The Foreign Service Journal, September 2024

AFSA NEWS 74 SEPTEMBER 2024 | THE FOREIGN SERVICE JOURNAL Governing Board Welcome AFSA welcomes two new members to its Governing Board: Evan Mangino, the new AFSA vice president for the Foreign Agricultural Service (FAS), and Kimberly McClure, a State representative. Evan Mangino joined FAS in 2007 and is proud of his work on behalf of U.S. farmers, ranchers, foresters, and food producers. Most recently, he served as the agricultural counselor in San José, Costa Rica. He has also served as the FAS deputy chief of staff, agricultural trade office deputy director in Tokyo, and senior agricultural attaché in Ottawa. Evan is a restless advocate, tireless communicator, and committed listener. He is perpetually working to make organizations more efficient, more effective, and more rewarding places to work. He has served on a string of FAS organizational improvement initiatives, providing thoughtful solutions to challenges. Evan has been unofficially representing his cohort, his staff, and his Foreign Service colleagues for years, and he is excited to serve full-time as the FAS vice president. He looks forward to concluding FAS’ first collective bargaining agreement negotiations in 30 years. Evan is a New Jersey native, a returned Peace Corps volunteer (Kingdom of Tonga 2003-2005), and a graduate of Middlebury College and the Global Social Change and Development Program at Johns Hopkins University’s School for Advanced International Studies. He earned his commission in Japanese, is proficient in Spanish, and remembers enough Tongan to crack jokes. Evan is grateful his partner, Kate, and their two children, who have supported (or at least tolerated) his passion for agriculture in Tonga, Japan, Canada, and Central America. Kim McClure joined the State Department as a Foreign Service officer 21 years ago. She has served in India, Afghanistan, and South Africa, at the United Nations in New York, and in Washington, D.C. Kim also completed the Council on Foreign Relations International Affairs Fellowship and is a proud alumna of the Thomas R. Pickering Fellowship. Kim holds a BA in international relations from Stanford University and a master of public policy from the Kennedy School at Harvard University. She grew up in Memphis, Tenn., and Louisville, Ky., and speaks Portuguese, Spanish, and Dari (Farsi). She will soon add French, in preparation for her next assignment as deputy chief of mission at U.S. Embassy Lome. “I am thrilled to have this opportunity to serve as a State representative on the AFSA Governing Board and be of service to my colleagues at a critical moment in the modernization and evolution of the Foreign Service,” says Kim. She adds: “As I often tell audiences and mentees, change does not come easily in big bureaucracies, but I have seen more of it in the past three years at State than I witnessed in the preceding two decades. This is proof that—with effective advocacy—even large bureaucracies can modify organizational cultures, policies, and practices to accommodate the needs of a dynamic workforce and rapidly evolving world.” n New FAS Vice President Evan Mangino. New Governing Board member Kimberly McClure. COURTESY OF EVAN MANGINO COURTESY OF KIMBERLY MCCLURE AFSA’s Labor Management (LM) Office has a new name: Office of the General Counsel. OGC better represents the comprehensive legal and advisory services provided to both AFSA staff and AFSA members, such as labor relations, contract review, legal counsel, and various forms of member assistance. In addition, AFSA OGC is excited to introduce a new case management system to enhance service delivery to its members. A key feature of the new system is its efficient intake process. Members seeking assistance will fill out an intake sheet, capturing all necessary information, which will then be automatically populated into the system and quickly assigned to the appropriate staff member. Members seeking assistance will also gain access to in-depth guidance and templates for their most asked questions. To contact AFSA’s Office of the General Counsel, visit the AFSA website and search for the OGC page. n New Name, New System, Same Great Service to Members NEWS BRIEF

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