U N I T E D S T A T E S D E P A R T M E N T O F S T A T E

December 2000

StateStateM a g a z i n e

Unveilingthe EagleUnveilingthe Eagle

Also in this issue:Integration—A Work in Progress

State Magazine (ISSN 1099–4165) is published monthly, exceptbimonthly in July and August, by the U.S. Department of State,2201 C St., N.W., Washington, DC. Periodicals postage paid atWashington, DC and at additional mailing locations. POSTMAS-TER: Send changes of address to State Magazine, HR/ER/SMG,SA-1, Room H-236, Washington, DC 20522-0602. State Magazineis published to facilitate communication between managementand employees at home and abroad and to acquaint employeeswith developments that may affect operations or personnel. The magazine is also available to persons interested in workingfor the Department of State and to the general public.

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Deadlines: Dec. 15 for February issue.Jan. 15 for March issue.

StateStateMagazine

Carl GoodmanEDITOR-IN-CHIEF

Paul KoscakWRITER/EDITOR

Dave KreckeWRITER/EDITOR

Kathleen GoldyniaART DIRECTOR

ADVISORY BOARD MEMBERS

Frank CoulterCHAIRMAN

Sally LightEXECUTIVE SECRETARY

Janice BurkeRosalie Dangelo

Cheryl HessPat Hayes

Doug RyanHarry Thomas

In our next issue:Breakthrough for Diplomacy

Secretary Albright breaks through awall near the 21st Street entranceof the Harry S. Truman Buildingwhere the U.S. Diplomacy Centerwill be located.

Phot

o by

Mic

hael

Gro

ss

6 Post of the Month: RabatThe 12th century city speaks to the past and present.

10 Bureau of the Month: Political-Military AffairsThis bureau gives politics a new meaning.

14 Main State Building Named for President TrumanIt is the first in the capital named for the 33rd President.

16 ‘The Eagle Has Landed’The 11,600-pound sculpture symbolizes democracy.

18 The OIG Has Lots to Cheer AboutEmployees help area’s homeless and hungry.

20 Rover Finds Niche with African AnimalsShe’s wild about animals and it shows.

23 USIA-State IntegrationIt’s still a work in progress.

28 Former Restaurateur Switches to SecuritySpecial agent excels in new role.

30 VideoconferencingIt’s the next best thing to being there.

32 Growing with the FLOFamily Liaison Office expands space and mission.

StateContents

D e p a r t m e n t o f S t a t e • U n i t e d S t a t e s o f A m e r i c a

StateMagazine

December 2000No. 441

C O L U M N S

2 From the Secretary

5 Direct from the D.G.

D E P A R T M E N T S

3 Letters to the Editor

4 In the News

33 Medical Report

34 People Like You

35 Obituaries

36 Personnel Actions

On the CoverUnveiling the Soaring Eagle are,from left, sculptor Greg Wyatt;Barbara Newington, chairwomanof the board of trustees anddirector of the Newington-Cropsey Foundation; and BonnieCohen, under secretary of Statefor Management.

Photo by Shawn Moore

U N I T E D S T A T E S D E P A R T M E N T O F S T A T E

December 2000

StateStateM a g a z i n e

Unveilingthe EagleUnveilingthe Eagle

Also in this issue:Integration—A Work in Progress

6

18

Donated food awaits distributionto area’s hungry and homeless.

Carpet shop in Morocco.

FROM THE SECRETARYSECRETARY MADELEINE ALBRIGHT

2 State Magazine

Presidents Change,Principles Remain

During the past four years, I have been blessedwith the chance to work with you on behalf ofAmerican interests and values. There is no better

job, no stronger team and no greater responsibility.My time is not yet up, so like you, I am looking for-

ward. I do not know who the next President will be,because this column is being written before the election. Ido know how important it is that the new Administrationreceive bipartisan support in pursuing our nation’s fun-damental objectives in the world. Although electionscome and go, America’s core principles do not change.The resulting continuity of policy and purpose is vital toU.S. leadership.

Like President Clinton, the new President will be test-ed by crises and opportunities in key regions. And thenew Secretary of State will be called upon to responddaily to the ever-changing pattern of world events.

Our new leaders will also be required to deal wiselywith long-term challenges that affect important U.S.interests on a global basis.

Primary among these is the ever-present danger posedby the proliferation of nuclear, chemical and biologicalarms. The next President must work with Congress tobuild a consensus for renewed American leadershipaimed at preventing such weapons from falling into thewrong hands. That won’t be possible with a go-it-alonepolicy that ignores the concerns of our allies and othermajor powers. We must forge an approach that respondswith wisdom to new threats, without reviving old ones.And we must either ratify the Comprehensive NuclearTest Ban Treaty or find a convincing rationale for whyothers should practice what we merely preach.

A second challenge is globalization. Trade and technol-ogy have the capacity to bring the world closer togetherand to lift standards of living everywhere. But criticsargue that these forces are instead widening the gapbetween rich and poor and should be resisted at all costs.

President Clinton has sought to achieve optimumresults by combining a push for freer trade with supportfor debt relief, core worker standards and investmentsin education, the environment and computer trainingand access.

The new Administration will have to develop its ownresponses to those blaming globalization for the world’s

ills, while persuading Congress to grant the fast tracktrade-negotiating authority that legislators unwiselydenied to President Clinton.

The third challenge is democracy. Economic problems,political divisions and rising crime threaten many newlyfree nations. The new Administration must look for waysto sustain America’s role as the world’s leading exampleand promoter of liberty. Building on the Community ofDemocracies initiative launched last summer in Warsawis one such opportunity.

A fourth and overriding challenge the newAdministration will face is defining America’s role over-seas. Throughout his tenure, President Clinton has cho-sen the path of vigorous and far-reaching internationalleadership. He has done a remarkable job strengtheningour alliances, managing difficult relations with Chinaand Russia, working for peace and making Americanintentions understood everywhere from São Paulo andLajes to Delhi and Kiev.

Above all, he has recognized that America cannot leadthrough exhortation alone. As in Bosnia and Kosovo, wemust lead by example.

The next Administration, regardless of party, will takeoffice pledged to increase funding for our military. I canprovide no better advice to the President-elect than to sup-port these investments with a sharp increase in funds forinternational operations and programs. After all, the bestway to ensure that our armed forces will be equal to everychallenge is to prevent the most serious challenges fromarising. And the best way to ensure that is through effec-tive diplomacy backed by sufficient resources.

The new Administration will begin work at a time ofunprecedented American prestige, prosperity and power.To succeed, it must have the full and bipartisan backingof our Congress and citizens, and especially the supportand guidance of those who work in this Department. Forwe live in a global era, and you are our nation’s leadingrepository of global expertise.

I am confident that you will serve the newAdministration with all the energy, skill and dedicationyou have shown during the current one. That is good newsfor private citizens—whose ranks I expect soon to join.And for our nation, it is an essential and enduring sourceof strength. �

December 2000 3

LETTERS TO THE EDITOR

Setting the RecordStraight on Moscow

Your article in the September editionon the flag raising at the U.S. Embassyin Moscow appears to contain an error.It says, “The former chancery had beenthe only office building occupied bythe embassy since the United Statesfirst established diplomatic relationswith the former Soviet government inthe 1930s.”

In fact, the first embassy chancerywas located in a still-existing build-ing next to the National Hotel oppo-site the west entrance to Red Squarefrom sometime in the mid-1930suntil about 1953 when it moved tothe new chancery on the GardenRing in Moscow. Before that time,some chancery functions reportedlywere performed in the ambassador’sresidence, Spaso House. From 1942until 1945, the embassy chanceryoperated from a former departmentstore building in Kuibyshev (nowSamara) on the Volga River about700 kilometers southeast of Moscow.

Thomas R. PickeringUnder Secretary of Statefor Political Affairs

The September issue carried a photoof the flag raising at Moscow’s newchancery. The text that accompaniesthe photo asserts that the “formerchancery had been the only officebuilding occupied by the embassysince the United States first establisheddiplomatic relations in the 1930s.”

This is incorrect. Until 1952 or 1953,the embassy occupied a building onManezh Square below the Kremlinand next to the present-day NationalHotel. The embassy had occupiedthis building before World War II.After the war, however, Stalin decid-ed that the U.S. Embassy should notbe located where it could overlookthe Kremlin and ordered that it bemoved. A new building was erectedon Chaikovskii Ring, the site of the

former chancery, where—as the arti-cle notes—the embassy was locateduntil its most recent move.

Avis BohlenAssistant SecretaryBureau of Arms Control

Millennium Meets Its Match

The recent Millennium Summit atthe United Nations may have beenthe largest ever in the number ofchiefs of state attending but, as the-ater, I don’t think it can match the ses-sion in 1960 when I was head of theU.S. security detail protecting Sovietand Eastern European heads of state.

There was quite a cast: Eisenhower,Macmillan, Khrushchev, Nehru, Tito,Nasser, Adenauer and the youthful

From the EditorThe Eagle, our cover story, has indeed landed. The almost six-ton

bronze sculpture was airlifted recently into the north courtyard of thenewly dedicated Harry S. Truman Building. Unveiled officially Oct. 20,the donated artwork symbolizes democracy and is meant to remindDepartment employees of the unique mission they have.

Considered a work in progress, the integration of the former U.S.Information Agency and State continues. Despite some shortfalls inexpectations, there is ample evidence that the merger, which became offi-cial Oct. 1, 1999, has produced positive results on several fronts—fromthe administrative to the diplomatic.

At post, we visit Morocco, the first country to recognize the newlyindependent United States. The country, which bridges Africa andEurope, is remarkable for its contrasts: snowcapped mountains, sandybeaches and sand dunes. Founded in the 12th century, the capital ofRabat embraces the traditional and the modern.

As they did last year, a number of employees in the Office of theInspector General are getting into the holiday spirit by volunteering withothers to help feed and clothe hungry and homeless residents in theWashington, D.C., area. Their effort warrants your inspection.

The staff of State Magazine thanks its many readers for their strong sup-port during the year 2000 and extends their warmest wishes for the holi-day season.

Castro, who was evicted from twomidtown hotels before ending up inHarlem. Macmillan gave a brilliantaddress only to be followed byKhrushchev who ranted, raved andbanged his shoe on his desk. Thepapers reported little about Macmillan.

Robert D. BarberRetired Foreign Service OfficerPalm Beach Gardens, Fla.

Letters to the EditorLetters should not exceed 250 words andshould include the writer’s name, addressand daytime phone number. Letters will beedited for length and clarity. Only signed letters will be considered. Names may bewithheld upon request. You can reach us atstatemagazine@state.gov.

4 State Magazine

I N T H E N E W S

State Cited for Aid toSmall Businesses

The White House and the Small Business Administrationhave recognized the State Department for supportingsmall, disadvantaged and women-owned businessesthrough its purchases of goods and services.

The most recent recognition, the Dietra Ford Award,was presented to Under Secretary for ManagementBonnie Cohen at the White House on behalf of theDepartment for supporting women-owned businesses.The award honors the former director of the GeneralServices Administration’s Office of Small andDisadvantaged Business Utilization. State is the firstrecipient of the award.

Earlier, the Department received two awards from theSmall Business Administration.

The Frances Perkins Vanguard Award, named for theformer secretary of Labor, singles out the federal agencythat has demonstrated the greatest commitment inawarding contracts to small, women-owned businesses.State was the only agency to be so recognized.

The Federal Gold Star Award recognizes the perform-ance of the staff of the Department’s Office of Small andDisadvantaged Business Utilization in the Bureau ofAdministration for their role in achieving contract awardgoals. Other agencies receiving the award included theDepartments of Transportation, and Housing and UrbanDevelopment and the Nuclear Regulatory Commission. Avoid Lines, Get Your

Metrochek in the AfternoonMore than 4,000 federal employees are taking advan-

tage of the public transportation subsidy that began inOctober. Participants may receive up to $65 per month inMetrochek cards to cover commuting costs. The cards aregood for Metro rail as well as van pools and bus compa-nies listed in the Metrochek brochure.

To avoid lines, the Office of Employee Relations suggestsemployees pick up their cards during the afternoon. Cardsare available for two days every two months.

Four Washington-area locations—two in SA1, SA6 andSA44—are available for employees to get their cards.Employees who want the benefit need to complete a“Department of State Transit Benefits Program” application,DS-3028, accessed through https://hrweb.hr.state.gov/er/index.html. Employees can also pick up an application atthe Office of Employee Relations, Room H-236, SA1.Supervisors need to authorize the form before it’s droppedoff or faxed to the Office of Employee Relations.

Leave DonationEncouraged

Federal employees facing the loss of their excessannual leave after Jan. 1 can donate it instead and makesomeone’s holiday a little brighter.

Normally, federal employees can’t carry over morethan 240 hours of annual leave into a new leave year.They forfeit excesses without any form of credit.

Employees who risk losing leave they have built upare encouraged to donate it to State’s Leave TransferProgram. The program helps employees who don’thave enough annual or sick leave to cover personal orfamily emergencies.

For more information about the program and how todonate unused leave, contact the Office of EmployeeRelations in the Bureau of Human Resources.

CFC CampaignContinues

The Department’sCombined Federal

Campaign contin-ues through Dec.22 as the driveseeks to meetthis year’s goalof $1.6 million.

To date, thecampaign has

received approxi-mately $200,000 in

contributions, accord-ing to the Office of

Employee Relations, which coordinates the annual drive.Last year’s drive raised more than $1.5 million andearned regional recognition for the Department.

The annual campaign benefits more than 3,000 chari-ties that employees may elect to contribute to throughpayroll deductions.

December 2000 5

• Second, in anticipation of what everyone expects willbe an increase in Civil Service retirements, CSP has devel-oped several programs to enhance the substantive, mana-gerial and leadership skills of our Civil Service employees.

The Leadership Competencies Development Initiative,for example, is designed to develop future Civil Serviceleaders. Voluntary participants in this program assesstheir leadership strengths and weaknesses, select compe-tencies for further development and follow individualdevelopment plans to address their leadership trainingor experience needs. So far, more than 1,000 employeeshave volunteered. All Civil Service employees may par-ticipate. We encourage everyone to take advantage of thisprogram that can provide you with the skills you need toadvance your career.

Under the Career Entry Program, 10 centrally funded,entry-level positions in various Civil Service occupationsare being established. Those hired receive training,enabling them to advance. This program allows us to tar-get specific workforce needs, such as human resources,foreign affairs, passport specialists, security, contractingand budget. Hiring at the entry level enables us to “growour own talent,” a smart strategy in today’s job market.

Five Civil Service employees are currently preparingfor Senior Executive Service certification through the newSenior Executive Candidate Development Program.

In addition to these programs, CSP continues to coor-dinate a variety of other career development programsfocused on leadership skills. Four Department ofAgriculture developmental programs, three congression-al fellowships, two overseas employment initiatives andseveral graduate-level educational programs are avail-able to Civil Service employees in grades GS-5 throughGS-15. These programs promote the retention of our bestemployees and allow us to reshape our workforce tomeet future needs.

In addition, like other leaders in our bureau, Sharlyn islooking to do more with the Internet to provide informa-tion on human resources initiatives. Sharlyn’s staff is alsoholding regular exchange sessions to keep bureau person-nel officers current on HR initiatives and to ensure that weare providing them (and you) the best possible service.

“Talent Management” must mean something to allState Department employees—Civil Service, ForeignService and Foreign Service Nationals. Next month,you’ll meet Robert Morris and the Office of OverseasEmployment. They are pursuing our “War for Talent”goals with our Foreign Service National employees. �

Iwould like to introduceanother leader in the Bureauof Human Resources—Sharlyn Grigsby. Ourbureau’s goal is to get the

right people in the right place atthe right time to carry out thePresident’s and the Secretary’sforeign policy. We cannot meetthis goal unless it applies to CivilService employees at the StateDepartment.

As director of our Office ofCivil Service Personnel Manage-ment, Sharlyn’s responsibility isto get the right Civil Serviceemployees with the right experi-ences and the right skills into the

Department. Sharlyn joined State in July 1999 from theNational Labor Relations Board where she was responsiblefor human resources programs. During her own CivilService career, starting in 1974, Sharlyn has worked inalmost all areas of human resources management.

When Sharlyn took charge of CSP, she decided that“business as usual” would not be good enough for the chal-lenges we now face. The days of the traditional “personneloffice,” where rules were enforced and papers pushed, aregone. A personnel office that served only as a gatekeeperrather than as a mentor or promoter of great people was notfocused on the “war for talent.” The recruitment, retentionand career development of today’s Civil Service employeespresent new challenges that demand creativity and com-mitment from Sharlyn and her staff.

Here’s what is happening in CSP: • First, they are using existing human resources tools

in new ways, such as recruitment and retention incen-tives. Bonuses and allowances are paid to new recruitsand current employees whose experience, skills andexpertise are essential to the success of the Department’smission. Working with their colleagues in InformationResource Management and at the National ForeignAffairs Training Center, CSP has made creative use ofthese incentives in developing the information technolo-gy (IT) skills program. This program identifies the ITskills most critical to our mission and providesallowances to those individuals who possess the rightskills. Given today’s fierce competition for IT profession-als, this is a vital initiative for the Department.

DIRECT FROM THE D.G.MARC GROSSMAN

Civil Service Employees Are VitalSharlyn Grigsby

By Eric Khant

American writer Paul Bowles, author of TheSheltering Sky, once said, “Morocco’s front dooropens to all of Africa. The other side of thatsame door opens to Europe.” The country that

bridges Europe and Africa seems to embrace contrasts.Imagine the snowcapped Atlas Mountains in the south-east, the sandy beaches of the Atlantic and theMediterranean coasts in the west and north and thefamous dunes of the Sahara in the south.

Morocco is indeed a land of contrasts.

RabatPost of the Month:

A distant view ofTinerhir, Morocco,near Rabat.

The contrast is more vivid in bigger cities where thetraditional and exotic Morocco coexists with the modernand developing Morocco. Rabat, the capital, was chosenby the Almohad Empire in the 12th century. Today, it isthe setting of the royal palace of Mohamed VI and wherethe U.S. Embassy is located.

Situated on the Atlantic coast in central Morocco, Rabatis the perfect location for a capital. It is easily reached fromother major cities, especially Casablanca, Morocco’s indus-trial center and international gateway. With modern build-ings and wide boulevards blending with historic monu-ments of ancient architecture, Rabat offers sophisticatedcharm that can only be created when a modern societyrevolves around historic settings that go back to antiquity.

The U.S. Mission in Morocco consists of the StateDepartment and seven other U.S. government agencieswith 80 American and 350 Moroccan employees workingin Rabat, Casablanca and Tangier. With King MohamedVI’s ascendance to the throne in 1999, Morocco facesexciting and challenging times. The U.S. Mission is com-mitted to economic and political reform to promote pros-perity, democracy and stability in Morocco.

The mission’s effort to cultivate and reinforce strongU.S.-Morocco relations has led to a number of high-levelvisits during the past two years. Since 1998, the missionhas hosted visits by the President and First Lady,

December 2000 7

Sumita Dastidar, wife of EricStromayer, general servicesofficer, at Aid Ben Haddou.

Systems manager Maggy Reddy with Foreign Service National colleague Imad Marrakchi.

Secretary of Defense Cohen, Secretary ofState Albright and a number of congression-al delegations. Last June, the White Househosted the largest state dinner of the ClintonAdministration for King Mohamed VI dur-ing his visit to the United States. Clearly, theUnited States and Morocco value theiralliance highly and share a long history ofmutual respect. Morocco, after all, was thefirst country to recognize the United Statesafter its independence.

As Morocco enters a new century with anew king, the mission works with a clearset of goals to ensure that U.S.-Moroccorelations remain strong and that U.S. inter-ests and foreign policy are effectively pro-moted. A stable Morocco serves as ananchor for U.S. interests in North Africaand the Middle East. The embassy’s effortsto enhance regional stability focus on culti-vating a mature, cooperative relationshipwith this diverse nation. Embassy officerswork closely with their Moroccan counter-parts to encourage democratic political,economic and human rights policies.

8 State Magazine

Secretary Albright greets ForeignService National Laila Ammachduring her visit to Morocco inSeptember 1999.

Dan Hastings, political officer, and wife Maya visit the Mohamed V Mausoleum in Rabat.

The mission’s relations with Morocco’s govern-ment are not limited to political and economic issues.Public affairs as well as cultural and education pro-grams are used to increase understanding betweenAmericans and Moroccans. The U.S. Agency forInternational Development’s efforts include popula-tion control and improved health care, waterresources management, expanding economic oppor-tunities for the poor and expanding educational pro-grams in rural areas.

Other agencies promoting U.S. foreign policy inMorocco are the Departments of Commerce,

Agriculture, and Defense; thePeace Corps; and theBroadcasting Board of Governors.

Developing an integratedworkforce has always been a pri-ority, and progress has beensteady. The embassy benefitsfrom involving Moroccan nation-als in the decisionmaking processsince they’re the institutionalbackbone. While much workremains, the U.S. Embassy inMorocco has taken steps tobecome a mission whereAmerican and Moroccanemployees take pride in workingto achieve America’s goals. �

The author is the administrative officer at the U.S. Embassy in Rabat.

December 2000 9

The chancery.

Above, Ambassador Edward M. Gabriel, left, cuts cake with staff to celebratethe launching of the embassy’s web site. Below, Foreign Service NationalsNadia Acherki, left, and Karima Slimi are general service officers.

By Paul Koscak

Making the world safer might be a simpleway to describe what the Bureau ofPolitical-Military Affairs does.But it’s the best way.

The bureau provides nations with military orhumanitarian assistance, controls exports to pro-tect U.S. technology, works for international coop-eration in computer security and regulatesdefense trade to promote international safety. For

example, the bureau played a big role along with theDepartment of Defense in developing the Defense TradeSecurity Initiative, which makes licensing for defenseproducts and services easier.

The bureau spends lots of time keeping small armsaway from rogue nations and terrorist groups. It cleansup the leftovers of war—land mines and other weapons.And it plans for the unexpected.

In fact, the bureau has an entire branch—the Office ofContingency Planning and Peacekeeping—that specializesin writing contingency plans, plans that cover everythingfrom establishing new governments to humanitarian reliefto war crimes. They can be drummed up on the spotwhenever there’s an international flare-up that threatensour national interests—the most likely situation—or theycan be written and filed away for an anticipated crisis.

“The National Security Council calls a meeting and says‘We have a problem. We need to develop some options,’”planner Ronald Ladnier said in describing how a plantypically gets started. He said the NSC sets the ground

rules for American forces and others expected to play arole in a particular crisis. “Other times, through the CIA orother intelligence, we can anticipate,” Mr. Ladnier, an AirForce colonel assigned to the Department, added. “Butmany crises are difficult to predict.”

Still, it takes a team to craft a plan and that’s why thebranch maintains a seasoned staff of civil, foreign andmilitary service employees. The staff also takes its direc-tion, in part, from the Department’s regional bureauresponsible for foreign policy in that part of the world.

“What does the United States want?” Mr. Ladnier asksrhetorically about a plan’s foundation. “Humanitarianrelief? Self-determination?”

Regional bureau officials can best provide thoseanswers, he said, because they’re closest to the region’sissues and events. Overall planning, however, is based ona 1997 Clinton Administration directive that offers guide-lines on managing complex contingency operations. Thedirective, which covers responses ranging from a hostagerescue to full-fledged nation-building operations, definescomplex operations as “composed of such components aspolitical/diplomatic, humanitarian, intelligence, eco-nomic development and security.”

“Our goal is to know more about the regions than otherfunctional bureaus and more about all of the functionalareas than the regional bureaus,” Mr. Ladnier explained.

Plans are more than just a way to handle a crisis. Theystate a position and sometimes that’s what’s needed torally an international coalition. Some nations are reluc-tant to propose a plan or they may be seeking directionfrom a major power, Mr. Ladnier explained. “The UnitedStates is often the catalyst for action,” he said.

The bureau’s cadre of international specialists, politicalstrategists, military officers and administrators negotiateswhere U.S. forces are deployed overseas and defines theground rules for peace operations and arms sales. It coor-

10 State Magazine

Bureau Gives Politics New Meaning

Bureau of the Month:

Political-MilitaryAffairs

dinates with the Department of Defense if military sup-port is needed when responding to a humanitarian crisis.

Controlling the spread of small arms—assault rifles,machine guns, grenades, small rockets and mortars—is,perhaps, where the bureau plays its most vital role inmaking the world a safer place.

The effort begins right here at home. Before arms deal-ers or manufacturers can close an international sale ofany weapon, they must obtain the Department’s authori-zation through the Office of Defense Trade Controls. Thebureau’s Office of Regional Security and Arms Transfershandles government-to-government deals andinforms Congress aboutany major sale. “We makesure the sale goes to the right person,” saidHerb Calhoun, thebureau’s senior planneron small arms.

To make sure, the deal-er must supply theDepartment with an“end-user certificate”from its customer. Thecertificate is really a cus-tomer’s promise that theweapons won’t be resoldto another nation or

group. Sales of more than $50 million also need congres-sional review. The review can be waived by the Presidentif national security is threatened. In addition, theDepartment requires dealers to have a clean record ofinternational arms sales.

“We’re not here to discourage sales,” Mr. Calhoun said.“The U.N. charter lets any country buy arms for self-defense. We just don’t want the weapons to end up in thehands of terrorists and warlords.”

To ensure compliance, the Department monitors thearms after the sale.

Mr. Calhoun stressed thebureau’s goal is simply to“impose a higher standardof responsibility” on armsdealers. “It’s not the buyingand selling,” he said.

To get other nationsinvolved, the bureau ispresenting its small-armssales model of checks andbalances at numerousinternational peace confer-ences to “raise the globalstandard of responsibility,”Mr. Calhoun said. “If therest of the world did this,we wouldn’t have theproblems we have today.”

December 2000 11

Eric Newsom, assistant secretaryfor Political-Military Affairs, greetssoldiers during one of his manyEastern European visits.

Eric Newsom, left, assistant secretary for Political-Military Affairs, and Ilir Gjoni,Albanian minister of defense, sign amemorandum to destroy more than130,000 small arms and light weapons.

In addition to making the world safer,the bureau is also saving lives throughits highly successful demining program.Land mines are menacing nearly 90countries, 65 of which have deminingprograms in place. The bureau is sup-porting 37 of those countries.

Since 1993, the State Department, theAgency for International Developmentand the Department of Defense havespent more than $400 million to detectand clear mines, largely in Africa, theBalkans and Southeast Asia. These agen-cies work through international organi-zations, host governments and vendorsto provide the expertise, training andequipment to clear mines and make resi-dents aware of the danger posed by thesehidden bombs.

Still, these remnants of war continue tokill decades after the last trigger is pulled.For instance, mines planted by Gen.Erwin Rommel’s Afrika Corps in 1942 tobolster the German positions west of

Alexandria have shifted with the desert sand, movingmiles from their original location.

“The Egyptians are still having a very severe problemdeveloping areas around El-Alamein,” observed PatPatierno, director of humanitarian demining programs.“Mines are now showing up on the beaches of NorthAfrica.”

12 State Magazine

White House Philosophy Underscores Foreign InterventionThe guiding light of the State Department’s contingency planning is a 1997

Clinton Administration directive.It’s a seven-page document that stresses cooperation between govern-

ment agencies and taking action with coalition forces “while never relin-quishing the capability to respond unilaterally.”

The directive states that effective responses to “massive human suffer-ing” caused by territorial disputes, armed ethnic conflicts and civil warsrequire “multidimensional operations.” In other words, if the United Statesplans to get involved in one of the numerous regional conflicts that havebecome so common since the end of the Cold War, it needs more than justmilitary muscle. It needs to harness the resources of as many governmentagencies as necessary to help establish new economies and temporary gov-ernments; essentially, the ability to rebuild a nation.

Components of a response team, according to the directive, should includeagencies with expertise in politics, diplomacy, humanitarian, intelligence, economic development and security operations.The need for these elements, according to the paper, shows why today’s contingencies are “complex operations.”

Complex operations are “peace operations” such as the NATO intervention in Bosnia or Operation Provide Comfort, thehumanitarian assistance effort in Northern Iraq. They can also be disaster relief missions, military operations to defendU.S. citizens, or counterterrorism response and hostage-rescue operations.

The bureau works to ensure that surplus small arms andlight weapons that are frequently stockpiled after civil warsor other conflicts are destroyed. Black market arms fromlarge Cold War stockpiles in Eastern Europe and the formerSoviet Union continue to fuel wars and conflicts. InSeptember, Eric Newsom, assistant secretary for Political-Military Affairs, along with representatives for Germanyand Norway, signed an agreement with Albania to assist indestroying 130,000 weapons collected after the 1997 civilunrest in Albania.

Searching for minesin Bosnia.

Children from Bosnia and Herzegovina learn aboutthe hazards of land mines. Education is an importantpart of U.S. demining efforts.

DoD

Phot

o by

Sgt

. Ger

ald

Jam

es

Although many war-ravaged nations lack the moneyto sponsor their own mine-clearing operations, they’restill able to contribute significantly. “They offer support-in-kind, such as medical facilities, air support, fuel andpersonnel,” Mr. Patierno said.

The results are impressive. In Cambodia, for example,land mine deaths have plunged by 90 percent, while inRwanda casualties fell from 233 in 1994 to nine in 1999.

The world’s many conflicts promise to keep the dem-ining program indemand. But whatmakes the task evenmore daunting is thatmines today are plant-ed indiscriminately.They’re placed in andaround villages, agri-cultural areas andplaces where civilianscongregate to do busi-ness, thereby stifling aregion’s recovery andcontinuing to kill andmaim its residents longafter a conflict ends.

“In the past, mineswere placed strategicallyby military units,” Mr.Patierno said. “Nowthey’re placed by rebel groups and warlords to terrorizeand kill populations.”

Mines are also popular because they’re cheap. “For $3or less you can build an anti-personnel mine to take outyour neighbor’s livestock, which is frequently the solemeans of support for a family,” he said.

Despite metal detectors, electronic imaging devicesand huge tractor-like machines that chew up the soil torid the area of the ominous explosives, the most commontechnology is still the oldest technology, “the 24-inchprobe and the human hand,” Mr. Patierno said.

But clearly the best way of making the world safer is todispel mistrust and eliminate fear, tension and hostilityamong nations or groups of people. The bureau plays abig role here.

It talks.The bureau calls the dialogue confidence and security-

building measures.“We’re trying to foster greater regional stability

through broader security dialogues,” said GiovanniSnidle, special adviserand coordinator forconfidence and securi-ty-building measures.“With peace and sta-bility there’s economicdevelopment.”

Mr. Snidle’s officeoffers ideas that helpnations or regionscoexist. For instance,when some LatinAmerican nationsneeded to modernizetheir defense systems,the bureau urged themto inform their neigh-bors to allay mistrust.This dialogue—beingcarried on now with

some 20 nations—is known as “transparency in arms.”Another buzzword, “cross-fertilization,” has more to dowith borrowing strategies than gardening. “It’s promot-ing successful actions [that worked] in one region toanother, tailored to culture, history and geography,” Mr.Snidle said.

At 164 strong, without one ambulance or a 911 number,the bureau is poised for the world’s next crisis that threatensAmerica’s interests. �

The author is a writer-editor for State Magazine.

December 2000 13

Carol Schwab, bureau staff attorney,at desk, meets with Dave Quinn, andMike Slack, background, both fromthe bureau’s regional security andarms transfer section.

Photo by Paul Koscak

Left, Albania’s weapons program collected more than 130,000 small arms and light weapons for destruction. Right, Eric Newsom, center, assistantsecretary for Political-Military Affairs, watches as weapons are destroyed. Looking on are Commander Mike Thompson, left, defense attaché, andJoseph Limprecht, U.S. Ambassador to Albania.

14 State Magazine

Story by Marthena CowartPhotos by Michael Gross

The day marking the Main State Departmentbuilding becoming the Harry S. TrumanBuilding was as clear and warm as the man him-self. Guests began arriving early, taking chairs

placed in front of Main State’s C Street entrance. Theyincluded the diplomatic corps, members of the TrumanAdministration, the Truman family and members ofWashington’s foreign policy establishment.

Actor James Earl Jones, who served as master of cere-monies, said in his welcome, “We gather to honor thelegacy of Harry Truman because he changed the courseof history in America and throughout the world. He didso by summoning the will and marshaling the resourcesof this great country to promote democracy and fight forfreedom around the globe.”

President Truman issued an executive order in July1948 integrating the armed forces. The move inspired Mr.Jones to enlist in the Army and become part of the firstgeneration of African American officers to serve in theintegrated military.

Main State Building Named for President Truman

At the dedication are, from left, Secretary Albright,John Truman, President Clinton, James Earl Jones,Rep. “Ike” Skelton and George Elsey.

December 2000 15

George Elsey, who served asadministrative assistant and for-eign policy adviser to PresidentTruman, delighted the audiencewith stories of the war years andearly conflicts between Secretary ofState James Byrnes and thePresident. After Mr. Byrnes wassucceeded by Gen. GeorgeMarshall, Mr. Elsey said creativityat the State Department was“unleashed and flourished,”resulting in the Truman Doctrine,the Marshall Plan and NATO. Mr.Elsey said these initiatives “shapedthe post war world.”

John Ross Truman, the President’sgrandnephew, expressed theTruman family’s appreciation forrecognizing his uncle.

“My great-uncle believed ingovernment,” Mr. Truman said,“and he believed in the power ofthe United States as a force forfreedom and prosperity in theworld. So he would have been proud of the men andwomen who conduct America’s foreign policy in thisbuilding which will bear his name.”

Missouri Congressman “Ike” Skelton, ranking Democraton the Armed Services Committee, who introduced the leg-islation naming the building in honor of the formerPresident, thanked those in Congress who supported themeasure as well as President Clinton and Secretary Albright.

Before introducing the President, Secretary Albrightsaid, “No one understood better than President Trumanthe importance of effective diplomacy as a complementto America’s economic and military strength. He under-stood the goodness of American power. He was a doer,whose plain words and bold actions mended a brokenworld, saved freedom, and embodied the principles ofour nation at its best.”

After thanking the congressional delegation and wel-coming the Truman family, President Clinton said:

“History will credit Harry Truman for creating thearchitecture of postwar internationalism inpolitics and economics; for drawing the lineagainst communism and for democracy, set-ting us squarely on the trail of freedom wecontinue to blaze today; for leading Americatoward increasing prosperity and racial equal-ity here at home; and for laying the ground-work for pioneering achievements in meetingAmerica’s health care needs—even though hepaid a dear price for it.”

Following the President’s remarks,Secretary Albright, John Truman, Congress-man Skelton and James Earl Jones joined thePresident in unveiling the dark gray granitemarker inscribed with President Harry S.Truman’s name. A reception followed in theBenjamin Franklin reception rooms.

The Main State Department building is thefirst in the District of Columbia named for the33rd President.

The author is deputy assistant secretary forPublic Information.

President Clinton converses with, from left,John Truman, Congressman “Ike” Skelton,George Elsey, and Secretary Albright.

Secretary Albright welcomes President Truman’s grandnephew John Truman and his wife Linda.

16 State Magazine

tide remains a rising tideand to protect America’sinterests and valuesthroughout the world.”

A millennium gift tothe State Departmentfrom the New York-based Newington-Cropsey Foundation,the work was officiallyunveiled Oct. 20 to

more than 100 guests and officials.The foundation maintains a long tradition of public

support for the arts and appreciation of 19th-centuryAmerica. The sculpture isn’t the first gift from the foun-dation. In 1972, John Newington and his wife donated“Farm on the Hudson,” an 1879 oil painting by JasperCropsey, which hangs in the Benjamin Franklin diplo-matic reception room.

Wyatt, 51, grew up in the Hudson River Valley, justsouth of Nyack, home of artist Edward Hopper. Wyatt’sworks grace some of the finest private and corporate

By Paul Koscak

Renowned artistGreg Wyatt’s inspi-ration for “worldpeace, the securityof the United States

and global community”is captured in his massivebronze sculpture of amagnificent American eagle soaring skyward.

“Soaring Eagle,” the 11,600-pound artwork that nowrests in the north courtyard of the Harry S. TrumanBuilding, is intended to keep inspiring those who passthrough the sheltered space.

“Perched here in the north courtyard where hundreds ofdiplomats and staff enjoy quiet moments, Soaring Eaglemay remind us of our unique mission in the world,”remarked Bonnie Cohen, under secretary of State forManagement, about the 17-foot-tall sculpture. “America’sfinest public servants work to ensure that the democratic

‘The EagleHas Landed’

Almost six tons of cast bronze,“Soaring Eagle” completes its journeyfrom New York as it inches up to theHarry S. Truman Building.

Photo by Renee Williams, GSA/JFI

December 2000 17

collections throughout the country. They include bronzemonuments at Hofstra and Vanderbilt universities anda 12-foot-high “James Cash Penney Standing Portrait”at J.C. Penney Company’s headquarters in Plano, Texas.He also designed the 10-foot “Eagle” at the AmericanBureau of Shipping and a 40-foot-high “Peace

Fountain” at the Cathedral Church of St.John the Divine, both in Manhattan.

Soaring Eagle was cast by Tallix, a Fishkill,N.Y., foundry that specializes in fabricationsfor sculptors, architects and designers andworks in a variety of mediums, includingaluminum, brass, iron, pewter, stainless steeland resin.

The sculpture was trucked to Washington,D.C., then lifted by helicopter over the HarryS. Truman Building and gingerly loweredinto the building’s north courtyard as it dan-gled from a 150-foot cable.

The Eagle sculpture complements anothercolossal creation that’s dominated the southcourtyard since 1963. “Expanding UniverseFountain,” created by artist MarshallFredericks, features an Atlas-like mancrouching on a 10-foot sphere. His out-stretched hands hold two planets he’s hurl-ing into space. �

The author is a writer-editor for State Magazine.

The only way this eaglecould fly is with a littlehelp from a helicopter.

Gail F. Serfaty, director of the Diplomatic Reception Rooms, introduces guests at the Soaring Eagle unveiling. Front row, from left, Bonnie Cohen, undersecretary for Management; Barbara Newington, chairwoman of the board of trustees and director of the Newington-Cropsey Foundation. Second row,from left, Roger Pringle, director, Shakespeare Birthplace Trust; Lee Balter, chairman, Tallix Art Foundry; Greg Wyatt, sculptor of the Soaring Eagle.

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18 State Magazine

WBy Paul Koscak

hat began as an idea to help feed and clothesome of the capital region’s less fortunate has grown intoone of the area’s largest charity drives, thanks to a fewdozen volunteers in the Office of the Inspector General.

“Operation Undercover,” as the annual drive is known,musters more than 200 volunteers and truckloads ofdonated staples each year in its quest to assist needy res-idents. It started in 1996 when special agent ArthurWillhite saw a homeless man curled up on a Washington,D.C., sidewalk in freezing weather without a blanket.

Wanting to make a difference, Mr. Willhite decided toorganize a massive food and clothing drive to help home-less people in the Washington, D.C., area. He started with

a truckload of food obtainedthrough his father’s charity,Living Faith FellowshipMinistry, which specializesin distributing tons of food itgathers from grocery chainsand businesses. Then, work-ing through the FraternalOrder of Police and theFederal Law EnforcementOfficer’s Association, heobtained the help of numer-ous police volunteers in dis-tributing food and blankets.

Now, about 25 OIG volun-teers, including InspectorGeneral Jacquelyn Williams-Bridgers, are the catalyst ofOperation Undercover, alabor-intensive, logisticaleffort that channels dona-tions directly to communityorganizations in the greaterWashington, D.C., area andas far away as Frederick,

Md. The Anacostia Community Outreach Center,Emmanuel Baptist Church, Food For All, FrederickRescue Mission, Friendship House and the SalvationArmy are just a few of the 40 groups that depend on theholiday drive.

While the effort serves people in need, OperationUndercover is also an opportunity for government agen-cies, corporations, religious organizations and youthgroups to collaborate for the good of the community. Atthe same time, Mr. Willhite said, charities have an oppor-tunity to pool their resources.

“One charity may have access to canned goods, anoth-er to blankets and another to baked goods,” Mr. Willhitesaid. “This allows them to swap out.”

Much of the food and clothing is collected through theLiving Faith Fellowship Ministry and other sources. Mr.Willhite’s father, who operates the Ohio-based ministryand is affectionately known there as “the bread man,” hasdistributed more than eight million pounds of foodacross the nation and internationally to assist disaster vic-tims, orphanages and elderly and homeless people.

OIGGroup

Virginia BoyScouts pitch in.

Boxes without endseem to be the rule.

Has Lots to Cheer About

December 2000 19

Wal-Mart and GOAD Inter-national, a family-run charity,will provide tractor-trailers totransport the goods to a distribu-tion center, which is the heart ofOperation Undercover. Here, theparticipating organizations cometo fetch pallets of stacked dona-tions. Here, for one hectic day—this year, Dec. 16—scores of vol-unteers will lift, carry and loadand unload food, clothing, blan-kets and toys from the trailers.

Distribution centers have beenlocated at Bolling Air Force Base,Ft. Myer, the Washington NavyYard and District of ColumbiaPolice Academy.

“What they do is bring it alltogether,” Mr. Willhite said.

In appreciation, the volunteersare serenaded by the local chapter of the Sweet Adelinesand dine on a gourmet buffet cooked up by WashingtonRedskins chef Gennaro Ferrigno.

Other corporate providers have included Dunkin’Donuts, 7Up Corp., Domino’s Pizza, Global One and AuBon Pain restaurant.

“Global One provided us with volunteers, and theydonated calling cards,” Mr. Willhite said. “This would bethe only way many homeless could afford to call homeduring the holidays.”

Operation Undercover has come a long way since 1996when Mr. Willhite worked to distribute 3,500 blankets byenlisting the help of 17 area police departments.

Since it began, the drive has donated more than$500,000 worth of food. This year, it expects to distributeenough food to pack three tractor-trailers, he said.

And after four years, it’s an effort the dozens of volun-teers and coordinators have perfected.

“We just all come together every year and just do it,”Mr. Willhite said. �

The author is a writer-editor for State Magazine.

It’s not all work. Here, volunteerspause to indulge in complimentaryrefreshments and food.

Above, it takes a crowd to unload tractor-trailers. Below, this pile ofclothes is set for pickup by one of 40 regional charities.

20 State Magazine

HavaHegenbarthloves animalsand it shows.

Rover Finds Niche withAfrican Animals

By Diana Martinson

It shows in the detail of a zebra hoof. The way akudu’s hair stands along the ridge of its back or theexotic prance of a giraffe.

Immortalizing these graceful creatures and otherAfrican themes on murals or in pencil sketches is givingMs. Hegenbarth, a self-taught artist and rover with theBureau of African Affairs, quite a following.

“It’s a drive like anything else people love to do—a cre-ative urge, I guess,” mused the Iowa native who speaksFrench, Russian and Swahili. “I started as far back as I canremember—sitting in my high chair, dumping strained peas

A Mara leopard.

onto the tray and draw-ing cowboys in it. I did-n’t like strained peas.”

The artist began herForeign Service career10 years ago after serv-ing in the U.S. Navy asa crypto technician andRussian linguist. Nowassigned to AfricanAffairs, she’s donetemporary duty, TDYs,in 20 African countries.

Working in anembassy communica-tions center in Africaputs her in the perfectspot to pursue her pen-chant for drawing andstudying the big beasts.

“I can go out everyweekend and findsomething,” she saidof her frequent safaris.“I want to show peoplehow beautiful wildcreatures are.”

She’s doing just that.Ms. Hegenbarth was

commissioned to drawa silverback gorilla forthe departing U.S.ambassador to Burundi.She donated severalprints of a Masai war-

rior to the Bujumbura staff, koala bear prints to the U.S.Embassy in Canberra and zebra printsto the U.S. Embassy in Gaborone. Theembassies in Luanda, Asmara, PortLouis and Windhoek also have beenbeneficiaries of her gifts.

She recently reproduced a smallerdrawing of the giraffe mural that wasdestroyed in the 1998 bombing of theU.S. Embassy in Dar es Salaam for thenew embassy in that city.

“It was like a big get-well card froma friend,” she said.

The communications specialist saidit can take from 40 to 60 hours to com-plete a drawing, which she prefers todo with colored pencils, Holland-made Bryunzeel pencils, to be exact.

“I usually draw the subject two orthree times in rough draft before I getit the way I want it and then transferit to good paper for the finished prod-uct,” she explained.

December 2000 21

Ms. Hegenbarth’s colleagues are quick to praise notonly her talent but her commitment to the mission.

“Her art is legendary at posts in Africa,” formerAfrican rover Paul Rogers said.

Another fellow rover, Josh Hromatka, added “Hava isone smart lady and well liked by everyone at every postshe visits, especially by the foreign nationals.”

Joseph Huggins, the bureau’s executive director, said,“Through her art, one can see Africa’s true beauty.”

A Masai herdsman.

The artist’s giraffe drawing now on display in the reception areaof the new embassy in Dar es Salaam.

The artist-rover is now displaying heranimal art outside Africa at galleries inSeattle, the United Kingdom andCanberra, but she’s not planning a full-time art career anytime soon. In fact, sheplans on staying with the Departmentuntil retirement. Then she’ll pursue herlifelong love of art.

“I suppose I could be a full-time artist,but I like being in the Foreign Service,” shesaid. “It’s what I’ve always wanted to do.”

One plan, however, is certain: she wantsto remain a rover as long as possible beforegetting serious about staying put. Whenthat happens—hopefully with a job in infor-mation management—Ms. Hegenbarthwants to stay in Africa capturing its seem-ingly endless animal themes. �

The author, a program analyst, coordinates therover program for the Bureau of African Affairs.

22 State Magazine

Rovers Bolster African PostsRovers?Sounds like the latest Internet craze.They’re the Department’s personnel safety net in filling positions temporarily throughout the world. Rovers are employ-

ees who don’t mind living out of a suitcase for two-year tours. They’re people who can travel anywhere, anytime. They’revalued for their technical skills and willingness to work long hours, with higher pay, according to Diana Martinson, rovercoordinator for the Bureau of African Affairs.

Rovers are most likely to fill vacancies created by emergency absences, home leave or vacations, especially for functionshandled by only one person at a post. The Bureau of African Affairs is the only bureau with 12 full-time rovers dedicated toproviding temporary support.

Above, Burchell’s zebras at the water hole. Below, artist Hava Hegenbarth at work.

December 2000 23

By Dave Krecke

Ask Denise Vest what shethinks of the integration ofthe U.S. Information Agencywith the Department of

State. The smile that lights up herface answers the question with-out words.

A building services specialist who ran USIA’s parkingprogram from a windowless cubicle in the former agency’sheadquarters, Ms.Vest crosswalked to a similar job at Stateafter the October 1999 merger. In the last year, she has beenpromoted, moved to a more spacious office with walls anda window and assumed responsibility for distributing oneof the Department’s most precious commodities: parkingpasses. She says her new supervisor and office colleagueseased her adjustment by inviting her over to get acquaint-ed long before the scheduled move. Smiling, Ms. Vest saysone of the first new skills she acquired was finding her wayto the cafeteria.

USIA-StateIntegrationUSIA-StateIntegration

Like many administrativecrosswalkers at home and abroad,Ms. Vest discovered that thescope of her new job was narrow-er, even though the job itself waslarger. No longer required to han-dle personnel matters, audit liai-son and a host of other tasks, she

was free to specialize in parking procedures and facilitiesmanagement. She confesses that she still has a lot to learnand is a little anxious about conducting her first parkingopen season. But she has obviously enjoyed breaking awayfrom what she calls the “comfort zone” of her former job.

Most former USIA employees were not dislodged fromtheir comfort zones. Whether in Washington, D.C., or over-seas, they have continued to perform the same valuablework in the same surroundings. For many, only the nameon the building’s entrance has changed—from USIA head-quarters to State Annex-44 in Washington, D.C. Overseas,U.S. Information Service signs have disappeared altogeth-er, a source of irritation for some.

A Work in Progress

Integration in WashingtonThe consensus of former USIA

employees responding to a not-so-scientific survey is that integrationhas gone well, better than manyexpected. From top to bottom,employees credit that success toAssistant Secretary for Adminis-tration Pat Kennedy, his USIAreorganization co-chairman DickStephens and the scores of reor-ganization task force members.The teams, representing everyState and USIA element, met tire-lessly for more than two years tomerge the people and resources ofthe two agencies into a single,integrated Department of State.

Their mandate was, in SecretaryAlbright’s words, “To put publicdiplomacy at the heart of U.S. for-eign policy.” And that has been accomplished. EvelynLieberman, under secretary for Public Diplomacy andPublic Affairs, is a full participant in policy deliberations atthe highest level, ensuring that public diplomacy consider-ations are factored into all foreign policy decisions. FromCamp David to the Balkans to the World Trade

24 State Magazine

Town HallMeeting on USIA-State Integration

Organization meetings, publicdiplomacy has had a major impacton policy making and the explana-tion of those policies abroad.

Organizationally, both programbureaus of the former USIA—nowthe Bureau of Educational andCultural Affairs and the Office of International InformationPrograms—have bureau statusand are headed by assistant secre-tary-level officials who attend theDepartment’s assistant secretaries’meetings. In the view of JohnDwyer, International InformationPrograms coordinator, integrationhas made public diplomacy “farmore central to the foreign affairsagenda than at any other point in history.”

Recent events in the Balkansoffer convincing evidence of the

impact integration has already had in a high-profile polit-ical arena. Training and exchange programs reached deepinto the opposition parties and civil society groups andshowed them the potential for alliances and disciplinedpolitical action. A critical mass of followers in turnimposed discipline on their leaders. On the information

Evelyn Lieberman, under secre-tary for Public Diplomacy andPublic Affairs, spoke at a townmeeting Oct. 6 assessing thefirst year of USIA-State inte-

gration. Senior members of the pub-lic diplomacy team joined her on thestage of the Voice of America audito-rium and participated in the ques-tion and answer period that fol-lowed. An edited version of aportion of that exchange follows:

Q Ann Marie Shepherd, teamleader for International InformationPrograms-Educational and Cultural

Affairs/Information Technology,asked two related questions: Are wegoing to take another look at thecrosswalk of people and resources tothe IRM? The second question con-cerns personnel. Several of my teammembers have had accretion of theirduties since integration. In somecases, this accretion seems to justifyan upgrade of their positions. I

recently went through a nine-monthprocess trying to get two team mem-bers upgraded. In the end, they actu-ally had to apply for their own posi-tions. New Office of PersonnelManagement regulations were givenas the reason.

A Under Secretary Lieberman:We have found that some of the

Denise Vest distributesparking passes duringopen season.

Photo by Dave Krecke

Under Secretary EvelynLieberman and other seniorDepartment officials at thetown hall meeting.

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under secretary as the key adviser onDepartment-wide pub-lic diplomacy resour-ces, including over-sight of their use inregional and function-al bureaus. Congressearmarked publicdiplomacy funds forsalaries and programsfor fiscal year 2000 andis likely to do the samefor fiscal year 2001.

Dick Stephens, nowsenior consultant tothe under secretary,notes that integrationhas coincided with anend to a public diplo-macy resource declinedating from the early1990s. Although congres-sional action is pending,it appears that public diplomacy will receive the fullamount of the President’s request in the next fiscal year.

December 2000 25

side, opposition partyweb sites were pickingup information and re-circulating it to breakout of the isolationMilosevic was tryingto impose. It was aninteresting case studyin how the future of diplomacy hasarrived—the Internet,long-term training andexchange and fullyintegrated publicaffairs and publicinformation.

Before the merger,many USIA managerswere concerned thatintegration might leadto a raid on publicdiplomacy resources

by State bureaus, not out of malevolence but because theDepartment is a competitive environment with more pri-ority programs than funds to support them. The reorgan-ization task forces and Congress created safeguards topreserve those resources. Regulations established the

things we agreed to in the consoli-dation weren’t working exactly aswe had hoped. Crosswalking wasamong those things, not only IRMpeople, but also administrativeemployees, particularly those in the field.

Senior PAOs at some posts were“chained” to their desks 75 percentof the time dealing with administra-tive matters instead of going out anddoing what they were supposed todo. This was happening becausethey had lost their administrativesupport in the crosswalk. We pro-posed to the posts that if they werehaving a serious problem theyshould consider crosswalking someof the people back. I think about 25folks did that.

Assistant Secretary Pat Kennedy:This policy on accretion of duties isbeing applied across the board. It’sbeing applied to the Bureau ofAdministration. It’s not anythingdirected at IIP or ECA or publicdiplomacy. It is something that

OPM has laid on us and it’s beingapplied to everyone. I just had acouple of cases in my bureau where,because of the OPM rules, people Ithought had earned an accretion ofduties have had to apply for theirown jobs. Now, it happens they’vebeen selected.

Q Pamela Smith, public affairs offi-cer in London, asked a question by e-mail: Do we have a strategy to sellpublic affairs and public diplomacyand their critical importance in sup-port of U.S. diplomacy on Capitol Hill?

A Under Secretary Lieberman:Foreign students bring between $9and $13 billion a year into our econ-omy. Practically every single mem-ber of Congress has some family,some school, some student, someteacher, some somebody or someinstitution in his or her jurisdictionbenefiting from the work we do.

Assistant Secretary William Bader issending letters talking about Fulbrightprograms to members of Congress.We are encouraging every assistantsecretary and anybody else whospeaks for the Department to talkabout some of these issues. TheSecretary has spoken about our pro-grams with the love and enthusiasmshe feels for them, but we need a muchgreater constituency.

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Victor Riche overseespublic diplomacy netand IT services.

Elizabeth Lee, a senior budget analyst,monitors crosswalked resources.

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Mary H. Johnson asksa question at the townhall meeting.

Integration AbroadConventional wis-

dom suggests themerger was easieroverseas than inWashington, D.C.After all, publicaffairs officers werealready prominentmembers of embassycountry teams. So thetransition simplymeant the PAOwould become thehead of an embassysection instead of anindependent agencyelement. There was,admittedly, some lossof status and autono-

my in the move, but the most difficult aspect of the shiftwas the loss of a separate administrative staff. Publicaffairs officers accustomed to their own administrativeinfrastructure had to adjust to working cooperativelywith the embassy’s administrative section for support.

Pat Kennedy admits there were glitches in the earlydays at some posts over assigning vehicles and otherassets to PAOs and their sections. But he says embassieshave always “dedicated” vehicles to various functionsand the public diplomacy function should be extendedthe same benefit. “It’s not giving away a resource,” Mr.Kennedy says, “It’s managing one well.” One thing isclear: public diplomacy programs in the field will succeedor fail based on the qualityand agility of the servicesprovided by embassyadministrative sections.

Meanwhile, most ForeignService National employeesin USIS administrativepositions and USIA’salready small cadre ofadministrative ForeignService officers carriedtheir jobs with them toadministrative sections.Budget analysts, personnelassistants, drivers and oth-ers left their own “comfortzones” and planted them-selves on unfamiliarembassy turf. Wisely, thelegislation mandating themerger ensured that noemployee would lose pay,personal grade or seniorityas a result of the merger.

Public affairs officers have retained grant authority, aresponsibility central to conducting almost all exchangeprograms. They also have the authority to seek cospon-sors for programs and to engage in fund-raising activitiesthat expand a post’s resources by enlisting private sectorsponsorship of programs as varied as Fulbright scholar-ships and artistic performances. If anything, integrationhas broadened the opportunity for fund raising even as ithas more clearly defined the rules governing this sensi-tive activity.

Connecting to the Internet was a major pre-merger con-cern of many USIA employees. As suppliers of informa-tion in an open, global information environment, they hadembraced the Internet and modern information technolo-gy in a big way. Some worried that merging with an organ-ization dedicated to protecting sensitive information andnational secrets might jeopardize their use of 21st centurytechnology in communicating with a connected world.

In reality, the two goals are not mutually exclusive. Theintegrated Department recognizes the importance of theInternet and the critical contribution it makes to foreignpolicy. The challenge is to maintain secure operationswhile providing the right information at the right time tothe right audience, whether they are employees or cus-tomers anywhere in the world.

An Integration ModelThere may be no better integration success story than

the merger of the two agencies’ training units. Longbefore October 1999, Ruth Davis, Foreign ServiceInstitute director, and her deputy, Ruth Whiteside, organ-ized a series of programs welcoming USIA employees toState. In well-planned, day-long sessions, many employ-

26 State Magazine

Photo by Barry Fitzgerald

Helena Kane Finn,former public affairsofficer in Ankara, isprincipal deputyassistant secretaryfor Educational andCultural Affairs.

Photo by Dave Krecke

FSN participants and IIP representatives gatherin FSI foyer during webmasters’ workshop.

ees who would soon be joining the State family paid theirfirst visits to the Harry S. Truman Building (formerlyMain State) and interacted with panelists who explainedthe Department’s structure and procedures. Judgingfrom their evaluations, most found these “Welcome toState” sessions and the accompanying information pack-ets helpful.

Integration sent a group of seasoned USIA trainersand their public diplomacy programs to FSI’s sylvancampus in Virginia. They were welcomed as the publicdiplomacy staff in the School of Professional and AreaStudies, where they set up trade-craft courses for publicaffairs, cultural affairs and information officers. Thegroup, headed by Gary Pergl, also designed publicdiplomacy modules for the school’s orientation pro-gram and for its courses for administrative, economic,consular and political officers.

One of the hallmarks of USIA’s training program wasthe Foreign Service National Employee Program. Theprogram, consisting of four three-week courses in cul-ture, media, information resource centers and thematicissues, continues at FSI. Selected participants attendclasses at FSI and take field trips toWashington-area institutions duringthe first two weeks of each course.In the final week, the FSN profes-sionals travel beyond the Beltway toone or two regions of the UnitedStates to meet with their Americancounterparts.

FSI management clearly recog-nizes the importance of FSN trainingand has expanded its offerings forthose employees in all areas. Publicdiplomacy FSNs now enjoy trainingopportunities that didn’t exist beforeintegration.

As proof of her contention that integration has“strengthened FSI,” Ruth Whiteside says the merger hasbeen an important catalyst in bringing the Internet to thetraining center. FSI recently hosted a workshop spon-sored by the Office of International InformationPrograms for U.S. mission web site managers and nowhas 90 freestanding Internet stations on campus, devel-opments hastened by the presence of Internet-savvy for-mer USIA trainers.

What Remains to Be DoneNot surprisingly, the major tasks that remain before full

integration is achieved are the capital-intensive ones: relo-cation of employees and functions from SA-44 to FoggyBottom and integration of the two agencies’ informationtechnology networks in Washington, D.C., and abroad.

At an October town hall meeting, Pat Kennedyannounced promising negotiations with the owner of anew building to be constructed across from Main State.He said the proposed building would be spaciousenough to accommodate all of the ECA and IIP offices

now located in the former USIA headquarters in south-west Washington, D.C.

It will be some time, however, before complete IT inte-gration is achieved. The good news is that access to theInternet on the public diplomacy net is assured, both inWashington, D.C., and in the field. It is unlikely, howev-er, that State’s sensitive but unclassified network will beavailable soon on every employee’s desktop in SA-44 orin public affairs sections located outside theirembassies— goals envisioned before the merger. Nor willthose with a need to access all three networks be able totoggle from one to the other with a simple flip of a switchand the entry of a secure password. For the foreseeablefuture, separate computer units will be necessary for eachof these parallel systems.

Summing UpWhile not every crosswalker’s story may be as rosy as

Denise Vest’s, many agree that the human resourcesteams from both agencies made an extraordinary effort tomatch the skills of the nearly 4,000 employees who cross-walked with their positions into the Department. It was a

herculean task orchestrated by theformer director general, SkipGnehm, and carried out by teamsheaded on the USIA side by HumanResources Director Jan Brambillaand on the State side by DeputyAssistant Secretary for HumanResources Alex De La Garza.

Adjustments and corrections arestill taking place after this year-long,shakedown cruise. And that’s as itshould be. As John Dwyer says,“Above all, people, individuals withreal skills, are what consolidationwas about in the first place.”

What about savings from the merger? At the end of thefirst year, Pat Kennedy concludes that there have beenmore incremental costs associated with the consolidationthan savings. He cites office moves and computer inte-gration as two of the higher cost activities. In his view,savings from the merger are still downstream. The smallsavings achieved at some overseas posts by bringingoffices and operations to embassy compounds—when itmade sense—have been reinvested in programs. “We arenot getting the full savings yet,” the assistant secretarysays, “but we have a positive story to report.”

At the town hall meeting (see sidebar), Under SecretaryLieberman offered her assessment: “I have seen and I’veheard that we’re making progress. We’re showing our col-leagues in the Department what we can do. And I believethat we are earning a new appreciation for the vital andintegral work that public diplomacy must play in the con-duct of effective foreign policy. . . . I believe that the workwe do is the future of the Department.” �

The author is a writer-editor for State Magazine.

December 2000 27

“Above all, people,individuals withreal skills, arewhat consolidationwas about in thefirst place.”

28 State Magazine

By Paul Koscak

This Montgomery County,Md., native has alreadylogged thousands of miles asa budding diplomatic securi-ty agent, visiting Paris, Oslo,Florence, Moscow and

Buenos Aires on various securitydetails. He’s escorted U.S. diplomatsinto Serbian territory during a six-week tour in Kosovo and pulled asecurity detail at the United Nations.

Not bad for a 26-year-old with lessthan two years on the payroll.

Oddly, it’s not the kind of work Mr.Furstenberg had in mind after earn-ing his degree in international rela-tions at Georgetown University in1996. He first tried launching a careerwith a restaurant chain in NorthCarolina, but that didn’t last long. Mr.Furstenberg said he worked withpeople “who did not care about whatthey were doing.” Unlike his apathet-ic colleagues, the young start-upcraved new opportunities and anenvironment that inspires and

attracts motivated people.That’s when he looked

to the State Department.He saw the Diplomatic

Security Service as a wayto combine his desire tohelp others with his inter-est and university back-ground in foreign affairs.

Mr. Furstenberg seemsto have found his niche.

In 1999, he spent sixmonths learning the basicsof diplomatic security atthe Federal Law Enforce-ment Training Center inGlynco, Ga. The course isthe first of many trainingprograms diplomatic secu-rity agents take through-out their careers. It offersinstruction in basic andadvanced law enforcementas well as investigativeskills, from academics tophysical training tofirearms proficiency.

And Mr. Furstenbergmastered them all.

Former Restaurateur FindsSecurity Recipe for SuccessIf first impressionsare lasting, PhilippeG. Furstenberg is offto an Olympic start.

Special agent Philippe Furstenberg,right, with former Departmentspokesman James P. Rubin at CampMonteith in southeastern Kosovo.

December 2000 29

Not only did he graduate atthe top of his class, he was thecenter’s honor graduate ofthe year. His award: a prizedSmith & Wesson Model 908semiautomatic pistol present-ed in a hardwood case.

Mr. Furstenberg’s future isbright. “He will most certain-ly excel in his endeavors,”remarked David Haas, direc-tor of the Diplomatic SecurityTraining Center in DunnLoring, Va.

Traditionally, DiplomaticSecurity agents begin theircareers with stateside assign-ment to build up experiencebefore taking a position over-seas. Knowing that, Mr.Furstenberg set his sights onthe Diplomatic Security fieldoffice in Boston even beforegraduating. The hub of NewEngland’s international commerce and traffic, he reasoned, would give

him valuable experience he would-n’t find in other locations. “I wantedan office that did more than just pro-tection,” he said.

Mr. Furstenberg wasn’t disap-pointed.

When he’s not jetting around theworld, he’s investigating passportapplications, trying to uncover fraudand false identities. He works withother federal agencies to investigatealien smuggling, drug traffickingand identification forgeries. He alsocoordinates special functions withother foreign consulates.

For example, he recently coordi-nated with security and other emer-gency staff when the French govern-ment recognized America’s WorldWar II veterans during a Boston har-bor ceremony on the flight deck ofthe aircraft carrier John F. Kennedy.

“I worked with the local police,federal marshals and medical per-sonnel,” Mr. Furstenberg said.

He’s come a long way in a short time.And a world away from his restaurantgig where people “didn’t care.”

“I’m surrounded by people whothink,” Furstenberg said. �

The author is a writer-editor for StateMagazine.

Honor graduate Philippe Furstenberg receives hisSmith & Wesson semiautomatic pistol as the year’stop graduate at the Criminal Investigator TrainingProgram at the Federal Law Enforcement TrainingCenter in Glynco, Ga.

Special agent Philippe Furstenberg, fourthfrom left, gets into the picture with the U.S.Mission’s local guards in Kosovo.

30 State Magazine

By Sandra Bruckner

Bringing people together is central to communica-tion and to negotiating agreements. While it cannever replace face-to-face contact, videoconfer-encing is one of the best, most cost-

effective ways of encouraging dialogue and disseminat-ing information.

In recent years videoconferencing has become a main-stay for the Office of International Information Programs.Initially used to enhance the American ParticipantProgram (where American experts travel abroad to lectureand participate in seminars), the medium now enriches awide variety of programs. Videoconferencing enables par-ticipants, whether State employees or guest experts, toattend overseas conferences, join working groups andcontribute to seminars without leaving home and withoutcostly international travel. The medium has been the cen-terpiece of local seminars on AIDS, intellectual propertyrights, electronic commerce and biotechnology.

When the Department needs to explain Administrationpolicy, videoconferencing can bring immediacy into themix. Not long ago, Under Secretary for Political Affairs

Thomas R. Pickering talked from Washington, D.C., withjournalists who cover the Middle East from their base inLondon. He discussed a host of breaking issues, includ-ing Iraq sanctions. Under Secretary for Economic,Business and Agricultural Affairs Alan Larson spokeabout biotechnology with media representatives in KualaLumpur. Alan Taylor, coordinator of U.S. assistance to theNew Independent States, spoke with a group in Kievabout the importance of educational exchanges inUkraine and other Eastern European countries.

But the pool of experts available for these electronicdiscussions is not confined to the Washington, D.C., area.Specialists from almost anywhere in the United States,including the nation’s leading institutions of higher edu-cation, can be featured as easily as those in theDepartment. The medium is bringing knowledgeablespeakers to primary audiences in the smallest posts with-out breaking their budgets.

Two factors are responsible for the increase in videocon-ferencing: the worldwide installation of integrated digitalservices network circuits and the dramatic drop in the costof equipment. In 1989, there were 12 units in the network.Today, there are nearly 130 videoconferencing sites in U.S.Embassies and Consulates. And the number is growing.

The Next Best Thing to Being There

VideoconferencingVideoconferencing

James Billington, Librarian of theCongress, talks to archivists inMumbai, India, about creating adigital library.

Photo by Barry Fitzgerald

December 2000 31

Last year, circuits became more readily availablein the Near East, South Asia, Latin America andAfrica. Equipment costs have plummeted from$60,000 to between $10,000 and $15,000 per installa-tion. Competition for phone service has brought on-line charges down significantly, making it cheaperfor South Africa to call Washington, D.C. A one-hour videoconference with New Delhi costs about$300, the cost of a round trip journey fromWashington to New York. And with videoconfer-encing, others can join in at no additional charge.

Phnom Penh, Hanoi and Dakar are the mostrecent posts to install videoconferencing facilities,and Ho Chi Minh City will follow soon. Largerposts, like India and South Africa, have their ownnetworks and conduct country team meetings alongwith substantial calendars of programs in branchposts. The African Regional Services Center in Paris keepsin touch with its clients via videoconferencing to solvecommunication problems swiftly.

Increasingly, Department offices are using videocon-ferencing as a tool for reaching their clients at home andabroad. The Human Resources Bureau has conductedpost consultations through video links, and theInformation Resource Management Bureau has briefed acomputer science class at Syracuse University on howState uses technology to further its global goals.

The quality of videoconferencing has improved aswell. The era of “talking heads” has ended. PowerPointpresentations, charts, reports, web site information andeven videotape can be shared with audiences to enliventhe dialogue and make it more visually interesting.

What is on the horizon? Streaming video is a buzzwordin the industry. Soon streaming will be used in conjunc-tion with videoconferencing. Posts with videoconferenc-

ing capability will be able to view an ongoing videocon-ference via their Internet browsers. Posts with Internetconnectivity will be able to download a conferenceovernight and view it later in the day. The office is explor-ing ways to provide video clips to the Department’s website and to archive videoconferences as well.

The entire field of videoconferencing is changing and themedium’s applications will change along with it. When itbecomes practical, some applications will move from tele-vision monitors to the desktop. Videoconferencing hasbeen used for job interviews, selecting new Fulbright direc-tors and briefings on various educational programs like theCongressional Fellows Program. It is bringing peopletogether as never before. And it will only get better. �

The author is the videoconferencing coordinator in the Officeof International Information Programs.

Sandra Bruckner readies PowerPoint slides for Paul Vakyof the Department of Justice. Notes are transmitted to an audience in Lima using a document camera directlyconnected to the videoconferencing equipment.

Phot

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of th

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Richard Werksman, Department of State lawyer,discusses corruption in government with anaudience of lawmakers in Lima, Peru.

32 State Magazine

The Family Liaison OfficeExpands Mission, Space

By Sarah Genton

The word family has always had a unique meaningfor the Family Liaison Office. Today, when its stafftalks about family, they’re talking about the ForeignService community—that diverse group whose

nomadic lifestyle poses special challenges. The Foreign Service community of the 21st century has

changed during the past 10 years to include more dual-career couples, foreign-born spouses, male spouses andhousehold members who accompany Foreign Serviceemployees overseas.

As the definition of family has expanded, so has theoffice. After 22 years in the same location, it moved recent-ly and increased its space by one-third. The office nowoccupies Room 1239 in the high-traffic, first floor corridor2 of the Harry S. Truman Building. Neighbors include theOffice of Casualty Assistance, the Foreign Service Lounge,the Housing Office, Transportation, the American ForeignService Association, the American Federation ofGovernment Employees and American Express.

To inaugurate its new home, the office held an openhouse and ribbon-cutting ceremony in October and ded-icated a new conference room honoring the Associates of

the American Foreign Service Worldwide. The associatesare founders and current supporters of the office.

At the ceremony, Bonnie Cohen, under secretary forManagement, told guests that the Family Liaison Officecontinues to play an important role supporting quality-of-life issues for Foreign Service families. MarcGrossman, director general, congratulated the office forits years of success and noted that dual-career familiesnow are the American norm, which affects the retentionof Foreign Service employees, as more family memberslook for meaningful employment in the global economy.

Since 1978, the Family Liaison Office has grown fromthree employees to 13, advocating on family issues, iden-tifying solutions, providing client services and managingthe worldwide Community Liaison Office program. Theoffice’s major program areas now include family memberemployment, education and youth, and support servicesfor those experiencing a personal or post crisis. FLO’s website and publications program address issues typicallyencountered by family members assigned to a diplomaticmission. The office recently added expeditious naturaliza-tion of foreign-born spouses to its portfolio.

Thousands of Foreign Service employees and familymembers use the office each year, according to FayeBarnes, FLO director. As evidenced by recommendationsfrom the Overseas Presence Advisory Panel and theMcKinsey Report, there is increasingly more focus on family-friendly work environments and programs to meetthe needs of the Foreign Service family, she said. �

The author coordinates publications for the Family Liaison Office.

Growing with the FLO

When the Family Liaison Office first opened on March 1,1978, Secretary Cyrus Vance remarked, “…the ForeignService is not just a career or a job. It is a way of life thatdepends not only upon the work and dedication of itsemployees but also upon the goodwill and sense of com-munity of its family members.”

AAFSW (then known as the American Association ofForeign Service Wives) led the way in creating the FamilyLiaison Office. Armed with the results of a 1977 AAFSW sur-vey of Foreign Service members, Leslie Dorman, AAFSW presi-dent, and Jean Vance, chairwoman of the AAFSW Forum,convinced then Under Secretary for Management Ben Readand Secretary Vance of the importance of establishing anoffice devoted to supporting Foreign Service families.

Mette Beecroft, current AAFSW president, said of FLO’sbeginnings, “It’s one of the only times in the StateDepartment’s history that a volunteer organization hasmanaged to change the structure of the bureaucracyand insert an entirely new function.”

Family Liaison Office founders Mette Beecroft, left, Joan Scott and LeslieDorman celebrate FLO’s 22 years and the move.

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December 2000 33

By Steve Schoen

Amajority of Americans, morethan 60 percent, drink alco-hol. There is no reason tobelieve that the percentage isany different for the State

Department or any other federalagency. Most of those who drink canbe classified as social drinkers. Thisgroup includes those who do notexperience physical, psychological,emotional, spiritual, vocational,social or family problems related toalcohol. They tend to have no morethan one or two drinks in a day.

Many alcoholics started out as social drinkers. If youare a social drinker, you stand about a 1 in 10 chance ofdeveloping serious alcohol-related problems at sometime in your life. Maybe that problem will be the diseaseof alcoholism. Maybe it will be a DWI. Maybe it will berelated to a moment of unprotected passion followed bya lifelong health problem.

People sometimes forget that alcohol is an active drugthat affects the brain. Because it affects the brain, it affectsbehavior, coordination, inhibitions, thought processesand memory. Because people are different, the effects ofalcohol can be different. Not only do the effects varybetween people but sometimes in the same person fromone drinking episode to the next.

For reasons that we don’t fully understand, some peo-ple who drink will contract a progressive, fatal diseasecalled alcoholism. Nobody deliberately sets out to get thisillness. It strikes men and women, rich and poor, all races,all religions and all strata of an organization. It does notresult from weakness or character defect. No personalitytype is more susceptible than another. It’s truly an equalopportunity disease. And sadly, there is no cure.

Although we don’t know the causes, we know at leastone risk factor. Earlier, I said that 1 out of every 10 socialdrinkers will develop an alcohol problem. But if you haveone parent who is alcoholic, your chances of becomingalcoholic increase from 10 percent to 28 percent. And ifyou have two alcoholic parents, you have a 40 percentchance of becoming alcoholic. From studies of twins bornto alcoholic parents and then raised by nonalcoholics, we

know that there is a genetic factorrelated to this disease. Some peopleare at higher risk because of theirgenetic makeup.

So far, genetics hasn’t accounted forall known cases of alcoholism. Somechildren of alcoholic parents have notdeveloped the disease, while somechildren of social drinkers have. Untilwe have more knowledge, the safestapproach is for all drinkers to viewthemselves as being at risk. In anyrandom group of 100 adults, we canexpect 60 to be drinkers. Some willdrink rarely and some will drink fre-quently. We can expect six (or 10 per-

cent) of this group to be, or eventually become, alcoholic.The estimate is that every alcoholic directly affects fourimmediate family members and indirectly affects another10 beyond. These 14 people include family, friends, col-leagues and customers. So instead of six people out of 100affected, there are now 90—virtually the entire group.

A common misperception is that alcoholics drink allthe time. Some alcoholics do drink all the time. Somedrink infrequently but heavily. Some fluctuate betweendrinking in a social way and losing control. Some onlydrink once in awhile but when they do, they get intotrouble. Some only drink on weekends. It is not alwayseasy to distinguish between alcoholics, heavy drinkers,alcohol abusers and social drinkers.

The Department of State and other federal agencieshave policies in place to assist those who have problemsrelated to alcohol. At State it is the Alcohol and DrugAwareness Program in the Office of Medical Services.The program works under strict confidentiality require-ments. There are rare exceptions (such as a threat of sui-cide) when cases are reviewed with nonmedical officials.Supervisors, spouses, Human Resources or DiplomaticSecurity will not be contacted without your writtenauthorization.

If you are concerned about your drinking, call (202) 663-1904 and ask for the alcohol counselor. There are AA meet-ings in the Harry S. Truman Building Tuesday throughFriday. For details, ask the alcohol counselor. �

The author coordinates the alcohol and drug awareness programin the Office of Medical Services.

Alcoholism:The Equal Opportunity Disease

Medical Report

34 State Magazine

People Like YouPeople Like You

Veteran Marks Heroic SacrificesJohn Sinnicki, a Korean War veteran, retired in 1993 as chief area officer of

the Near East Bureau. A volunteer for the U.S. Korea 2000 Foundation, he’salso the national legislative director for the Polish Legion of AmericanServicemen. Mr. Sinnicki recently participated in a wreath-laying ceremonyon the mall commemorating the 50th anniversary of the Korean War. Mr.Sinnicki represented the Chosin Few Mid-Atlantic Chapter, for which theformer Marine sergeant is past president and treasurer.

The Chosin Reservoir marked one of several battlegrounds during the bitterwinter of 1950 when 120,000 Chinese forces attacked 20,000 allied troops. Thebattle, described by historians as the most savage in modern warfare, resultedin 15,000 allied casualties and 40,000 Chinese killed. “Gen. Douglas MacArthurwanted us to keep going all the way to the Yalu River, ” Mr. Sinnicki recalled.

As a U.S. Korea 2000 Foundation volunteer, Mr. Sinnicki works to keepveterans and their families informed about the upcoming three-year agen-da of events throughout the United States and in Korea that recognize themajor highlights of the conflict.

SOLDIER-WEAVERAs a member of the Maryland Militia (American) and the Maryland Loyalist Battalion (British), computer specialist WalterC. “Walt” Marshall has his foot in both camps. But he’s not a spy. Rather, he’s a re-enactor who participates annually insome 15 to 20 events—from Petersburg, Va., to Buffalo, N.Y., playing not only a soldier but a Colonial weaver as well. Henow owns several looms and weaves textiles from the 18th century—linen knee breeches and shirts, wool waistcoat andstockings. A nine-year veteran of the Colonial circuit, he said his hobby offers historic camp sites, savory fare cooked overan open fire and “toys” that make smoke and noise.

John Sinnicki and wife, Marian, also a State Department retiree,present a wreath commemorating Korean War veterans duringthe 50th anniversary of the Korean War.

Photo by Carl Goodman

December 2000 35

Stanley Nehmer, 79, a retired ForeignService Reserve officer, died Jan. 30in Silver Spring, Md., of pancreaticcancer. Mr. Nehmer joined the StateDepartment in 1945 and was activein international trade, finance, ener-gy and other resources. Mr.Nehmer left State in 1957 for theCommerce Department, where heretired in 1973 as deputy assistantsecretary of Commerce.

Bernard J. Rotklein, 70, a retiredForeign Service officer, died Aug.16 in Alexandria, Va., of pancreaticcancer. Mr. Rotklein joined theForeign Service in 1954 and servedin Winnipeg, Ankara and Tel Aviv.In Washington, D.C., he served asan adviser to the under secretary ofthe Air Force before retiring in1986. After retirement, he taughtadult education in the Alexandriapublic schools.

Sam Sparacio, 77, a retired Foreign Service Reserve offi-cer, died Aug. 13 of a heart attack in McLean, Va.Following service with the U.S. Army in Iran, Mr.Sparacio joined the State Department in 1945 and workedfor the Voice of America in Salonika, Greece, from 1952 to1958. He retired in 1976.

Windsor (Bill) Stroup, 78, a retiredForeign Service officer, died June14 in Bellaire, Fla. Mr. Stroupserved in Pakistan, Guatemala,New Zealand, Mexico andWashington, D.C., until he retiredin 1971. He served in the Army AirCorps in the European Theaterduring World War II.

Evelyn B. Weiner, 65, died Feb. 23 in Stamford, Conn., ofamyotrophic lateral sclerosis. She served with her hus-band, retired Foreign Service officer Benjamin Weiner, inMalaysia, Switzerland and Washington, D.C.

O B I T U A R I E S

David N. Copas Sr., 49, a regionalsecurity officer, died June 20 inReston, Va., of cancer. Mr. Copaswas commissioned a special agentin the Diplomatic Security Servicein 1980. He served in Washington,D.C., and in Bangkok, Rome, Cairoand Tegucigalpa. He also served asa Marine security guard at the U.S.Embassies in Saigon and Helsinki.

Paul F. Isola, 81, a retired ForeignService officer, died July 10 inHemet, Calif. He served in France,Iran, Belgium, the Philippines, NewZealand, Italy and Washington,D.C. A U.S. Army veteran, heretired in 1973.

Sheila L. Kachmar, 54, wife of retired Foreign Service offi-cer George Kachmar, died of breast cancer June 24 inCarlisle, Penn. Mrs. Kachmar accompanied her husbandon postings to Argentina, Sweden, Paraguay, South Korea,the United Kingdom, Norway, Pakistan and South Africa.

Lucie Kornei, 91, a retired, longtime Civil Service employ-ee, died Aug. 6 in Washington, D.C. Ms. Kornei joined theOffice of Strategic Services, now the Central IntelligenceAgency, in 1944. She joined State in 1957 when the Bureauof Intelligence and Research was established and workedthere until she retired as an economic analyst in 1984. Ms.Kornei, who fled Vienna with her sister in 1938 before theNazi takeover, was an active supporter of and donor to theDiplomatic Reception Rooms.

Claud F. Moberly, 80, a retiredForeign Service officer, died Aug.15 of a heart attack in Vista, Calif.Mr. Moberly served in Eritrea,Iran, Afghanistan, Vietnam,Bangladesh and Washington, D.C.During World War II, he served inthe Navy Construction Battalion(Seabees) in the Pacific.

36 State Magazine

Foreign Service Retirements

PERSONNEL ACTIONS

Burleigh, Albert Peter, The U.S. RepresentativeCarroll, Eric Walter, Compensation Mgt. Div.Clark, John Leland, International Joint Commission OsEdwards, Wandaleen, Af./Eur. BranchFennell, William S., Resource Mgt.Div.Fereno, Gary Michael, Multilateral AffairsFolan, Patrick M., Lawsuit Coordination UnitFullen, Kathryn R., Near East, South Asia Div.Harris, Eva M., Los Angeles Passport AgencyHedges III, John S., Beltsville Messaging Center Div.Hoinkes, Mary Elizabeth, Legal AdviserMattson, Sabine A., European BranchMcClelland Jr., John C., Audio-Visual FacilityMcMahon, Robert W., Deputy CIO for OperationsOliphant, Beverly A., Phys. Exam./Card./Imm. BranchPoore, Helen E., Copyright and Print Publication Div.Pridgen, Stephen, Multi-Media Production Div.Scully, Richard T., Oceans AffairsSlany, William Z., HistorianSpencer, Robert T., Executive DirectorTierney, Richard J., Compliance Follow-Up Team

Acosta, Luis E., Mumbai, IndiaAhern, Donald E., KuwaitBecskehazy, Peter T., Eur. Public DiplomacyChristenson, Carl E., Moscow Emb. Bldg. Ctrl. OfficeCotter, Deanna B., Florida Regional CenterDizikes, Dean, Secretariat, Board of ExaminersEgan Jr., Wesley W., Immediate Office of Inspector GeneralEllsbury, Allan Vincent, Intl. Conf. Admin. Div.Haines, Mary A., Executive DirectorHomme, Robert Onan, Analysis for Inter-Amer. AffairsKapusciarz, Shirley E., Vienna

Civil Service Retirements

The Bureau of Human Resources’ Office of EmployeeRelations develops and administers suitability and discipli-nary policies for employees overseas and in the United

States. The office evaluates misconduct and performance casesfor possible disciplinary action and also provides guidance andcounseling to employees and supervisors concerning employeerelation issues.

The director general wants all employees to be informedabout the Department’s discipline program (check HumanResources’ web site at http://hrweb.hr.state.gov/er/Conduct/conduct.html for details). An effective discipline program cor-rects deficiencies in conduct and/or performance. When cor-rective actions are ineffective because the employee cannot orwill not improve, the Department pursues progressive disci-pline up to and including separation. There is a strong connec-tion between retaining and motivating quality employees andthe appropriate handling of problem employees in a fair andtimely manner.

The Office of Employee Relations handles a myriad of cases.Examples include insubordination (refusal to perform assignedduties or report for assignment); leave abuse; threatening orharassing behavior; failure to perform job duties; security inci-dents; misuse of government position, property, and resources;falsification of documents; using official position for personalgain; visa malfeasance; and drug and alcohol abuse. This pastyear saw a broader range of cases, such as misuse of government-issued credit cards, Internet abuse, increasedsecurity incidents and computer security issues.

Discipline imposed both domestically and overseas, fromJune 1999 through June 2000, follows: � 1-day suspension and letter of reprimand for poor judgment

� Indefinite suspension for visa malfeasance (indefinite suspen-sions are usually associated with pending criminal cases orsuspension of a required security clearance)

� 14-day suspension for failure to follow regulations� 10-day suspension for removal of government property

and false statements� Three letters of admonishment for failure to follow instruc-

tions/regulations� Eleven letters of reprimand for security infractions� Three 2-day suspensions and one letter of admonishment

for security infractions� 10-day suspension for misuse of government property—

Internet� 5-day suspension for falsification of claims� Three letters of reprimand and one letter of admonishment

for visa lookout accountability violations� 10-day and 1-day suspensions for security violations� 5-day and 3 day suspensions for misuse of government

property—credit card� 10-day suspension for inappropriate comments� Letter of admonishment for off-duty misconduct� 3-day suspension for misuse of government-issued

credit card� 1-day suspension for debts� Removal for failure to follow instruction, AWOL and

improper personal conduct� Two letters of admonishment for failure to report intent to

marry a foreign national� 1-day suspension for falsification of employment documents� 7-day suspension for poor judgment and destruction of

government property

Discipline Cases Cover Broad Range of Issues

Kelly, Michael A., African RegionLagana, Gregory, RomeLang, Kathleen Carr, Caribbean AffairsLarsen, Paul B., Santo DomingoLauderdale Jr., Eli N., Post Liaison Div.Lebourgeois, Julien, For. Pub. Dipl. and Pub. AffrsLecocq, Randall R., MinskLiddick, Morgan, PanamaMartinez, Valentino E., SarajevoMaurer Jr., William H., Public DiplomacyMcCoo, Mildred C., Public Diplomacy

A Gift to the Nation

As part of the Friends of Art and Preservation in Embassies millenniumGift to the Nation, funds were raised to create the Janice H. LevinSculpture Garden for the U.S. ambassador’s residence, Winfield House,in London. Architect Morgan Wheelock designed the garden whosefocal point is Elie Nadelman’s Seated Woman with Raised Arm, createdin 1924 and donated by Janice H. Levin.

Department of State, USABureau of Human ResourcesWashington, DC 20520

Official BusinessPenalty for Private Use

PeriodicalsPostage and Fees Paid

Department of StateISSN 1099–4165

If address is incorrect, pleaseindicate change. Do not coveror destroy this address label.POSTMASTER: Send changesof address to:

State MagazineHR/ER/SMGSA–1, Room H-236 Washington, DC 20522–0602

Seasons Greetings