Spratlen was born in Columbus, Ohio and was raised in Washington State and California. Her father, Thaddeus Spratlen, was a professor in the Department of Marketing at the University of Washington’s School of Business. Her mother, Lois Price Spratlen, was an associate professor and ombudsman at the University of Washington’s School of Nursing.
Spratlen graduated from Crenshaw High School in Los Angeles in 1972.
She is the current United States Ambassador to Uzbekistan and former United States Ambassador to Kyrgyzstan. As a younger man, he also applied to join the Foreign Service, but was blocked by more racially restrictive hiring policies by the State Department at that time. Spratlen earned her bachelor"s degree from Wellesley College in 1976.
She also has master"s degrees from the United States Army War College and the University of California, Berkeley.
Spratlen speaks Russian, French, and Spanish. Prior to joining the Foreign Service, Spratlen volunteered for Volunteers in Service to America and served for almost nine years as a staff member in the California State Legislature.
Spratlen joined the Foreign Service in 1990. Her first tour as a Foreign Service Officer was in Guatemala (1990–1992).
Her past assignments include the United States. Mission to the Organization of American States (1992–1994), the United States. Mission to the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (1995–1998), and the Executive Secretariat (1999–2000).
She has also served as Assistance Coordinator at the United States. embassy in Moscow (2002–2004), Special Assistant to the Counselor of the Department of State (2005–2006), Director of Central Asian Affairs (2006–2007), Director of Western European Affairs (2007–2008), and Deputy Chief of Mission at the United States. embassy in Astana, Kazakhstan. Most recently, she served as the United States Ambassador to Kyrgyzstan, from 2011 to 2014. Spratlen was nominated by President Barack Obama on July 28 2014, and confirmed by the Senate on November 20, 2014.
She was sworn in as United States Ambassador to Uzbekistan on December 18, 2014.
