Christie Vilsack to Improve Education in Foreign Countries

Christie Vilsack, who almost made history by becoming the first woman to represent Iowa in higher office in a battle against Rep. Steve King, R-Kiron, announced recently that she will become United States Agency for International Development's senior advisor on international education.

Vilsack, a former school teacher, said the position will help her continue her fight for literacy and education. The job will also bring her to Washington D.C. where her husband Tom Vilsack also works.

In an email to supporters Vilsack called it her “dream job”

“This dream job will let me combine my experience as an educator, and my passion for literacy and education to support USAID's Education Strategy which focuses on three specific goals in 51 countries,” Vilsack said in an email.

USAID works in 51 countries to improve children's reading skills, workforce development and providing equal access to education in “ crisis and conflict settings.”

The organization's development brought several foreign assistance programs together in 1961 and was led in part by John F Kennedy, according to USAID's website.