Alumni Hall of Fame
Mildred Callear
Mildred Callear earned her bachelor's degree, summa cum laude, from UIUC in 1976; she then went on to earn her J.D. from Georgetown University Law in 1979. Her interest in international relations was heightened during her junior year of study abroad. Prior to joining the Overseas Private Investment Corporation, Mildred practiced law with the Washington, D.C. firm of Reid and Priest.
In 1982 she entered federal service with the Overseas Private Investment Corporation (OPIC) as an attorney-advisor. OPIC, a thirty year old agency, assists U.S. private investments overseas by providing political risk insurance and loans to help U.S. businesses of all sizes invest and compete in more than 140 emerging markets and developing nations worldwide. By charging user-fees, OPIC operates at no net cost to U.S. taxpayers and has reserves in excess of $4 billion. OPIC projects have helped generate over $10 billion revenues and over 660,000 jobs for host-countries in the developing world.
At OPIC, Ms. Callear rose from the position of attorney-advisor to vice president and treasurer. From 1997 to 2001 she served as acting president and chief executive officer. During her years at this agency, Mildred received numerous awards and recognition for outstanding performance and significant contributions to the organization.
In 2001 Ms. Callear returned to the private sector and is now serving as the executive president and chief operating officer of SEAF (Small Enterprise Assistance Fund), an international fund manager providing risk capital to local small and medium-sized enterprises in underserved markets.