The Foreign Service Journal, September 2015

78 SEPTEMBER 2015 | THE FOREIGN SERVICE JOURNAL AFSA NEWS PH I L I P G . LA I DLAW STATE REPRESENTATIVE Philip Laidlaw became a Foreign Service officer in 1992 and currently serves as director of the Office of Policy Planning and Coordination in the Bureau of Western Hemisphere Affairs. He has also served as chargé d’affaires at Embassy Caracas and deputy director of the Office of Andean Affairs. Other overseas assignments include Tirana, Sarajevo, Madrid, La Paz and San Salvador. Originally from Florida, Laidlaw earned bachelor’s degrees in mathematics and economics fromWake Forest Uni- versity and a master’s degree from the National War College. AMBASSADOR JOHN W. L IMBERT RETIREE REPRESENTATIVE Ambassador (ret.) John Limbert is a profes- sor of Middle Eastern studies at the U.S. Naval Academy. During a 34-year career in the Foreign Service, he served primar- ily in the Middle East and Islamic Africa, including an assignment as ambassador to Mauritania. After serving as dean of the language school of the Foreign Service Institute, he retired in 2006 with the rank of minister counselor. In 2009, he was called back to the State Department, to be the first deputy assistant secretary for Iran in the Bureau of Near East Affairs, a post he held until November 2010. Limbert holds the department’s highest award—the Distinguished Service Award—and the Award for Valor. He served as AFSA president from 2003 to 2005. A native of the D.C. area, he earned his Ph.D. in history and Middle Eastern studies from Harvard Uni- versity. He is married with two children and four grandchildren. PETER NE I SUL ER STATE REPRESENTATIVE Peter Neisuler recently concluded a tour as the human resources adviser for the 2015 Quadrennial Diplomacy and Develop- ment Review. He has previously served as senior desk officer for the Benelux countries in the Bureau of European and Eurasian Affairs, human rights and frozen conflicts officer in Moscow, vice consul in Skopje and branch public affairs officer in Dubai. Prior to joining the Foreign Service, he served as a Presidential Management Intern (now known as a Presidential Management Fellow) in the Bureau of Democracy, Human Rights and Labor. Neisuler lives in Arlington, Virginia, with his wife and their two sons. ER I N O’CONNOR STATE REPRESENTATIVE Erin O’Connor is a Texas native with more than six years in the Foreign Service. A consular-coned officer, O’Connor is the desk officer for Eritrea and Djibouti in the State Department’s Bureau of African Affairs. L EAH PEASE STATE REPRESENTATIVE Leah Pease joined the Foreign Service in 2001. She most recently served as a Lawrence S. Eagleburger Fellow with Exx- onMobil’s public and global affairs division. Previously, she served as deputy public affairs adviser at the U.S. Mission to the North Atlantic Treaty Organization in Brussels, desk officer for the United Kingdom and Ireland, management officer at Con- sulate General Belfast and consular officer in Caracas. Pease has a bachelor’s degree in Spanish and a master’s degree in public policy. COREY P I CKE LS IMER FAS REPRESENTATIVE Corey Pickelsimer is director of the Foreign Agricultural Service Trade and Scientific Exchange Division. He entered the Foreign Service in 2006 and has since served as senior agricultural attaché at Embassy Pretoria and as agricultural attaché at Embassy Bangkok. Pickelsimer has a bachelor’s degree in agribusiness and a master’s degree in agricultural economics fromWashington State University. He and his wife have two children. MARK PRESCOTT APHIS REPRESENTATIVE Mark Prescott joined the U.S. Depart- ment of Agriculture’s Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service in 2002 and has served as the APHIS attaché to Tokyo and Brasilia. In 2013, he was named assistant director of APHIS’ International Trade and Regulatory Capacity Building staff in Washington, D.C. Prior to becoming a member of the Foreign Service, Prescott worked with the U.S. Forest Service, served as a Peace Corps Volunteer in Lesotho and had his own private practice for two years. He has a doctorate in veterinary medicine from Tufts University.