By Lookout Staff

June 28, 2012 -- Carol Hamilton -- a Santa Monica College dean who has forged ties to support the college's programs and extend its global reach -- has been appointed to the United States National Commission for the United Nations Educational, Scientific, Cultural Organization (UNESCO).

Appointed by Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton, Hamilton will help advise how the U.S. might better engage with the 67-year-old agency "to eradicate poverty and promote sustainable development and an intercultural dialogue of peace," according to a statement released by the college.

The federal advisory committee to the U.S. Department of State helps to coordinate efforts and provide expert advice on issues of education, science, communications, and culture, college officials said.

Hamilton's "expertise not only in education but also in international freedom of expression," said Eric Woodard, the commission's executive director, "will greatly benefit the Commission’s work to strengthen our engagement with UNESCO on a range of issues that are vital to both the United States and so many around the world.”

Hamilton, who is SMC's dean of institutional development, has worked with officials at the federal, state, and local levels, as well as with private industry and major donors, to support the college's new and existing programs. 

Hamilton also works with SMC staff to "enhance the college’s focus in Global Studies, Cyber Security, Study Abroad in China and the Big Blue Bus 'Any Line Any Time' Program," college officials said.

Previously, Hamilton was the Director of Development at the School of Film and Television at Loyola Marymount University after serving as Vice President of RKO Productions, where she supervised the legal and business affairs department.

Hamilton also was co-founder the Legal Clinic for Battered Women, the first legal clinic for victims of domestic abuse in the United States, and has been active in the Tibet human rights movement.