By David DeKunder
There are times, while working in his office as the spokesperson for the U.S. Consulate General in Mumbai, India, that Greg Pardo (B.A. ’05) reflects on the journey that brought him from St. Mary’s University to serving his country as a diplomat in Asia.
Pardo has been with the U.S. State Department for 13 years, starting as an intern at the U.S. Embassy in Rangoon, Burma, also known as Myanmar. Raised on the West Side of San Antonio, Pardo graduated from Memorial High School, located across Culebra Road from the St. Mary’s campus.
“How did I end up from Memorial High School all the way to a place like India?” Pardo said. “I reflect on a lot of my experiences since then. It’s been transformational.”
Finding himself at St. Mary’s
When he entered St. Mary’s, Pardo was aiming for a business career. However, he changed that plan after listening to a discussion in his philosophy class during his freshman year between his professor, the late James Sauer, and another student. As a result of the discussion, Pardo said Sauer told the student that the St. Mary’s mission was to teach students how to make a life, not just make a living.
“It was one of those aha moments where it really made me think about my intentions of majoring in business,” Pardo said. “I would say that was a key defining moment. It forced me to think back and reflect on what I really wanted to do with myself.”
He said the revelation from the philosophy class discussion had a snowball effect on him, as he changed his majors to Political Science and International Relations. He then studied under distinguished faculty including Larry Hufford, Ph.D., Professor Emeritus of Political Science; Charles Cotrell, Ph.D., Professor Emeritus of Political Science and Public Administration; and Henry Flores, Ph.D., Professor Emeritus of Political Science, who became mentors to him.
Visiting India
During his senior year in 2005, Pardo went on a group trip to India, led by Hufford and Brother Ed Violet, S.M., which studied economic development in the Asian country. He said his love for India, its people and culture started with that trip.
“I took a really strong interest just because of the diversity of India,” Pardo said. “Because no matter where you go, you can travel 10 miles down the road and you’ll get a new dialect, for example, there’s a different accent, different language. I just found that fascinating.”
“I took a really strong interest just because of the diversity of India. Because no matter where you go, you can travel 10 miles down the road and you’ll get a new dialect, for example, there’s a different accent, different language. I just found that fascinating.”
— Greg Pardo (B.A. ’05)
Hufford said Pardo worked hard to learn the languages and culture of India, which began when he was a student at St. Mary’s.
“In my travels, people would tell me that when you learn a language you gain a soul,” Hufford said. “In that case, Greg has four souls, becoming fluent in Bengali and Hindi, adding to the Spanish and English he learned as a child.”
“Greg is a lifelong learner, immersing himself in the literature, history, politics and culture of the country in which he is serving,” Hufford added. “The foundation is the liberal arts education and Marianist commitment to social justice Greg experienced at St. Mary’s University.”
Working for the U.S. Consulate
As spokesperson for the U.S. Consulate in Mumbai, Pardo leads the press and digital media teams in reaching out to the media on issues related to U.S.-India relations, including business and economic ties, military cooperation, space cooperation and promotion of U.S. higher education with the goal of encouraging Indian students to study in the U.S.
This spring, Pardo met with Tom Mengler, J.D., now St. Mary’s University President Emeritus, who retired in May, and President Winston Erevelles, Ph.D., who took office in June, at the U.S. Consulate Office in Mumbai. Mengler and Erevelles visited India on a trip to help St. Mary’s strengthen its existing partnerships, establish new ones with Indian universities and recruit Indian students to study at St. Mary’s.
Pardo said the visit with Mengler and Erevelles was a full-circle moment for him because Erevelles grew up in Mumbai and is now the president of Pardo’s alma mater in his hometown of San Antonio.
“I joked with Dr. Erevelles saying, ‘Wow, you’re now leading a university in a neighborhood where I grew up, and I’m living and working in your old neighborhood,’” Pardo said. “It made me think about my journey but also his journey. When I do reflect on that, it’s always a lot of appreciation that I feel for my education at St. Mary’s.”
