The Department is pleased to announce that Alex Barrasso, a Foreign Service Officer, has been named a CAREERS and the disABLED Magazine 2024 Employee of the Year for empowering employees with disabilities; developing our next generation of leaders; and promoting accessibility, inclusion, and diversity.
Mr. Barrasso is the Director of the Iran Regional Presence Office in Dubai. He served as Senior Advisor for DEIA in the Bureau of International Narcotics and Law Enforcement Affairs (INL) until June 2024 and as the Chair of the Disability Action Group (DAG) employee organization through May 2024.
As the former Chair of DAG and a member of the organization, Mr. Barrasso advocates on behalf of employees with disabilities to Department senior management. He has been a DAG member since 2019 and has mentored officers and members to strengthen DAG’s voice and grow the membership to more than 600 employees.
Mr. Barrasso also brought the Hidden Disabilities Sunflower program to the Department Headquarters, making it the first Federal Agency Headquarters to join the Global Sunflower Network. The Hidden Disabilities Sunflower program was created to encourage inclusivity, acceptance, and understanding of individuals with non-apparent disabilities.
Alex earned a B.A. in Diplomatic History from the University of Pennsylvania and an M.A. in International Relations from the Paul H. Nitze School of Advanced International Studies. Mr. Barrasso speaks Czech, Spanish, Thai, Italian and German and has won the U.S. Chess Championship for Blind Players six times.
