The Foreign Service Journal, March 2019

THE FOREIGN SERVICE JOURNAL | MARCH 2019 17 teaching would be driven and informed by those who know because they have come to command respect through practiced accomplishment. To take just the first step, for example, for A-100— instead of a short-term bureaucratic orienta- tion course, an intense six-month curriculum followed by relevant interning and mentoring on geographic desks would broadly define and introduce all officers to the basics and ethics of their chosen profession. Just to give an idea, the enduring diplomatic stewardship portion would include defi- nitions, history (national, international and institutional) and an introduction to grand strategy, as well as U.S. Foreign Service professional identity, duty and ethos. A theme through entry-level train- ing and returned to at the mid-level and senior ranks would be an emphasis on not only “doing things right” (e.g., manage- ment of self, others, policy and resources, meetings, events and media), but also the challenge of “doing the right thing,” including knowing how to tell what that is. FromA-100 onward, FSOs need to learn that part of their job—at every level—is to envision, educate and empower, thus practicing and building toward the strategic leadership that Matt Boland has advocated. In sum, the professional education and formation of FSOs helps define expecta- tions not only for thembut also for others beyond the Service. Over time, the FS would be strengthened through a common professional education, formation and experience that would emphasize “dot- connecting” over narrow specialization, professional ethos, teamwork, strategic awareness andmultidimensional thinking (strategic, tactical and operational). Forging consensus on a 21st-century curriculum for American diplomats will require wise, forward- looking master practitio- ners from inside and out- side the Foreign Service and Department of State, active- duty Foreign Service person- nel, scholars, business leaders, digital natives and experts from other national diplomatic services. And, of course, it will require congressional partners who hold the power of the purse. The process will take time and a persistent commitment to forge a U.S. Diplomatic Service and Department of State institutional base for 2025 and beyond. The Foreign Service will need to reach out beyond itself, but first it has to decide what it wants to become over the next decade. No short-term politician has ever or will ever take on this issue. The time has come for FSOs to think more about why and how they constitute a national diplomatic service. If FSOs believe change is in order, I suggest they practice their profession and prepare an agenda for the next Secretary of State. They would find many mentors and advocates ready to support their efforts. n Stephanie Smith Kinney, a Senior FSO, re- tired in 2003. She spearheaded the creation of the Family Liaison Office, helped negotiate the U.N. Framework Convention on Climate Change (1989-92) and pioneered the first Environmental Hub. Her regional special- ties were Western Hemisphere affairs and Europe, and her “functional” bureaus were Oceans, Environment and Science; and De- mocracy, Human Rights and Labor. Her last FS assignment was as a deputy coordinator for counterterrorism (S/CT).