“I'm very excited that Hugo Rodriguez will be our next Wheat Professor, continuing a strong legacy of excellent civic leaders in that role. Our students will certainly benefit from his experience as a diplomat, which gives him a unique perspective on leadership and ethics,” says Director of the Wilson Center Vinton Bruton. “He's also the consummate Hampden-Sydney man for our students to emulate as they find their own paths to make a positive impact in the world. It says a lot about the impact of Hampden-Sydney that he wants to return to the College to positively influence the next generation of Hampden-Sydney men.”
Established in 1993, the Wheat Professorship enables students to learn about both the theory and the practice of leadership under the guidance of visiting leaders from various arenas. As the Wheat Professor, Rodriguez will teach Leadership and Ethics as well as Leadership and Public Service in Constitutional Context, both required for students earning a leadership in the public interest minor.
“The professors and deans of Hampden-Sydney College ignited in me a lifelong love of learning and a passion for service,” Rodriguez says. “The fundamental skills I learned on the Hill—care for others, curiosity, and clear written and spoken communication—allowed me to grow as a leader, a mentor, and a coach for generations of young diplomats learning their trade in some of the world’s most challenging countries. It is such an immense honor to return to the College and bring to the Wilson Center the experiences and leadership lessons I collected over my 37 years in both the private and public sectors. Now more than ever, our communities, businesses, churches, and our government need the “good men and good citizens” that our college shapes. The Hampden-Sydney mission is what formed me, and I believe in it wholeheartedly.
Extended Bio:
The Honorable Hugo F. Rodriguez, Jr. ’88 is a distinguished American diplomat, senior executive, and leadership mentor, who retired from the U.S. Department of State in 2025 after a 25-year career in the Foreign Service. A senior foreign service officer with the rank of minister counselor, Ambassador Rodriguez is widely recognized for his impact on U.S. foreign policy in the Western Hemisphere and for driving strategic modernization across the Department’s consular operations.
Most recently, Ambassador Rodriguez served as the principal deputy assistant secretary and senior advisor for the Bureau of Consular Affairs, where he led a major reorganization of the Passport Directorate and oversaw the launch of the groundbreaking online passport renewal application—one of the most significant digital transformations in the bureau’s history.
In 2022, he was unanimously confirmed by the U.S. Senate as the ambassador to Nicaragua. Over the course of his diplomatic career, Rodriguez held numerous senior leadership positions in the Bureau of Western Hemisphere Affairs, including as senior advisor, deputy assistant secretary, and acting principal deputy assistant secretary of state. Overseas, he served as deputy chief of mission and chargé d’affaires at the U.S. Embassy in Asunción, Paraguay, and as consul general at the U.S. Embassy in Mexico City. He also served as Mission Mexico’s acting minister counselor for consular affairs.
Earlier in his career, Rodriguez served in Washington as deputy director of the Office of Mexican Affairs, as division chief for the Western Hemisphere in the Bureau of Consular Affairs’ Office of Overseas Citizen Services, and as both watch officer and senior watch officer in the State Department’s 24-hour Operations Center. His other overseas assignments included tours at U.S. Embassies in Lima, Peru, and Rome, Italy.
A native of Pennsylvania, Rodriguez began his professional journey in the private sector, working as a currency trader for Wachovia Bank International and in international agribusiness with the Dole Fresh Fruit Company in Colombia and Honduras. These early experiences gave him a global outlook and a strong foundation in international economics, both of which informed his later diplomatic work.
Ambassador Rodriguez is a proud alumnus of Hampden-Sydney College, Class of 1988, where he earned a Bachelor of Arts degree in economics and was inducted into both Omicron Delta Kappa and Phi Beta Kappa. While at Hampden-Sydney, he served as student body president and was a member of Phi Gamma Delta fraternity, where he developed many of the leadership skills that would shape his career. He also holds a Master of Business Administration from the Darden School of Business at the University of Virginia.
In 2024, Ambassador Rodriguez received the Department of State’s prestigious Arnold L. Raphel Award for fostering a culture of leadership and for his efforts in mentoring the next generation of diplomats. His exemplary service has been recognized through numerous performance awards, including five Senior Foreign Service Performance Awards and five Superior Honor Awards.
A fluent speaker of Spanish and Italian, Ambassador Rodriguez is also a certified executive coach, continuing to support leaders across sectors through coaching, mentoring, and speaking engagements. His career is marked by a commitment to integrity, innovation, and the development of future public servants.