The Foreign Service Journal, June 2015

THE FOREIGN SERVICE JOURNAL | JUNE 2015 39 Lia Miller, an FSO since 2003, is a Pickering Graduate Fellowship alumna and the communications chair of the Pickering and Rangel Fellows Association. She currently works in the Bureau of Western Hemisphere Affairs. In Washington, she has also served in the Operations Center, the Public Affairs Bureau, the Office of Middle East Transitions and in the Office of Maghreb Affairs. She has served overseas in Tunisia, Nicaragua and Oman. T he Foreign Service is the face of America around the world, both literally and metaphorically. Yet while three women and two African-Ameri- cans have served as Secretary of State in the past 20 years, the U.S. diplomatic corps is not so diverse. Historically, and for the bulk of its existence, the U.S. Foreign Service was comprised of upper-middle class white males. This trend held true until the mid-to-late 1970s, when the State Department developed programs and launched various initiatives designed to ensure that U.S. embassies and consulates around the world look like America: diverse andmulticultural. The goal remains an ambitious one, and the results so far have beenmixed. The State Department has had great success in recent decades attracting growing percentages of female officers. The trends for both Foreign Service officer and specialist A-100 orientation classes reflect increasing numbers of females in each class. In 2014, one A-100 class (the 178th) hadmore women thanmen (52 women, 48 men). In general, however, despite the narrowing gap, most classes remainmale majority. Overall, women represent nearly 40 percent of all active-duty officers. But there is still work to be done; a 2010 study by Women in International Secu- rity documents “a pronounced and persisten t gender gap in the Senior Foreign Service.” In recent years, State has done well in recruiting officers from a wide variety of backgrounds through the effective use of internship programs. However, when you look at the mid-level and senior ranks, the numbers are nowhere near what they should be. Eighty-two percent of current FSOs are European-Americans and they hold 86 percent of senior staff positions at State. These percentages are not representative of a country that is 17 percent Hispanic, 14 percent African-American and 5 percent Asian-American. Minority groups in the State Department continue to be severely underrepresented: For example, African-Americans make up just 5.4 percent of Foreign Service officers and hold just 5.6 percent of senior staff positions; Hispanics make up 5.1 percent of Foreign Service officers and 4.5 percent of senior staff; and Asian- Americans constitute only 6.8 percent of FSOs and hold amere 3.8 percent of senior staff positions. These numbers are incontrovert- ible evidence that State has muchmore work to do to encourage minority advancement and representation at the highest levels. Standing Together The State Department does support the efforts of affinity groups to foster minority advancement and success. I liken these organiza- tions to the clubs found on any college campus that cater to various groups. For African-Americans, there is theThursday Luncheon Two innovative programs—the Thomas R. Pickering Fellowship and the Charles B. Rangel Program—have helped bring diversity to the Foreign Service, but challenges remain. BY L I A M I L L ER Toward a Foreign Service Reflecting America FOCUS ON DIVERSITY AND INCLUSION