The Foreign Service Journal, November 2020

THE FOREIGN SERVICE JOURNAL | NOVEMBER 2020 29 FSJOCTOBER 1987 courage, determination and patriotism, are what made Marie Yovanovitch such an effective American ambassador to Ukraine. She had other credentials, too, that enabled her to go to the top of her profes- sion, one that, like other professions, requires a solid background in specialized knowledge. My sense is that incoming members of the U.S. Foreign Service should be required to participate in a full academic year of profes- sional education at the National Foreign Affairs Training Center. There might be a distinct part of the center that could be called “The School of Diplomacy.” A diverse group of future American diplomats would benefit, I think, from the integrating effects of a common learning experience. That said, there should also be sepa- rate courses in area studies and languages. The common program should include a feature pioneered by the now defunct Senior Seminar, a course that gave diplomats an introduction to various slices of American life. Personally, I would like to see the common course include case studies in diplomacy andmany opportuni- ties for extended talks with senior American diplomats and with those of other nations, too. As a former teacher myself, of course I have an interest in curriculum, and so I would be pleased tomeet with people who are giving serious thought to what is suitable for today’s realities. I want to be clear that I amnot criticizing the very good people in the State Department and the Foreign Service who, so far as I can see, are conducting themselves in a way that shouldmake the American people proud of them. Nor do I mean to impute malign intent to the leaders of the current administration. Several issues that will need to be addressed in a rebuilding program antedate this administration, the impact of social media on our national conversation being one. I have always believed that in the end, and probably after much impassioned debate, our national security must rest on a nonpartisan consensus framed by our shared val- ues. So let it be in this case. n academy has to be rooted in the Ameri- can experience. In the period of rebuild- ing that lies ahead, I hope that the State Department and its Foreign Service will take a close look at the professional formation of career diplomats. One thing I learned as Secretary of State was that the culture of the Service did not reward people with promotions or post- ings for the efforts they made to improve their knowledge base by taking courses at the Foreign Service Institute or at universities. In a promo- tion systemwhere failure to achieve promotions results in dismissal from the Service, this attitude is a powerful disincentive to spendmuch time in educational institutions. I hope that attitude is changing, because there is a large body of knowl- edge that our diplomats should have mastered or at least have some familiarity with that is not easily acquired these days even in universities. I am thinking of area studies, the history and practice of international negotiations and, of course, a working knowledge of exotic languages. It is tempting to believe that good diplomats are born, not made, and that our recruiting system should simply find such people and the rest will take care of itself. There is some truth in this, because the personal qualities of integrity, empathy, problem- solving attitudes and the ability to build trusting human relation- ships are critical to success as a diplomat. Traits like these, plus FSJ Editor Shawn Dorman congratulates Secretary Shultz at the AFSA awards ceremony in June 2003 when he was honored with the award for Lifetime Contributions to American Diplomacy. During his tenure as Secretary of State from 1982 through 1989, George Shultz featured on the cover of The Foreign Service Journal several times. The June 2003 FSJ (at bottom) celebrates his receipt that year of AFSA’s highest award, for Lifetime Contributions to American Diplomacy. AFSA FSJSEPTEMBER 1988