The Foreign Service Journal, March 2009

MA R CH 2 0 0 9 / F OR E I GN S E R V I C E J OU R N A L 53 A F S A N E W S mike to give an enthusiastic off-the-cuff pep talk to her new employees. She pre- dicted “a great adventure,” yet also acknowledged the challenges that lie ahead. Promising an environment that promotes teamwork, she continued, “There is nothing that I welcome more than a good debate and the kind of dia- logue thatwillmake us better.” Itwas one of several pronouncements that garnered enthusiastic applause. With an exuberant, “And now, ladies and gentlemen, let’s get to work,” Sec. Clintonendedher remarks andbeganher first day at the State Department. The ceremony was hosted by AFSA, working incollaborationwithdepartment management andtheAmericanFederation of Government Employees. The full text of bothSteveKashkett’swelcome remarks and Secretary Clinton’s response can be foundonline atwww.afsa.org/state/012309 afsanet.cfm. Clinton Welcomed • Continued from page 49 Governing Board Welcomes Susan Malcik Susan Malcik has joined the AFSA Governing Board as a State representa- tive. Ms. Malcik’s international experi- ence began in 1980 as a Peace Corps Volunteer in The Gambia. From there she accompanied her FSO spouse Ed Malcik to postings in Douala, Bombay, Bridgetown, Dakar, Abidjan, Djibouti and Berlin, working in a wide variety of positions including as a B&F assistant, CLO and ambassador’s self-help fund coordinator. After becoming a direct- hire Office Management Specialist in 2003, she has since served in Kabul, Stockholm and in the GSO section of the Administrative Management Training Division at FSI. She is current- ly a staff assistant in the Operations Center. Secretary Clinton Addresses USAID Employees T he day after Secretary of State Hillary Clinton greeted State Department employees, shewaswelcomed enthusi- asticallybyUSAIDemployees, aswell asAFSA, AFGE and agency management. The event took place at the Ronald Reagan Building on Jan. 23, Sec. Clinton’s second day of work. AFSA USAID Vice President Francisco Zamora deliveredwelcoming remarks, citing SecretaryClinton’s “keen interest indevelop- ment activities” and recalling meeting the Secretarywhen she inaugurated a health clin- ic for women and children in Egypt. Zamora pointedwith pride to the fact that 75 percent of USAID postings are in hardship locations and that, by the summer of 2009, nearly half of the agency’s FSOswill have servedunaccompanied tours inAfghanistan, Pakistan, Sudan or Iraq. He also expressed the hope that the new administration would streamline foreign assistance, eliminating “confusionandwaste.” In her response, Sec. Clinton was quick to point to her strong belief that development “is truly an equal partner, along with defense anddiplomacy, in the furtheranceofAmerica’s national security.” The Secretary’s own expe- riencesworking indevelopingnations came to the fore in her remarks, and she addressed head-on Zamora’s comments about stream- lining foreignaidprograms, saying itwas “iron- ic that our very best youngmilitary leaders… are given unfettered resources through the Commander’s Emergency Response Program to spend as they see fit to build a school, to open a health clinic, to pave a road; and our diplomats and our development experts have to go through miles of paperwork to spend 10 cents. It is not a sensible approach.” The complete text of the Secretary’s address to USAID employees can be found at www.afsa.org/usaid/012609afsanet.cfm. T he arrival of Secretary of State Hillary Clinton at the State Depart- ment, followed just hours later by a visit from President Obama and Vice President Biden, drew unusually heavy media coverage tobothAFSAand the State Department. Live television coverage of both events was handled by CNN, MSNBC and other major networks, and articles popped up in the country’s largest newspapers the next day. The Washington Post , the NewYork Times , USAToday , the Los Angeles Times and the Federal Times are among themany newspapers that car- ried front-page articles. Excerpts from AFSA State VP Steve Kashkett’s welcome remarks were incorporated into articles in the Washington Post and other news sources, and he was interviewed onNPR. AFSAPresident JohnNalandwas quoted in several major newspapers, as well as in Time magazine. AFSA, State Department in Media Spotlight AFSA NEWS BRIEFS AFSA USAID VP Francisco Zamora (left) welcomes Sec. Clinton (center), as USAIDActing Administrator Kent Hill (right) looks on. “Development experts have to go through miles of paperwork to spend 10 cents. It is not a sensible approach.” — Secretary of State Hillary Clinton USAID FILE PHOTO