70 NOVEMBER 2024 | THE FOREIGN SERVICE JOURNAL AFSA’s Good Works Public Outreach and Education AFSA has long conducted public outreach and education to increase understanding among the American people about the role of the Foreign Service. Engaging with students, academics, think tanks, the media, congressional audiences, and the general public, AFSA tells the story of America’s diplomats and development professionals to ensure that others understand the importance of properly resourced diplomacy. In 1954, AFSA launched one of its earliest public outreach initiatives, a contest offering cash prizes to students and other members of the public for essays on how to improve the organization and administration of the U.S. Foreign Service. To fund those prizes, AFSA created what is now called the Fund for American Diplomacy (FAD). Over the past 70 years, that 501(c)(3) nonprofit entity evolved from a narrow focus on the essay contest to a broader portfolio encompassing all AFSA’s outreach work. Funding for the FAD comes from outside donors and AFSA member contributions. Check your email in late November for a message from AFSA asking for “Giving Tuesday” donations. It is also registered in the Combined Federal Campaign as “Diplomacy Matters-AFSA” at CFC number #10646. Today, the FAD supports a variety of public education programs including the AFSA National High School Essay Contest, which has garnered thousands of entries over the past quarter century; publication of the book Inside a U.S. Embassy, which in three unique editions has sold more than 200,000 copies; a robust speakers bureau that sends Foreign Service speakers around the country to address university and community groups; and the Road Scholar Program, a five-day academic program for senior citizens wanting to further understand U.S. diplomacy. Additionally, AFSA runs an awards program that highlights the achievements and sacrifices of those in the Foreign Service community. And, for more than 90 years, the AFSA Memorial Plaques have offered visitors to the State Department an inspiring reminder of Foreign Service sacrifice. In recent years, AFSA has expanded its public outreach into webinars and social media content creation to keep followers up to date on issues of interest to the Foreign Service community. AFSA is online on Facebook, Instagram, YouTube, LinkedIn, and X (formerly known as Twitter). A recent initiative recruited family members to help gather and create engaging “behind-the-scenes” social media content to shed light on the work and life of members of the Foreign Service. During the soon-to-conclude Foreign Service centennial year, AFSA has conducted a variety of public outreach efforts, including exhibits at three U.S. presidential libraries and the production of a video highlighting 100 years of the Foreign Service, which premiered at AFSA’s centennial gala held at the State Department last spring. Finally, AFSA has long worked with both major and minor media outlets to tell the Foreign Service story. Sometimes AFSA’s perspective appears as quotes from the AFSA president. Other times, AFSA suggests the topic to the reporter and provides background information cited in the article. Each May, to coincide with Foreign Service Day, AFSA recruits retired members from around the country to submit op-eds to their local newspaper highlighting the service and sacrifice of career diplomats. All these efforts align with AFSA’s broader mission: to serve as the voice of the Foreign Service. AFSA’s goal is that Americans beyond the Beltway not only understand the work of our diplomats but also recognize how essential it is to American prosperity. This past summer, 2024 High School Essay Contest winner Ian Rosenzweig shared how the contest opened his eyes to the importance of the Foreign Service and said: “Other high schoolers should know how important the Foreign Service is to America’s place on the global stage and the entire global network of work that’s being done in diplomacy and international relations and how directly that impacts our everyday lives.” Through this vital public outreach, AFSA builds support for the Foreign Service and helps lay the groundwork for a robust diplomatic corps in the future. n —John K. Naland AFSA’s Good Works Each edition during our centennial year, The Foreign Service Journal is profiling an AFSA program that advances the collective or individual interests of its members. This issue features public outreach and education. AFSA’S GOOD WORKS
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