Newsletter 6 - Robertson Foundation for Government

Newsletter | ISSUE 2 | VOLUME 2 | June, 2014
Robertson
Foundation
The Robertson Foundation for Government is a
non-profit family foundation founded in the memory
of philanthropists Charles & Marie Robertson.
The Foundation identifies, educates, and motivates
top U.S. graduate students to pursue federal
government careers in foreign policy, national
security, and international affairs.
for Government
From the President
work and dedication has paid off, and we are
confident that you are now better-equipped to
pursue government service as you start off your
career.
Katherine Ernst
Dear Fellows & Friends,
I first want to congratulate the recently announced
new Robertson Fellows from The Fletcher
School of Law and Diplomacy at Tufts University,
and the University of California at San Diego
Graduate School of International Relations and
Pacific Studies. They are:
Fletcher:Jonathan Brands, Mark Hoover, Caroline
Ott, Jackie Page
IRPS: Andy Furillo, Patricia Wang, Edith Yuh
They are all extremely impressive individuals, and
the Robertson Foundation for Government is
excited to help them achieve their goals. We will
announce more new Fellows soon, and look
forward to getting to know them all.
While we have a new group of Fellows, we also
want to congratulate the graduates.Your hard
The Foundation recently updated our
website, so please take a moment to look over
it and email any requested changes to its
designer, RFFG Program Manager Robert
Liford, at rob@rffg.org.
Finally, to the past and present fellows at jobs
and internships across the world, we know
these experiences will strengthen your nascent
careers. Specifically to Fellows in Washington,
be sure to stay in contact with Bo Kemper
and attend the fantastic events the Foundation
will organize this summer. From cookouts to
roundtables, we hope they help maximize your
time in D.C.
Wishing you all the best,
Katherine
In This Issue:
2-9 Fellows’ News
2: Rosenthal Fellowships
2: New Fellows: Fletcher,
Maryland, & UCSD IR/PS
2: ISKRAN Participation
3: Marriage: James Trent
3: Marriage: Katy Lafen
6: Maryland Graduation
8: Cookout Photos
9: Class of 2014
3 5 Tips to Making the
Most of D.C. This Summer
from Steve Ressler,
founder of GovLoop.com
4-5 Two (Related)
Approaches to Federal
Careers: The Forest and the
Trees
from Michael Schneider
6
Updates & Photos
Lunch: Dean Crocker
Boren Fellows
7
April Cocktail Reception
8
Upcoming Events
Board of Directors
Chairman: Robert Halligan
Treasurer: John H. Linnartz
Founding Chair: William Robertson
Member At Large: Dr. Walter Meier
President: Katherine Ernst
Secretary: Geoffrey Robertson
Member At Large: Robert J. Ernst III
Robertson Foundation for Government | 1801 F Street N.W. | Washington, D.C.
Rosenthal Fellows
We noted six fellows who received
Rosenthal Fellowships in the previous
newsletter: Sean Comber, Alexandra
Hackbarth, Joyce Kang, Rebeca Orrie,
Daniel Rothstein, and Jenny Russell.
Established in 1977 in the memory of Harold
W. Rosenthal, the Rosenthal Fellowship was
created to expose young scholars of foreign
affairs to the inner workings of Congress, the
U.S. Department of State and other agencies of
the federal government.
We now have two more to add:
Maryland Fellows Andrew
ISKRAN Reighart and Andrew Flavin
participated in a bilateral negotiation exercise with
Russian students from The Institute for the USA and
Canadian Studies (ISKRAN). Andrew Flavin was
quoted in the summary, which you can read here:
http://bit.ly/1kEWers
New Fellows:
Maryland
Class of 2015
Mark Hoover
Fletcher ‘15
Andrew Reighart
Maryland ‘15
New Fellows:
UCSD IR/PS
Class of 2016
New Fellows:
Fletcher
Class of 2015
Andy Furillo
Davis, CA
Tom Babington
Abasha, Georgia
Jessica Gottesman
Northbrook, IL
Jonathan Brands
Somerville, MA
Mark Hoover
Cambridge, MA
Patricia Wang
Houston, TX
Paul Massaro
Annapolis, MD
Engda Wubneh
Silver Spring, MD
Caroline Ott
Boxford, MA
Jackie Page
Peabody, MA
Edith Yuh
Tochigi Prefecture, Japan
Contact Information
Phone: (202) 289.7700
Fax: (202) 289.6333
Robertson Foundation for Government
1801 F Street NW, #3A
Washington, DC 20006
Email: info@rffg.org
Website: http://rffg.org
Robertson Foundation for Government | 1801 F Street N.W. | Washington, D.C.
5 Tips to Making the Most
of D.C. This Summer
By GovLoop Founder Steve Ressler
It’s summertime in D.C. and the energy is great. Current
Robertson fellows are working at new, exciting internships,
while those who recently graduated are embarking on their
first jobs.
Here at GovLoop, we’ve been fortunate enough to have hired
three Robertson fellows (Sharon McCoy, Adrian Pavia, and
Tom Buchanan) so we know first-hand the great talent and
training provided by the Robertson Foundation and its partner
schools. But while you’re here starting your new gigs, how do
you optimize your D.C. experience?
Here are my five tips for making the most of D.C. this
summer.
#1 - Come to Next Generation of Government Training Summit: NextGen is the #1 training conference for
650+ Gen X/Y government employees, held July 24-25th in
D.C. Yes, I’m biased as I run it -- but if you do one thing this
summer, go to this. Robertson Foundation has graciously
offered to pay for tickets for fellows (an $800 retail value, and
normally other people beg to go) and past Robertson fellows
have gotten job offers from attending, as well as made great
connections. As one past recipient said, “NextGen made me
fall back in love with public service.” If you’re interested in
attending, just email me Steve Ressler (steve@govloop.com)
and cc Rob Liford (RLiford@rffg.org).
bosses this summer -- so wow them, and they’ll go out of
the way to help you.
#3 - Make a Networking Commitment: It’s easy to
get overwhelmed with the variety of networking options
each week. From Young Professionals in Foreign Policy
events to GovLoop to invites from Bo’s network, you could
probably go to four events a week. Instead of just taking an
ad hoc approach to networking, make a commitment. I will
go to two events per week and go to them each week. I will
reach out and have two coffee information interviews per
week. Make lifestyle changes like going to the gym before
work so you’re freed up to networking after work.
#4 - Brush Up on New Skills: As a Robertson fellow,
we know you’re a strategic thinker who knows about
foreign policy, strategic planning, and writing case notes.
These are great skills -- but employers are also want some
of the key day-to-day practical skills like public speaking,
big data analysis, design thinking, acquisition knowledge
and more. Use your time in D.C. to firm up on these skills
at free and cheap trainings from General Assembly, USA
Graduate School, GovLoop, Defense Acquisition University, OPM Innovation Lab, and more.
#5 - Start Your Job
Search: The government
job search takes a long
time, so use your time
here to begin your search.
If you haven’t already,
re-read the Robertson/GovLoop guides to
getting a government job
at pathtopmf.com. Make
sure you’re applying to
jobs at USAJOBS and also
for fellowship programs
like Presidential Innovation Fellows and the
Presidential Management
Fellows Program.
#2 - Be Amazing at Your Job: Too often we forget about
the basics. Make sure you are amazing at your job. Be the first
one in the office and last one there. Every project you do,
make sure it’s A+ quality. Ask for more work if it’s slow.You’re
most likely to get your next job from your co-workers and
Congratulations to Katy Lafen (Maryland ‘15) and
Julien Xavier on their recent marriage.
Congratulations to James
Trent (Maryland ‘12) and
Larel Gutenberg on their
recent marriage.
If you follow these five
tips, you’ll really be
making the most of your
time in this dynamic city.
Have a blast in your
summer in D.C. -- and
hope to see you at
NextGen in July.
Robertson Foundation for Government | 1801 F Street N.W. | Washington, D.C.
Two (Related) Approaches
to Federal Careers: The
Forest and the Trees
By RFFG Advisor Michael Schneider
The Forest
President Obama’s May 28 speech at West Point, and the
forthcoming update of the National Security Strategy
Review will likely highlight several major national security
priorities for the United States in coming years.You won’t
be surprised; the priorities will include,
• Counter-Terrorism - Renewed efforts to weed out
terrorists and terrorism, in conjunction with friends and
allies, not as unilateral U.S. action. On occasion C-T will
link to myriad counter narcotics and human trafficking initiatives because criminal elements will launder
funds for terrorists.
• Re-Building and Re-Directing U.S. Military - A
balancing of needs to rebuild and re-arm our military with
specialized focus on cyber defense, the role of military
force in a range of SOLIC, special operations and low-intensity, small scale conflicts and humanitarian relief.
• Peace-building through Multi-National Cooperation
– residual efforts to help Afghanistan and Iraq emerge as
stable nation-states, efforts to forge an agreement with
Iran to curb its nuclear weapons development, and
even renewed efforts to help Israel and the Palestinians
achieve a peace treaty and two-state solution.
• Trans-National Public Health Initiatives - And
continuing initiatives to foster improved public health,
indigenous development capacity.
• Expanded Energy Activities – A so-called “win-win”
emphasis, on reducing coal reliance, earning export
revenues while reducing US dependence on international
supplies of fossil fuels.
These broad priorities are likely to shape USG spending in
national security and foreign affairs, and are keys to
deduce the long-term job market. Understanding these
broad trends might frame your thoughts about a career.
However in the current extraordinarily tight federal job
market, that’s hardly enough to find a job in national
security and international affairs.
Most analysts see a double whammy – far fewer retirements among eligible senior officials, with a much smaller
trickle-down post-sequestration effect on hiring, and
agencies reluctant to hire more than one person for every
two vacancies. My own guess – another two-three years
will be required before large scale new hiring resumes.
Even then, the trend to bring in contractors, side-by-side,
will continue.
Therefore, it’s all the more important to assess your
aspirations and approaches and start early to prepare for
the slimmed down federal job market.
The Trees
Each broad region of global engagement includes multiple, somewhat overlapping sub-fields. Just to see for
myself how available information might lead to a few
possibilities, I registered with USAJobs; reviewed the
excellent advice provided by the GovLoop/Robertson
publication, “Getting Into Government,” and went about
scrolling through page after online page of position
announcements and descriptions, with very mixed results.
Your experience would be welcomed in navigating the
system, including USAJobs Application Manager,
http://help.applicationmanager.gov/ApplicantHelp/index.php/Application_Manager_Features
It’s not easy; for one, common terms we would use to
describe a field are either too colloquial or straightforward for the system, which seems to prefer broader
terms, e.g. “national security.”
Finding the signs to open the pathways and reading the
fine print with regard to experience, KSAs (Knowledge,
Skills and Abilities) can leave one bleary. No, I didn’t set
up the system to group other positions in my interest area
for me, but I did multiple searches and investigated the
announcements further. The devil is in the details, especially whether education and internships can equate to
experience levels that meet the criteria of the posting. And
specifically whether one has enough of both to equal prior
service that qualifies to compete for the announced
position.
My search of USA Jobs turned up several possibilities. In
the national security field, the FBI seemed most active in
recruiting junior intelligence analysts. See https://fbijobs.gov/121.asp for info and links. Among the hundreds I
looked through, three seemed to hold special interest:
One, a Foreign Affairs Officer in State for a GS-13
would focus on “...energy markets and energy security in
Iran reporting on...energy markets, energy security and
energy infrastructure...oil exports under the National
Defense Authorization...Departmental efforts to advance
national security goals, particularly... “ The Bureau is
apparently staffing up in a critical area and might have
additional openings. A GS-13 is not easy to come straight
out of grad school, but some Robertson Fellows would
probably qualify for the job in terms of education and
internship experience. The challenge is demonstrated
knowledge of Farsi, and to prove that one has worked for
a year at, or equivalent to, a GS-12.
A second opportunity would be more approachable. In the
Treasury Department, an Intelligence Research
Specialist (Watch Officer) needed to help identify
continues on page 5
Robertson Foundation for Government | 1801 F Street N.W. | Washington, D.C.
continued from page 4
“...proliferators, and other key national security threats and
to provide timely...warning functions along with national
security communications and administrative...monitoring
incoming intelligence and national security information….”
The GS-9 is surely appropriate for a Robertson grad,
excepted service with no prior government experience
required.
A third is equally approachable, Researcher/Policy
Analyst, Middle East and Africa in the U.S. Commission on International Religious Freedom, a Congressional
body, with a pay level equivalent to a GS 9 or low GS 11,
“…. gathering...maintaining relations with U.S. and foreign
government...international media and State Department
reports/statements...improvement in the exercise of
freedom of religion...recommendations for U.S. government policy...incorporation into State Department and
Administration [reports and policy consideration]”
Another Forest/trees approach is to go first to the departments or agencies of interest and meticulously review the
lists of openings. For example I selected counter-terrorism, counter-crime and trafficking, and looked over a
number of sites, with very mixed results. Some sent me
back to USAJobs; almost all linked to it. Above and beyond
my online job search I would use the terms above to seek
people in the organizations below who could walk me
through the maze:
• The Intelligence community – CIA, DIA, Military
Service, NSA, and State/INR
• DoD/SOLIC
• State CT, INL for drugs and crime links
• DHS for homeland security, immigration and human
trafficking
• Treasury for money laundering
• State’s Center for Strategic Counter-Terrorism Communication (CSCC)
• Justice/FBI/Interpol
• DEA
• White House ONDCP
• NGA for mapping trafficking; arms flows, military
movements, para-military and terrorist movements
• NSA for mapping communication flows
• DoD – building military capacity
Lessons Learned
Start your job search from the very first day you enter grad
school – if not before. If you can discern a forest – a field of
endeavor – then move onto the trees – the subfield, the
actual programs/projects/activities in actual agencies that
will lead in the direction you might want to head.You can
change your mind, but it’s worthwhile building toward a
job goal at the outset, not the end of your MA program.
Learn early on what mundane skills organizations seek for
those specific fields: SPSS, SAS, STATA, GIS, social media
design or management, advanced critical languages...
Find the internships that will give you the practical
experience and the contacts and the authenticity that
will engage your potential employer
Network relentlessly throughout the two years toward
the people in the federal agency/ies you would like to
work for. It will really help your cause if the team
leaders engage the HR folks on your behalf.
For all employment possibilities, master the ability to
write concisely. Start with a succinct cover letter that
focuses on the essential you for the particular job, not
all the details already covered in the resume.
Look at whom the office of interest works with within
the Department or Agency and in other agencies,
because if there isn’t an opening in office A they might
know someone in Agency B who needs help and has a
vacancy.
True, many federal agencies are only slowly returning
to new hires, and in some cases still filling only one slot
for every two vacancies. But why not you.
Advice from one contact with regard to the CBO:
“ ….It seems to me that at a minimum, a junior staff
person needs to have strong analytical and writing/communication skills. It really is a position that
requires a unique set of skills: being able to read and
interpret legislative language, assign a quantitative cost
to that language (and know how to ask the kinds of
questions that will get you to that cost), be able to do
some level of quantitative analysis with good attention
to detail, and be able to communicate your results in a
written product, via email, and over the phone. And all
of this in a time sensitive environment with congressional staffers who may strongly disagree with your
results. … Interested applicants should probably focus
their attention on openings in the Budget Analyst
Division, which tends to hire more of the masters
candidates. Other divisions focus more heavily on PhD
candidates.”
“ …. On a positive note, I believe they are even
offering *paid* internships again this summer after 2-3
years period of unpaid internships, so I believe their
situation may be improving. And well, it's a very good
time to be a less expensive junior staffer seeking
employment. BTW, have you seen some of the
positions that CRS has been advertising? They've had a
relative abundance of junior staff positions available,
including a new line of "research assistant" positions.
…”
Bottom Line: personal contacts and networking remain
the best way to find the best pathways through the
forest and the start of a fruitful public service career.
Robertson Foundation for Government | 1801 F Street N.W. | Washington, D.C.
Boren Fellows
Congratulations to the three Robertson Fellows who
were selected to recieve the Boren Fellowship:
Kent Boydston
IRPS ‘14
Language: Korean
Location: South Korea
Project: NGOs in North Korea: Opportunities and Challenges for U.S. Policy
Maryland Graduation photos.Top, L-R: Rep. Steny Hoyer, Aurite
Werman ‘14, Dean Kettl, Bo Kemper, Andrew Reighart ‘15.
Quinton Jones
Bush ‘14
Language: Swahili
Location: Tanzania
Project: Swahili Language Study and
Academic Research on Gender Security
in Swahili Countries
Eli Yani
IR/PS Fellows give a jersey to outgoing career services director Tamara
Golden. L-R EliYani ‘14, Kent Boydston ‘14, Joyce Kang ‘14,Tamara,
JordanWilson ‘13, Shannon Morrison ‘14, Dan Rothstein ‘15
IRPS ‘14
Language: Mandarin
Location: China
Project: Regional Variation in Chinese
Media Institutions and Implications for
U.S. National Security
Bush School Dean Ryan Crocker recently held a luncheon at the Metropolitan Club with some Fellows and Foundation friends.
L-R: Jessica McCann, Craig Cohen, JudgeWilliamWebster, Josh Bolten, Ambassador Nancy McEldowney, Dean Ryan Crocker, Kerri
Eisenbach (Bush ‘13), James Trent (Maryland ‘12), Chris Caine, David Ernst, Marci Robinson,Tom Buchanan (Bush ‘13)
Robertson Foundation for Government | 1801 F Street N.W. | Washington, D.C.
April Cocktail
Reception
A number of Fellows and RFFG Board members were in Washington during
the first week of April, so the Foundation hosted a cocktail reception at the
DACOR Bacon House. Here are some photos from the event. All names L-R.
John H. Linnartz, Diana McKibben, Andrew McKibben
Dr. Walter Meier & Katherine Ernst
Bo Kemper, Michael Schnieder, John H. Linnartz
Quinton Jones (Bush ‘14), EliYani (IRPS ’14), Rebeca Orrie (Bush ‘15), Jenny
Russell (Bush ’15), Mark Niegelsky (Bush ‘14), Joyce Kang (IRPS ‘15), Rob Liford,
Andrew Ericson (Bush ’15),Taylor Moore (Maryland ‘13)
Andrew Reighart (Maryland ‘14), Christopher Lee
(Maryland ’15), Maryland Dean Kettl,William Robertson
A number of Fellows take a photo with Fox News SeniorWhite House Correspondent Ed Henry
Robertson Foundation for Government | 1801 F Street N.W. | Washington, D.C.
Upcoming Events
Cookouts at DACOR Bacon
Details TBA
DACOR Bacon House
1801 F Street NW, Washington, DC 20006
We had a fantastic cookout in May, and look forward to
having more throughout the summer. Thanks to all those
who attended the first one, and we look forward to seeing
more of you in the future!
Roundtable with Dan Yergin
Tuesday, July 8th, 6:30-8:00pm
Brookings Institution
1775 Massachusetts Ave, NW, Washington, DC 20036
Free and Open Admission
GovLoop NextGenGov Conference
July 24th-25th
Crystal Gateway Marriott
1700 Jefferson Davis Hwy, Arlington, VA 22202
Info at: www.nextgengovt.com | RFFG will pay Fellows’ registration.
Register via email: founder@govloop.com & rob@rffg.org.
The Next Generation of Government Training Summit
educates, inspires and promotes innovation for new and
rising leaders in government. Since 2010, the two day
summit has enhanced the working and personal lives of
2,000+ Generation X and Y government employees excited
to learn new skills needed to innovate.
Thanks to Marjorie Rapp, who notes another good reason to
attend: those who stayed for the entire event and filled out
the evaluation forms were eligible for CPE credits.
Daniel Yergin, IHS Vice Chairman, is a Pulitzer-Prize
winning author of “The Prize” and leading authority on
energy, international politics and economics.
Roundtable with R. David Edelman
Roundtable with Mike O’Hanlon
R. David Edelman is Senior Advisor for Internet, Innovation,
& Privacy Policy at the Office of Science and Technology
Policy and the National Economic Council.
Tuesday, July 22nd, 6:00-7:30pm
Brookings Institution
1775 Massachusetts Ave, NW, Washington, DC 20036
Free and Open Admission
Michael O'Hanlon is a senior fellow with the Center for
21st Century Security and Intelligence and director of
research for the Foreign Policy program at the Brookings
Institution.
The Southerlands and Elliotts enjoy the May Cookout
Thanks to Taylor Moore for the photo!
August 12, 6:00-7:30pm
The White House
Roundtable with General Brent Scowcroft
Details TBA
Brent Scowcroft served as the National Security Advisor to
both Presidents Gerald Ford and George H.W. Bush, the
only individual in U.S. history appointed to the position
under two different Presidents.
Fellows in deep discussion at the May Cookout
Thanks to Andrew Reighart for the photo!
Robertson Foundation for Government | 1801 F Street N.W. | Washington, D.C.
Congratulations,
Class of 2014!
Congratulations to the Robertson Fellows who graduated in 2014.
Your hard work has finally paid off, and
we look forward to seeing the great
work you do over your careers!
Oliver Elliott
Kate Simma
Maxwell
Maxwell
Allison Hutchings
Stephane Laroche
Dan Mingrone
Justinas Sileikis
Fletcher
Fletcher
Fletcher
Fletcher
Kent Boydston
Shannon Morrison
Eli Yani
Drew Flavin
K. Nadine Rada
Marjorie Rapp
Aurite Werman
Quinton Jones
Ken Krupa
Emily Mullins
Mark Niegelsky
Rebekah Redden
IR/PS
IR/PS
IR/PS
Bush School Graduation
L-R Mark Niegelsky, Emily Mullins, Quinton Jones, Bo
Kemper, Dean Ryan Crocker, Rebekah Redden, Ken Krupa
Thanks to Mark for the photo!
Fletcher School Graduation
L-R Justinas Sileikis, Stéphane Laroche, Dan Mingrone,
Allison Hutchings
Thanks to Dan for the photo!
Maryland
Maryland
Maryland
Maryland
Bush
Bush
Bush
Bush
Bush
UCSD IR/PS Graduation
L-R EliYani, Shannon Morrison, Kent Boydston
Thanks to ArpitaVerghese for the photo!
Have news or photos to share?
Email rob@rffg.org to be in the next newsletter.
Robertson Foundation for Government | 1801 F Street N.W. | Washington, D.C.