The Foreign Service Journal, July-August 2016

28 JULY-AUGUST 2016 | THE FOREIGN SERVICE JOURNAL Fred Odisho joined the Foreign Service as a political- coned officer in January 2014, a few months after his tandem spouse joined. After being separated for their first four years in the Foreign Service, he is looking forward to reuniting with her in the summer of 2017 for their second assignment. Prior to joining the Foreign Service, he spent 18 years with the U.S. Army and still serves today as a reservist. Whitney Dubinsky joined the Foreign Service in 2010 through USAID’s Development Leadership Initiative. After two years of being unable to find meaningful em- ployment at post, her spouse joined the Foreign Service in 2014. They travel the world with their 3-year-old son, without whom neither can live. R epresentative of the larger society, Foreign Service families come in all forms, each with its own unique chal- lenges. The dynamic of the modern family has changed dramatically over the past 30 years. The percentage of family members working outside the home has steadily increased. More and more possess professional degrees and experience in a variety of fields. Not surprisingly, they possess traits similar to those of their Foreign Service Tandem Couples: Serving Together, Apart FOCUS ON CAREER DIPLOMACY TODAY Two tandems discuss some of the unique challenges they face. BY FRED OD I SHO AND WH I TNEY DUB I NSKY spouses. In the face of these changes, have Foreign Service poli- cies supporting the modern family kept pace? For tandem couples—the term for families in which both spouses are members of the Foreign Service—the answer to this question is a resounding no . Little has changed since The New York Times published an article in 1986 titled “State Depart- ment; Till Reassignment Do Us Part?” describing the challen ges facing tandem couples of that era. Being able to be assigned together was and still is the greatest challenge plaguing the members of any tandem couple. The threat of having to split up their family and children remains ever-present. While the concerns of tandem couples can also include compensation and benefits, this article focuses on the assign- ments process because it directly affects not just the couple’s respective careers, but also the stability and integrity of their nuclear family. A Relentless Game of Chance During every bidding cycle, tandem couples place their fate in a complex game of chance that involves the availability of positions overlaid on the varied needs of several departments and agencies, hundreds of posts, and dozens of regional and functional bureaus. If a tandem couple have spent years hedg- ing their bets and get lucky, they may end up with both mem- bers assigned to the same post at around the same time. But