputy Assistant Secretary of State for African Affairs. From 1981
to1985 she taught at Northwestern and served as the Melville J.
Heskovits Professor and director of African studies. Following her 1985
retirement, she became a guest scholar at the Woodrow Wilson International Center for Scholars.