State Magazine September 2012 : Page 20
Ambassadors at Home Lecturers Take Diplomacy to America’s Hometowns By Daisy Cardiel, country desk officer, Office of Children’s Issues The multifaceted mission of the State Department is a mystery to many Americans. Some mistake the Department for a state-level agency, and others don’t know the difference between a Civil Service employee and a Foreign Service officer. Even community leaders can be unaware of the Department’s services to U.S. citizens at home and abroad. In an effort to bridge this knowledge gap, Civil Service and Foreign Service employees often speak to public gatherings on behalf of the De-partment when in their home communities. So far, roughly 1,300 De-partment employees on home leave have volunteered to share profes-sional and personal life experiences with local citizens as part of the Hometown Diplo-mat Program. Many find the experience enrich-ing. For instance, Richard Rasmus-sen, a political and economic officer in Nepal, volun-teered at his alma mater, the Univer-sity of Wisconsin, presenting on State Department careers to under-graduate, graduate The author speaks with a and law students. Concordia University student He said he offered about government service. Photo by Peter Borrud students examples of Foreign Service employees’ work, hoping to raise the profile of Foreign Service officers and “give them credit for all they do, but which largely goes unnoticed domestically. “The Hometown Diplomat Program gave me the opportunity to give back to my home community and my Foreign Service community,” he said. Administered by the Bureau of Public Affairs, the 10-year-old program provides participants with an opportunity to increase America’s awareness of international affairs, enlighten audiences on Department operations, communicate American values and share cross-cultural experiences. Hometown Diplomats promote the importance of diplomacy and highlight career and student opportunities. Organizing their own pre-sentations, they talk about foreign policy and share their Department experiences. In the process, participants have traveled to roughly 26 states to speak to elementary schools, high schools, colleges, universities and community organizations. 20 STATE MAGAZINE // SEPTEMBER 2012 Another Hometown Diplomat, FSO Kristin Gilmore, spoke to students at three high schools, including those in a U.S. history class at her alma mater, where her U.S. history teacher had encouraged her to join Model United Nations and set her on the road to a State Department career. While presenting on the Department in that teacher’s class, she said, “I kept thinking, ‘someday one, two or more of these students might be in the Foreign Service’.” Juan Domenech-Clar, political and economic officer in Islamabad, also spoke at a school and said, “Students were curious, and asked sev-eral questions to differentiate the roles of the president, Department of Defense and Department of State in shaping U.S. foreign policy.” The program is also an opportunity to converse with community leaders. “I found it a privilege to be able to talk to students and my hometown mayor about what I do and why I do it, even discussing some of the more difficult aspects of the job,” Rasmussen said. By coordinating speaking engagements with media interviews, the program has even given Department employees a modicum of fame. “An international diplomat is back home to inspire students,” reported Garden Grove, Calif., Channel 3 TV regarding Gilmore’s presentation. “I love talking about what I do. I have my dream job, which makes it that much easier. So I jumped at the chance to participate in the program,” Gilmore said. Many former Hometown Diplomats say the program is an excellent tool for informing Americans about Department initiatives that might otherwise go unnoticed by the general public.
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