Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton (right) officiates the swearing-in ceremony for Under Secretary for Political Affairs Wendy Sherman (left) at the State Department. They are joined by Sherman’s husband, Bruce Stokes.

Sherman, who holds an MSW from the University of Maryland, is the departmeant’s third-ranking official and its senior career diplomat. She is the first woman and first social worker to hold this position.

According to the State Department, the under secretary serves as the day-to-day manager of overall regional and bilateral policy issues and oversees the bureaus for Africa, East Asia and the Pacific, Europe and Eurasia, the Near East, South and Central Asia, the Western Hemisphere, International Organizations and International Narcotics and Law Enforcement.

Sherman previously served as executive director of Emily’s List and is credited with its strategic development, leading to the success of a groundbreaking number of women candidates in 1992.

She served as chief of staff for U.S. Sen. Barbara Mikulski ,D-Md., who is also a social worker, and she was campaign manager for Mikulski’s first successful Senate campaign in 1986.

Sherman earned a bachelor of arts degree from Boston University and she performed one of her field placements at NASW’s national office.