AFRICAN AMERICAN FIND WORLD
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African Americans Find World Of Opportunity
(NAPSM)-A number of African Americans have found ways to get more out of their jobs than a paycheck-they've gained invaluable and exciting experience as well.
For instance, Raymond Maxwell is an African American who grew up in Greensboro, North Carolina. Since leaving home, he has lived in Guinea-Bissau, London, Angola, Ghana and Washington, D.C. Maxwell traveled as part of his job as a specialist with the United States Foreign Service.
"My mother wanted me to be a lawyer and my father wanted me to be a Methodist minister," says Maxwell-but after serving as a naval officer on a guided missile destroyer for four years, he says the Foreign Service became an obvious choice.
Maxwell first encountered the Foreign Service working with the American Consulate in Marseilles, France to bail some of his shipmates out of jail for disorderly conduct. He remembers asking how he could get into this kind of work and they told him to take the Foreign Service exam.
He says he is most proud of his time and work in war-torn Sudan-a place where he says his African- American heritage played a critical role in his relief efforts.
"When you have to work through foreign bureaucratic structures on matters of critical importance such as drought-relief and poverty in Africa, having the trust of the foreign countries' citizens is critical," he explains.
Maxwell also served in the Bureau of African Affairs. His job required diplomatic skills as well as common sense and when a job was completed well, Maxwell says it was "extremely satisfying and fulfilling."
Maxwell's parents passed away when he was young and he was raised by his aunt. "Until my aunt's dying day, I don't think she really, clearly was able to distinguish the fact that I was no longer in the military and I was in the State Department," he says. His aunt isn't alone. According to the State Department, many African Americans are unaware of the Foreign Service and the opportunities it offers its members. However, this career option is starting to catch on, as evidenced by the fact that the number of African Americans who took and passed the Foreign Service written exam has increased by 86 percent since 2003.
Specialists in the Foreign Service provide important technical support or administrative services at one of 250 posts overseas or in the U.S. Specialists do not need a military background. They receive paid housing or a housing allowance, health and medical coverage, federal retirement benefits, paid K-12 education for dependent children and paid leave.
For more information or to learn how to apply for a Foreign Service position, visit the Web site www.careers.state.gov.
At age 36, Maxwell joined the Foreign Service; since then he has served around the world.