The Foreign Service Journal, September 2006

S E P T EMB E R 2 0 0 6 / F OR E I GN S E R V I C E J OU R N A L 75 AFSA/TLG SUMMER INTERNSHIP AFSA/State Intern Serves Overseas BY LORI DEC, AFSA SCHOLARSHIP ADMINISTRATOR S tacy Session, a rising senior from Florida A&M, arrived in Kenya on June 19 to begin her three-month summer internship in the management office of EmbassyNairobi. The internship was sponsored by AFSA and the State Department’sThursdayLuncheonGroup, knownasTLG. This collaborativepartner- ship began in 1996 to help raise awareness of the Foreign Service and increase diver- sity within its ranks. Each summer, one minority undergraduate or graduate stu- dent has theopportunity toexplore a career in international affairs at the State Department in a high profile, substantive work environment. The student is men- tored by AFSA and TLG members, and receives a small stipend. This summer, for the first time, the internshipwas doneover- seas. This is Session’s second summer as the AFSA/TLG intern. For the2005 internship, Sessionworked in the State Department’s Bureau of Oceans and International Environmental and Scientific Affairs, in the Office of InternationalHealthAffairs, onbioterror- ism, biodefense andhealth-security issues. After developing aD.C.-basedperspective ona possible career in international affairs, Session eagerly accepted the overseas opportunity, whichhelpedhermore clear- ly understand what embassy work as a Foreign Service employee would be like. LikemostNairobi embassy employees, theworkday for Sessionbegan at 7:15 a.m. Sheworkedona varietyof tasks duringher assignment, including updating the man- agement briefing packet for the new ambassador and deputy chief of mission. Sessionassistedwithpreparationof thenew post differential report and worked on preparations for a visit from the Office of the Inspector General. She collected and analyzed management risk assessment questionnaires from various embassy offices regarding the embassy’s Chief of MissionManagement Statement of Assur- ance, temporarily assuming the responsi- bilities for the chargé’s assistant. Sessionalso draftedroutine lettersonsuch issues asnoti- fying Kenyan vendors that the embassy is exempt from the Value Added Tax. In her spare time, Session tried to take advantage of all Nairobi had to offer. She visitedanostrich farmand resort anddined on ostrich, went salsa dancing every Thursdaynight andvolunteeredat theNew Life Orphanage for young children (new- born toage3)whowere abandonedand/or HIV-positive. “It was uplifting to see that the agency had an 80-percent adoption rate,”Session tells AFSANews. Inaddition, Session was able to connect with several Florida A&Mstudents whowere studying at the U.S. International University in Nairobi. Session was sad to see her internship endonAug. 19. “I feel very blessed tohave been given such a life-changing opportu- nity,” she says, adding that “the Kenyans were friendly and hospitable, and the Foreign Service Nationals I worked with were so helpful to me as I adjusted to embassy life. I learned a lot about man- agement and the functions andoperations of aU.S. embassy. Managers have to deal with a lot of employee complaints and issues. They have to be problem-solvers and good at delegating.” “I have also learned that being an American overseasmeans somany things to the people in the countrywhere you live andwork,” Session says. “To some, you’re like a movie star and they want to know everything about you and your life back in theStates. Toothers, youmaybe theenemy or a target for crime. I realized how for- tunate I am to live in a country where opportunity is accessible andmy essential needs are met. Every morning when I arrived at work, the visa line at the embassywas very long, because people are desperate to come to America for the opportunity of a better life. I take somany things for granted in theUnitedStates, and this internship experience has changedme and made me a better person.” A F S A N E W S Attending a lunch for AFSA/ TLG Intern Stacy Session prior to her June departure for Nairobi, from left: AFSA Governing Board Member Joyce Namde, TLG Treasurer Stacy Williams, Session and TLG’s presi- dent, Amb. Denise Mathieu. Below: Session with a Masai warrior in Kenya. macy, noting that “our diplomatic corps buildbridges that endure.” He said the job of the diplomat has become increasingly dangerous, adding that therehasneverbeen amore urgent need for skillful diplomacy. “WhileSenator Sarbanes is, I think, best known around the world for his efforts to promote transparent and improvedcorpo- rate governance,”Holmes said, “we regard himas perhaps the foremost champion of theForeignServiceoutsidetheServiceitself.” Holmes presented a Special Award of Recognition to Ambassador L. Bruce Laingen for two decades of leadership and service to AFSA as chairman of the AFSA Awards and Plaque Committee. Amb. Laingencommented that inhis positionas committee chair, he sometimes felt under- employed, and noted that the committee needs to receivemore nominations for the dissent awards. Awards • Continued from page 73