Intelligence Analyst at the CIA. Spokesperson at the National Security Council. Special Assistant to President Obama. Spokesperson for the Department of State. Deputy to the U.S. Representative to the United Nations. Now, he is the Interim Co-President of the Harvard Institute of Politics. In terms of to public service, Ned Price ’01 has done just about everything.

Price’s passion for foreign affairs originated here, long before he started any of his prestigious diplomatic and political work.

In particular, a diverse range of classes and study abroad trips to places such as Peru, Mexico and Spain opened his eyes to the broader global environment.

“St. Mark’s first brought the rest of the world to my attention in many ways,” Price said. “I had teachers at St. Mark’s who brought me a deep familiarity and knowledge of the rest of the world to the classroom. So I left St. Mark’s very confident foreign policy and international affairs would be my professional calling because of so much of what I had been exposed to at St. Mark’s.”

Price took this passion with him to Georgetown University, where he studied international relations at the School of Foreign Service. There, he immersed himself in courses on diplomacy, forged connections with notable foreign policy figures and gained real-world experience to learn more about global affairs.

However, the truly defining moment of his time in college came when the 9/11 attacks provided an unexpected but immediate context for his studies in international relations.

“It was barely two weeks into my freshman year, and Georgetown is right across the river from the Pentagon,” Price said. “We still have very vivid memories of climbing to the top of a dorm rooftop and watching the Pentagon burn and smolder. For many of us, our careers and broader lives have been defined by that, and it helped cement the idea that my career would gravitate around foreign policy, international affairs and national security in some way.”

Price’s experiences at Georgetown guided him to working as an intelligence analyst at the CIA, focusing on the detection of terrorist attacks against the United States. In this role, he gained crucial insight into the American international relations system that would help him throughout his later career.

“It gave me a good sense of how the American foreign policy apparatus worked, for better or for worse,” Price said. “From those earliest days, when I was just out of college in the most junior roles at the CIA to much more recent years as a senior policymaker, I’ve had the benefit of seeing how decisions are deliberated and policy is made, and my time at the CIA was crucial to that.”

During his time in the CIA, Price also worked at the White House, serving on the National Security Council. There, he worked with future Secretary of State Antony Blinken and other prominent diplomatic figures that would eventually work with Price in the State Department of President Joe Biden’s cabinet.

“In Dec. 2020, then Secretary of State nominee Tony Blinken called me and asked if I’d be interested in serving with him at the State Department, and my answer was a reflexive, enthusiastic, yes,” Price said. “That started a really eventful four years where I served first as the Department of State spokesperson, secretary Blinken’s senior advisor and ultimately as the deputy to the UN ambassador for the last year of the Biden administration.”

When the 2024 presidential election concluded, Price decided to step away from government service. So, he decided to return to Harvard, where he had earned his masters degree at the Kennedy School of Government.

“I didn’t know exactly what I would do once I left government in January 2025, but one thing I knew I wanted to do was pursue a fellowship at the Institute of Politics,” Price said. “I had seen the role of these fellows up close years before, and I knew I really wanted to pursue that role and be a part of that community.”

Price began his fellowship in the fall of 2025, quickly becoming immersed in student life and faculty collaboration. In that position, Price led a seminar on foreign policy and national security issues, sharing his expertise with students. Ultimately, his experience working with students, faculty and Harvard affiliates only grew Price’s love for the community.

“You’re really integrating yourself across campus life and becoming a part of the campus environment. It was an incredible experience working with students and faculty across campus,” Price said. “It’s an institution that I admire and one that I really came to love over the course of my fellowship.”

When the president of the Institute of Politics died at the end of the year, Harvard began searching for an interim director to fill his crucial role. After a competitive application process, the dean of the Kennedy School reached out to Price, offering him the role of Interim Co-President.

“I was quite hopeful when I applied, and when I found out the good news in July, I was extremely happy,” Price said. “It has been an extremely rewarding experience for me.”

Though Price has stepped away from government for now, his commitment to serving the country remains central to his identity. He remains dedicated to public service, but he is unsure if he will return if given the opportunity.

“Public service comes in many different forms, and for me, working with students or serving in government are both deeply rewarding in their own right,” Price said.