A&S ALUMNI FOCUS
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A chance encounter Alumni couple’s common interest in diplomacy takes them around the world
Megan Johnson Naylor, ’04, and Mark Naylor, ’05, barely crossed paths at the University of Richmond. Now they travel the world together. After graduating with a degree in international studies—with a concentration in world politics and diplomacy—Mark’s first job out of college was working for UR as an admission counselor. In December 2006 he flew into Richmond International Airport following a series of high school visits and grabbed a shuttle into the city. Megan, who was sitting a few seats away, looked familiar to him. He looked her up in UR’s alumni directory as soon as he arrived home, and the rest, as they say, is history. The two married in May 2010. Megan, a double-major in journalism and urban practice and policy, now works alongside Mark at the American embassy in Liberia as part of a two-year term with the Foreign Service. Mark earned his master’s in public diplomacy from the University of Southern California and works as a Foreign Service officer with the Department of State. He
serves as vice consul at the U.S. Embassy in Monrovia, where he manages the Fraud Prevention Unit, conducting visa interviews and providing citizen services to Americans. In grad school Mark interned for the Bureau of African Affairs and began his application process to the Foreign Service. After months of training he received the Liberia assignment and moved there in December 2009. Megan joined Mark in Africa following their wedding. She initially did some consulting work with a local microfinance institution before starting with the embassy’s public diplomacy section in January. As a public affairs officer, she works to help Liberians understand American policy and culture by writing speeches and press releases, coordinating social media, and managing special programs and events. She also manages a large-scale public awareness campaign designed to offer alternative dispute resolution strategies for land disputes. Before moving to Liberia, Megan worked for AmeriCorps and later worked in