The Foreign Service Journal, December 2012

16 DECEMBER 2012 | THE FOREIGN SERVICE JOURNAL “Top 99 Under 33” list include foreign affairs officers Andrew Kim, Eric Maltzer and David Bargueño; Andrew Rabens, special adviser for youth engagement in the Near East; Special Assistant to the Ambassador-at-Large for Global Women’s Issues Justin Sosne; and Leanne Erdberg and Andrea Walther, both employees of the Counterterrorism Bureau. This compilation by Young Profession- als in Foreign Policy and the Diplomatic Courier is part of a broader effort to foster a new generation of foreign policy leaders. The appointees for 2012 are certainly a credit to theirs. n —Emily A. Hawley, Editorial Intern 50 Years Ago T he specialist problem is only one facet of the broader problem of getting the best officers to the top at the optimum time and it would be difficult to maintain that it is the most important facet. It is clear, however, that if it is not satisfactorily resolved, the Service will hardly be able to meet the challenge of the Sixties effectively. If, on the other hand, the considerations discussed above are faced squarely and forthright decisions made about them, the effectiveness of other, more direct measures to improve the selection and promotion of FS officers will be greatly enhanced.” A single career service to handle American foreign relations is more than ever necessary today. Also more than ever today, one must admit the necessity for specialized training and experience. The only way to combine these two essentials successfully is through some such system as that outlined above. —From“Still Another Look at Specialization” by James K. Penfield (an article in the series,“Is the Service Ready for the Sixties?”), FSJ , December 1962.