Faces and Voices of the United States Abroad: Diversity at U.S. Foreign Affairs Agencies

Faces and Voices of the United States Abroad: Diversity at U.S. Foreign Affairs Agencies

Diversity at U.S. Foreign Affairs Agencies
January 21, 2021
Federal agencies tasked with carrying out U.S. foreign policy have made efforts in
recent decades to reflect more closely the diverse characteristics of the American
Marian L. Lawson,
public—including race, ethnicity, gender, age, and disability—in their workforces.
Coordinator
Interest in ensuring both equal opportunity for all Americans and maximum agency
Section Research Manager
performance drive these efforts, which are generally a component of broader

government-wide mandates and initiatives. Congress has taken an active interest in this
Nick M. Brown
issue, using both legislative and oversight authorities to promote and monitor agency
Analyst in Foreign
diversity efforts. While workforce diversity can encompass numerous characteristics,
Assistance and Foreign
federal diversity reporting requirements focus most consistently on race, ethnicity, and
Policy
sex/gender, and these are the primary elements of diversity discussed in this report.

Edward J. Collins-Chase
While advancing workforce diversity and inclusion is a whole-of-government effort,
Research Assistant
several Members of Congress and foreign affairs analysts assert that diversity among the

agency staff who represent the United States abroad, or lack thereof, may have
Cory R. Gill
implications for U.S. foreign policy and global influence. Outside observers and agency
Analyst in Foreign Affairs
officials alike have noted that heightened racial tensions in the United States, among

other issues, have drawn renewed attention to the disparities between policy and practice
Emily M. Morgenstern
with regard to social and economic inclusion, both domestically and internationally. In
Analyst in Foreign
this context, Congress recently requested reports from the Government Accountability
Assistance and Foreign
Office on State Department and U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID)
Policy
diversity and inclusion efforts, held hearings on challenges to workforce diversity at the

State Department, and introduced legislation to promote diversity at the State
Matthew C. Weed
Department. At the same time, several foreign policy organizations have released reports
Specialist in Foreign Policy
and statements calling for increased diversity and inclusion within U.S. foreign affairs
Legislation
agencies.

Foreign affairs agencies have longstanding policies and programs in place to recruit staff
from underrepresented segments of society, to identify and prevent discrimination within their ranks, and to
promote an inclusive work environment. Nevertheless, available data, which are not always comprehensive,
suggest that on average the workforce at U.S. foreign policy agencies is less racially and ethnically diverse than
the U.S. population as a whole, and even less so at the senior pay grades. Significant variation exists across
agencies. The Civil Service workforce at State and USAID has more racial and ethnic minority employees, and
more women, than the broader American workforce in aggregate, though some ethnicities, such as Hispanic (the
term used in data reporting) workers, may be underrepresented. The Foreign Service at these agencies has fewer
racial and ethnic minorities, as well as women, when compared with the general workforce, though there has been
an increase in underrepresented groups over time. In both services, the portion of women and racial and ethnic
minorities declines at the higher rungs of the pay scale, raising questions about efforts to promote and retain these
populations. Data for other agencies display some anomalies. The Peace Corps volunteer force, for example, is
much younger and more female than the American workforce, while the U.S. Agency for Global Media
(USAGM) reports the most racial and ethnic diversity within its workforce.
Agency reports and congressional oversight have identified a number of challenges related to increasing diversity
and inclusion at foreign affairs agencies. These include lack of comprehensive data allowing for accurate
monitoring of workforce diversity, lack of agency personnel dedicated to diversity and equal opportunity
programs, financial considerations, agency culture and leadership, poor information on why people choose to
leave these agencies, and issues related to the foreign cultures in which many of these employees work. Previous
Congresses have sought to address some of these concerns through legislative provisions, reporting requirements,
and oversight activities, and the 117th Congress may be expected to address these issues as well.
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Contents
Introduction ..................................................................................................................................... 1
Diversity as a Workforce Goal ........................................................................................................ 2
Diversity in Foreign Policy ....................................................................................................... 4
Criticism of Diversity and Inclusion Programs ......................................................................... 6
Diversity by Agency ........................................................................................................................ 8
Department of State ................................................................................................................... 8
Diversity Data ................................................................................................................... 10
Policies and Programs ....................................................................................................... 12
Policy Issues ..................................................................................................................... 14
U.S. Agency for International Development ........................................................................... 15
Diversity Data ................................................................................................................... 16
Agency Efforts to Increase Diversity ................................................................................ 18
Policy Issues ..................................................................................................................... 20
U.S. Agency for Global Media ................................................................................................ 21
Diversity Data ................................................................................................................... 22
Policies and Structures Affecting Diversity ...................................................................... 24
Issues Affecting Diversity ................................................................................................. 25
Peace Corps ............................................................................................................................. 26
Diversity Data ................................................................................................................... 27
Policy Issues ..................................................................................................................... 29
Other Selected Agencies ......................................................................................................... 30
Issues for Congress ........................................................................................................................ 31
Data Challenges ................................................................................................................ 31
Staffing and Leadership of Diversity and Inclusion Programs ......................................... 32
Recruitment and Retention Concerns ............................................................................... 32
Foreign Relations Complications ...................................................................................... 33

Figures
Figure 1. Department of State Racial and Ethnic Diversity, 2002-2018 ....................................... 10
Figure 2. Department of State Gender Diversity, 2002-2018 ........................................................ 10
Figure 3. Department of State, Racial and Ethnic Diversity, 2018 ................................................. 11
Figure 4. Department of State Minority Workforce, by Rank, 2018 ............................................. 12
Figure 5. Department of State Female Workforce, by Rank, 2018 ............................................... 12
Figure 6. Diversity and Inclusion Responsibilities at the Department of State ............................. 14
Figure 7. USAID’s Minority Workforce, by Pay Grade, 2018 ...................................................... 16
Figure 8. USAID’s Female Workforce, by Pay Grade, 2018 ....................................................... 16
Figure 9. USAID’s Racial and Ethnic Diversity, 2018 .................................................................. 17
Figure 10. USAID’s Racial and Ethnic Diversity, 2002-2018 ...................................................... 18
Figure 11. USAID’s Gender Diversity, 2002-2018 ...................................................................... 18
Figure 12. USAID Workforce, by Hiring Mechanism................................................................... 20
Figure 13. USAGM Workforce Included in EEOC Diversity Reporting, 2018 ............................ 22
Figure 14. USAGM’s Racial and Ethnic Diversity, 2002-2018 .................................................... 23
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Figure 15. USAGM’s Gender Diversity, 2002-2018 .................................................................... 23
Figure 16. USAGM’s Racial and Ethnic Diversity, 2018 ............................................................. 24
Figure 17. Peace Corp’s Racial and Ethnic Diversity, 2002-2018 ................................................ 27
Figure 18. Peace Corp’s Gender Diversity, 2002-2018 ................................................................. 27
Figure 19. Peace Corps’ Minority Workforce, by Pay Grade, 2017 .............................................. 28
Figure 20. Peace Corps’ Female Workforce, by Pay Grade, 2017 ................................................ 28
Figure 21. Peace Corp’s Racial and Ethnic Diversity, 2018 ......................................................... 29

Appendixes
Appendix A. Data Sources ............................................................................................................ 35
Appendix B. Glossary ................................................................................................................... 36

Contacts
Author Information ........................................................................................................................ 36

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Faces and Voices of the United States Abroad: Diversity at U.S. Foreign Affairs Agencies

Introduction
For many decades, Congress and successive Administrations established laws and policies to
achieve a federal workforce that reflects the diverse characteristics of the American public,
including race, ethnicity, sex, age, and disability. While increased diversity is a stated goal across
much of the federal workforce, it has unique implications for foreign policy agencies, whose
personnel often represent the official face and voice of the United States abroad. Some Members
of Congress and foreign policy commentators have long asserted that the persistent lack of
workforce diversity at these agencies squanders opportunities to use the skills of a qualified and
diverse range of Americans when advancing U.S. foreign policy priorities and national security
objectives. They maintain that insufficient diversity may also undermine the efforts of U.S.
diplomats and other senior officials to espouse the values of inclusion, equality, and good
governance that arguably bolster U.S. influence abroad.
While diversity within foreign affairs agencies has increased since the days when the Foreign
Service was nearly exclusively European-American and male, recent reviews by the Government
Accountability Office (GAO), and data reported to the Equal Employment Opportunity
Commission (EEOC), suggest that this segment of the federal workforce still does not reflect the
American public in many ways, and for many reasons. Recent protests related to racial injustice
in the United States and internationally have also heightened interest in the representation of
racial and ethnic minority groups in public institutions and have raised questions about how the
diversity of those who represent the United States abroad may affect U.S. foreign relations.
This report discusses the relevance of workforce diversity in the U.S. foreign policy context and
provides information and analysis on racial, ethnic, sex, and other aspects of diversity and
minority representation within the workforces of the primary U.S. agencies responsible for
international diplomacy and foreign assistance: the U.S. Department of State, U.S. Agency for
International Development (USAID), U.S. Agency for Global Media (USAGM), and the Peace
Corps, among others.1 The report discusses diversity at these agencies in the context of whole-of-
government efforts to promote a culture of diversity and inclusion, agency-specific policies and
programs related to diversity, and how personnel diversity may affect each agency’s unique role
in foreign policy.2 It ends with a discussion of related issues for Congress.
Definitions and Data
As U.S. government agencies have increasingly prioritized promoting a diverse workforce, data documenting
agency demographics have proliferated but remain narrowly focused. Federal diversity reporting requirements
focus most consistently on race, ethnicity, and sex/gender, making those the focus of most data analysis on
diversity, including this report. Many other personnel characteristics may be considered in diversity discussion—
including sexual orientation, gender identity, religion, socio-economic class, geographic origin, or even diversity of
thought (conservative, progressive, etc.), among others—but may be precluded from significant analysis for lack of
data. For example, employers are not required to col ect data on sexual orientation or religion in their workforce.
Similarly, Secretary of State Pompeo has repeatedly mentioned U.S. regional origin as an element of diversity he

1 This report does not address personnel diversity issues within the armed forces or intelligence agencies. For
information and analysis on diversity within the U.S. Armed Forces, see CRS Report R44321, Diversity, Inclusion, and
Equal Opportunity in the Armed Services: Background and Issues for Congress, by Kristy N. Kamarck.
2 Potential legal questions or constitutional issues that can arise with respect to measures or programs seeking to
diversify a workforce are beyond the scope of this report. Questions about such issues may be directed to Christine
Back or April Anderson in CRS’s American Law Division.
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would like to focus on at the State Department, suggesting that a disproportionate number of U.S. diplomats are
from the U.S. Northeast. However, the State Department does not col ect such data.3
The most prominent sources for personnel data relevant to foreign affairs agencies include recent GAO reporting
on Department of State and USAID workforces, EEOC annual reports on the federal workforce, and the Office of
Personnel Management’s (OPM’s) FedScope data portal. No single source includes data for all components of the
workforce in foreign affairs agencies across fiscal years, precluding side-by-side analysis of agency demographic
composition in most cases. Accordingly, this report focuses on the highest-quality data sources available for
individual agencies, rather than sources that might allow for aggregated data. The sources used for data analysis of
the agencies included in this report are summarized in Appendix A. In constructing comparisons between
individual agencies and the federal workforce and civilian labor force, this report uses the same methodology
implemented by the GAO in its reports on the Department of State and USAID.
Minority/Nonminority: For analysis purposes, some authoritative reporting sources on diversity within federal
agencies divide racial and ethnic demographics into “minority” or “nonminority” groupings. Across all sources
used in this report—and in line with OPM FedScope data guidelines—the “minority” category includes employees
categorized as American Indian or Alaskan Native, Asian, Black/African American, Native Hawaiian or Pacific
Islander, More than One Race, and Hispanic/Latino.4 The “nonminority” category refers to employees categorized
as White. Using minority/nonminority categorization allows for time-series comparisons in spite of changes to
racial and ethnic category definition, and ensures sample sizes are statistically significant. However, this type of
categorization limits the capacity to analyze changes across racial groups over time.
Race/Ethnicity: Racial or ethnic categories in the figures in this report reflect the terms used in corresponding
data sources. GAO uses the terms African American and Hispanic, while OPM and the EEOC reporting use the
combined terms Black/African American and Hispanic/Latino, so there is variation in this usage throughout the
report. These sources are consistent in their use of the categories Asian American and White.
Sex/Gender: Sex is a biological y defined term, while gender describes socially ascribed characteristics, but they
are used somewhat interchangeably in many sources used for this report. Sex is a term used in federal statutes,
while gender is used in agency data reports, so this report uses sex when discussing federal statutes and gender in
the context of data analysis.
Diversity as a Workforce Goal
Diversity in the workforce can mean different things and be sought for various purposes. In broad
terms, promoting diversity often means seeking and valuing differences among employees in
terms of demographic characteristics such as sex/gender, racial and ethnic background, physical
abilities, and age. CRS review of both government and private-sector organization efforts to
promote diversity and inclusion suggests these efforts are often driven by two primary goals: (1)
demonstrating compliance with federal antidiscrimination laws that seek to provide equal
employment opportunity for all Americans, and (2) a desire to maximize organizational
performance.
Legal requirements. Over the years, Congress has taken several measures to address public and
private workforce discrimination on the basis of race, color, religion, national origin, sex,
pregnancy, disability, and age.5 These measures include enactment of laws such as Title VII of the

3 For more on this issue, see Glen Kessler, “Pompeo’s complaint about the ‘Boston-DC corridor’ is based on flawed
data,” at https://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/2019/03/07/pompeos-complaint-about-boston-dc-corridor-is-based-
flawed-data/.
4 https://www.fedscope.opm.gov/rno/eri.asp.
5 These include Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 (P.L. 88-352), as amended, which prohibits discrimination
against individuals on the basis of race, color, religion, national origin, sex or pregnancy, and is now interpreted to
prohibit discrimination based on sexual orientation and gender identity. Other statutes include the Rehabilitation Act of
1973 (P.L. 93-112), as amended, which addresses discrimination based on disability in the federal sector; the Age
Discrimination in Employment Act (P.L. 90-202), as amended, which addresses discrimination based on age; the Civil
Service Reform Act Of 1978 (CSRA, P.L. 95-454, as amended), which sets out various legal protections and
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Civil Rights Act of 1964,6 as well as laws specific to practices within certain federal employee
personnel systems. Many of these statutory requirements are reflected in the State Department’s
Foreign Affairs Manual regulations and apply to State Department Foreign Service and Civil
Service personnel, as well as Foreign Service personnel of both USAID and USAGM (discussed
in the agency-specific sections below).7 These statutory and regulatory requirements focus on
creating equal employment opportunities for all Americans by addressing discriminatory
practices, including those that have historically disadvantaged certain demographic groups.
Preventing discrimination is not the same as promoting diversity, but the two objectives are
related. Antidiscrimination law is the source of many agency reporting requirements that provide
the best available data on workforce diversity. In addition, a persistent lack of diversity may
indicate discriminatory practices, and an EEOC report found that harassment is more likely to
occur in less diverse workforces.8 Compliance with antidiscrimination laws is an important driver
of current federal agency efforts to improve workforce diversity, and oversight of these whole-of-
government efforts is aided by two primary reporting mandates:
 Annual agency reports to the EEOC, known as Management Directive 715, or
MD-715 reports.
 The Government-Wide Diversity and Inclusion Strategic Plan (Executive Order
13583, signed by the Obama Administration in 2011), which built on several
prior executive orders to establish a coordinated government-wide initiative to
promote diversity and inclusion in the federal workforce, including a requirement
that whole-of-government and individual agencies develop ways to improve
diversity and review and report on their progress every four years.9
Performance motive. Aside from compliance with federal law, efforts to increase workforce
diversity may be driven by business considerations. Some studies of private sector organizations
support the idea that a diverse workforce may be more profitable and innovative than a
homogenous workforce. For example, a 2018 study looking at a broad range of diversity
measures (gender, age, national origin, career path, industry background, and education) within
companies around the globe found a statistically significant correlation between leadership
diversity and innovation (and corresponding revenue) and further found that the relationship
deepened as the dimensions of diversity increased.10

requirements relating to federal employment; and Executive Order 11246, as amended, which prohibits federal
contractors and certain subcontractors from discrimination on the basis of race, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation,
gender identity, or national origin. Executive Order 11246, as amended, is available at https://www.dol.gov/agencies/
ofccp/executive-order-11246/as-amended.
6 For more information, see CRS Report R46534, The Civil Rights Act of 1964: An Overview, by Christine J. Back. As
discussed throughout this report, the Foreign Service Act of 1980, which governs the Foreign Service personnel
system, includes several provisions intended to ensure that all Foreign Service personnel are free from discrimination
and that all Foreign Service personnel actions are made in accordance with merit principles.
7 U.S. Department of State, Foreign Affairs Manual, “3 FAM 1212 Equal Opportunity and the Merit System,” available
at https://fam.state.gov.
8 Report of Chai R. Feldblum and Victoria A. Lipnic, Co-Chairs, Select Task Force on the Study of Harassment in the
Workplace, EEOC, June 2016, at https://www.eeoc.gov/select-task-force-study-harassment-workplace?renderforprint=
1.
9 The executive order is available at https://www.govinfo.gov/app/details/CFR-2012-title3-vol1/CFR-2012-title3-vol1-
eo13583.
10 Rocio Lorenzo and Martin Reeves, “How and Why Diversity Drives Financial Performance,” Harvard Business
Review, January 20, 2018, available at https://hbr.org/2018/01/how-and-where-diversity-drives-financial-performance?
referral=03759&cm_vc=rr_item_page.bottom. This study is also discussed in “How Diverse Leadership Teams Boost
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The effects of diversity on organizational performance have been less studied in the public sector,
where profit is not a measure of success. Nevertheless, many analysts assert that diversity could
have a positive impact on performance at government agencies, as explained below in the foreign
policy context.
Diversity in Foreign Policy
Agency reporting on workforce diversity in recent years suggests that foreign affairs agency
workforces tend to be somewhat less racially and ethnically diverse than the U.S. population and
the U.S. civilian labor force. The proportion of racial and ethnic minority employees in the
workforces of these agencies was less than that of the U.S. resident population in 2018.
The data indicate that even while the number of employees from underrepresented groups
increased at these agencies, the overall racial/ethnic and gender composition of these agencies
between 2002 and 2018 did not shift significantly compared with the overall U.S. resident
population. For example, while the proportion of minority employees at USAID increased from
33% in 2002 to 37% in 2018, racial and ethnic minorities within the U.S. resident population
increased from 32% to 40% during that period. As a result, even while the proportion of minority
employees in the USAID workforce increased, the agency became less diverse relative to the
resident population. There is some variance in this overall trend, with notable differences between
agencies and among employment categories within agencies. For example, the Civil Service
(primarily U.S.-based) workforce at State and USAID has more racial and ethnic minority
employees, and more women, than the broader American workforce in aggregate. The Foreign
Service (primarily foreign-based) at these agencies has fewer racial and ethnic minorities, as well
as fewer women, than the nongovernment workforce. Comprehensive data and detailed analysis
of these workforce trends are included in the specific agency sections of this report.
In recent years, many policy experts, academics, and agency leaders have reflected on how
personnel diversity may affect U.S. foreign policy. A review of published commentary and
analysis on this issue reveals several common themes.
Misalignment with foreign policy goals. Critics have long pointed out that U.S. global influence
is derived in part from the nation’s demonstrated commitment to democracy and human rights,
but that domestic inequities have the potential to undermine this source of authority.11
Discrimination within the United States against minorities, women, the LGBT community, and
people with disabilities, observers maintain, contradicts political and cultural values espoused by
the United States in foreign affairs—democracy, human rights, and social and economic
inclusion. When this misalignment sparks social unrest in the United States, the apparent
discrepancy between U.S. foreign policy and domestic practice risks undermining U.S.
credibility. The American Academy of Diplomacy (AAD), a nonpartisan and nongovernmental
organization, noted in a press release during the unrest following the May 2020 death of a Black
man, George Floyd, in the custody of U.S. law enforcement that “the demonstrators and those
who have spoken out remind us that America cannot lead the world unless at home we live up to
the values we so proudly defend abroad.”12

Innovation,” BCG, January 23, 2018, available at https://www.bcg.com/en-us/publications/2018/how-diverse-
leadership-teams-boost-innovation.
11 As stated by President of the Council on Foreign Relations Richard Haass, “Through example, a country
communicates its values and furnishes a context for all that its representatives say and do.” Haass, Richard, “Foreign
Policy by Examples: Crisis at Home Makes the United States Vulnerable Abroad,” Foreign Affairs, June 5, 2020.
12 “Rebuilding After the Violence: State Must Improve on Diversity,” statement of the America Academy of
Diplomacy, June 9, 2020,
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Potential exploitation by adversaries.
Historic Context
Diplomats and foreign policy professionals
have similarly expressed concern that
While this report focuses on agency diversity in recent
decades, during which time diversity goals became
persistent inequality in the United States, and
more prevalent and more data became available, a
related unrest, has “handed adversarial
longer historic view demonstrates that diversity in
governments—including those of China,
foreign affairs agencies has been a longstanding and
Russia, Iran and North Korea—a powerful
significant issue. In 1980, for example, women held
propaganda tool to paint a dark portrait of the
fewer than 10% of USAID positions described as
executive, managerial, or supervisory,13 and from 1961
United States.”18 Such concerns date back to
to 1990 minority representation among Peace Corps
at least the early 20th century and are
volunteers and trainees never exceeded 10%.14 Going
exemplified by the federal government’s 1952
back further, agencies generally had workplace cultures
amicus brief in Brown v. Board of Education
and policies that fostered discrimination. Until the early
arguing that “[r]acial discrimination [has]
1970s, for example, the State Department expected
women (but not men) in the Foreign Service to resign if
furnished grist for the Communist propaganda
they married, and women faced barriers in obtaining
mills, and it raises doubts even among friendly
advanced language training and hardship posts, severely
nations as to the intensity of our devotion to
limiting both where they could be posted and their
the democratic faith.”19 Further, some analysts
promotion opportunities.15 Discriminatory treatment
against racial and ethnic minority employees was
note that U.S. strategic rivals have already
condoned in the past as well, as evidenced by the
seized on racial unrest in the United States to
informally named “Negro Circuit” and “Cucaracha
justify their own undemocratic policies.20 The
Circuit”—shorthand for what was then the State
Chinese Communist Party, for example, facing
Department practice of assigning Black FSOs only to
international criticism for alleged human
Africa and the Caribbean and Hispanic FSOs only to
Latin America.16 The Foreign Service Act of 1980
rights violations against both pro-democracy
explicitly prohibited such practices, mandating that the
protesters in Hong Kong and ethnic Uyghur
Secretary of State shall not make assignments to
populations in Xinjiang Province, dubbed the
Foreign Service positions on the basis of race or
United States the “double standard nation,”
ethnicity.17
citing some local government responses to
unrest.21 Some assert that increasing diversity in the U.S. foreign policy workforce may be a
means of countering such messages.

13 “Transition Briefing Book,” U.S. Agency for International Development, 1980, p. 137.
14 “Peace Corps: Meeting the Challenges of the 1990s,” GAO/NSIAD-90-122, May 1990, at https://www.gao.gov/
assets/150/149047.pdf.
15 Susan Sloan, A Seat at the Table: Women, Diplomacy and Lessons for the World, New Degree Press, 2020, p. 27;
“Female members of the Foreign Service of the 1950s through the 1990s break through barriers at the Department of
State,” an oral history collection by the Foreign Service Journal, March 2016, at https://www.afsa.org/challenging-
tradition.
16 For example, see Allan E. Goodman, “The Need for Diversity in the Diplomatic Corps,” The Chronicle of Higher
Education, December 5, 1997, at https://www.chronicle.com/article/the-need-for-diversity-in-the-diplomatic-corps/.
17 See Section 502(a)(2) of P.L. 96-465 (22 U.S.C. §3982(a)).
18 Madison Handy, “In Pursuit of a More Diverse American Diplomatic Corps,” U.S. Global Leadership Coalition, July
27, 2020, available at https://www.usglc.org/blog/in-pursuit-of-a-more-diverse-american-diplomatic-corps/.
19 Faiza Patel and Raya Koreh, “New Method, Same Strategy: Russia Has Long Exploited U.S. Racial Divisions,” Just
Security, October 19, 2018, at https://www.justsecurity.org/61142/tactic-strategy-russia-long-exploited-u-s-racial-
divisions.
20 Ho-Fung Hung, “As U.S. Injustices Rage, China’s Condemnation Reeks of Cynicism,” Foreign Policy, June 5, 2020,
available at https://foreignpolicy.com/2020/06/05/us-injustice-protests-china-condemnation-cynical/.
21 Zhaoyin Feng, “George Floyd death: China takes a victory lap over US protests,” BBC, June 5, 2020, available at
https://www.bbc.com/news/world-us-canada-52912241.
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Diversity as a U.S. strategic advantage. As a nation historically built on immigration, the
United States citizenry is characterized by uncommon racial, ethnic, linguistic, and cultural
diversity. This diversity, Brookings Institution scholars have noted, is an “underutilized source of
strength to project moral authority and global leadership to address the most complex
challenges.”22 A recent report on diversity and inclusion in the foreign policy sector notes that “a
lack of diversity not only disenfranchises minority groups working for the world’s leading
institutions, but also impacts how these institutions work with minority groups around the
world.”23 The diverse population of the United States, some assert, places the United States and
the State Department in a position to assemble a diplomatic corps from Americans whose racial
or ethnic identity may provide them valuable insights into the cultures of many U.S. allies and
adversaries. This is a comparative advantage, particularly as adversarial global powers, for
example China or Russia, can draw only from more homogenous populations.24 As one
ambassador put it when testifying before a House committee in 2020, “Our diplomats must
represent the diverse composition of our nation … our power to influence flows from who we
are.”25
Criticism of Diversity and Inclusion Programs
While the benefits of workforce diversity are widely accepted, programs to promote diversity and
inclusion are sometimes challenged. At a broad level, critics have argued that categorizing
Americans by race, ethnicity, and other means of differentiation, although sometimes required by
equal opportunity laws, fosters “identity politics” that encourage people to focus on individual
differences rather than common national and agency interests.26 In some cases, lawsuits have
claimed that certain policies and practices intended to increase the representation of
underrepresented groups in the workforce constitute “reverse discrimination” against males
and/or ethnic groups.27 In addition, the Trump Administration ordered a review of diversity
training at federal agencies, asserting that such training may promote race and sex stereotyping
(see the text box below).
Experts have also argued that diversity promotion programs may have unintended consequences.
For example, some psychologists have asserted that diversity training within organizations creates

22 Annika Betancourt, “To strengthen global leadership, America must foster and retain diversity in its diplomatic
ranks,” The Brookings Institution, July 31, 2020, at https://www.brookings.edu/blog/order-from-chaos/2020/07/31/to-
strengthen-global-leadership-america-must-foster-and-retain-diversity-in-its-diplomatic-ranks/.
23 “Advancing Diversity & Inclusion in the Foreign Policy Sector,” Vestige Strategies, July 2018, available at
http://www.vestigestrategies.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/08/AdvancingDIReport.pdf. See also Sohini Chatterjee and
Mark P. Lagon, “Why Inclusion is Important for U.S. Foreign Policy,” Foreign Policy, October 30, 2020, available at
https://foreignpolicy.com/2020/10/30/why-inclusion-is-important-for-u-s-foreign-policy/?utm_source=PostUp&
utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=27205&utm_term=Flashpoints%20OC&?tpcc=27205.
24 Jay Porter, “Diversity: Not Just a Cause for the Underrepresented,” American Foreign Service Association website,
September 2018, available at https://www.afsa.org/diversity-not-just-cause-underrepresented.
25 Retired Ambassador Peter Romero at hearing on “Diversity and Diplomacy: Why an Inclusive State Department
Would Strengthen U.S. Foreign Policy,” Oversight and Investigations Subcommittee of the House Foreign Affairs
Committee (HFAC), June 17, 2020.
26 For examples, see Mike Gonzales, “It Is Time to Debate—and End—Identity Politics” The Heritage Foundation,
October 9, 2018, at https://www.heritage.org/civil-society/commentary/it-time-debate-and-end-identity-politics; and
Francis Fukuyama, Identity: The Demand for Dignity and the Politics of Resentment, Farrar, Straus and Giroux; 1st
Edition (September 11, 2018).
27 See, for example, Erin Mulvaney, “Diversity-Fueled ‘Reverse Bias’ Claims Put Employers in a Quandry,”
Bloomberg Law, October 8, 2020, at https://news.bloomberglaw.com/daily-labor-report/diversity-fueled-reverse-bias-
claims-put-employers-in-quandary. A discussion of the legal basis of these claims is beyond the scope of this report.
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an “us versus them” response in many people that may actually increase discrimination.28 There
are also reports of “diversity backlash,” which may take the form of resentment or anger among
workplace “majority” employees, undermining workforce cohesion and productivity.29 Some
studies also indicate that affirmative action policies intended to promote workforce diversity
inadvertently stigmatize those they aim to assist, raising questions about whether employees from
underrepresented groups were hired on merit or to achieve diversity goals.30 Analysts have also
argued that diversity programs and policies sometimes mask discrimination, leading some
workers and decision makers to feel the presence of these policies means their organization is fair
even when there is evidence of discrimination.31
Criticism of diversity as a means of improving organizational effectiveness, as opposed to
promoting equal opportunity, is hard to come by, particularly in the foreign affairs context. There
is little data to support either side of the issue, as it is arguably impossible to measure how U.S.
global influence and success or failure in achieving diplomatic and development goals are
affected by the diversity of the Americans involved in the policymaking and implementation.
Nevertheless, efforts to improve workforce diversity are required by statute and agency policy,
and the issues surrounding their purpose and impact are the subject of ongoing congressional
interest.
Executive Order on Combating Race and Sex Stereotyping
While a general political consensus has emerged regarding the value of diversity and equal opportunity efforts,
some related activities have been controversial. In September 2020, President Trump issued Executive Order
13950 on Combating Race and Sex Stereotyping, which called for an end to diversity training programs at federal
agencies that President Trump asserted promote “race and sex stereotyping” and “race or sex scapegoating,”
both of which the order describes as “rooted in the pernicious and false belief that America is an irredeemably
racist and sexist country; that some people, simply on account of their race or sex, are oppressors; and that racial
and sexual identities are more important than our common status as human beings and Americans.”32 The
executive order, and the implementing memo issued by the Director of the Office of Management and Budget,
require agencies to identify contracts for such training and related spending for FY2020, review whether they
promote the concepts of race and sex stereotyping and/or scapegoating as defined in the executive order, and
prevent such trainings going forward, except as specifically exempted.33 It remains unclear how or if this wil affect
various activities relating to diversity at foreign policy agencies in the long term. Both the State Department and
USAID reportedly suspended all diversity and inclusion training in October 2020 while reviewing their training
programs.34

28 David Rock, “Is Your Company’s Diversity Training Making You More Biased?” Psychology Today, June 7, 2017,
at https://www.psychologytoday.com/us/blog/your-brain-work/201706/is-your-company-s-diversity-training-making-
you-more-biased.
29 See, for example, Carolyn Lawrence, “Diversity backlash is real. Here’s how to avoid it,” Deloitte Global, January 9,
2018, available at https://www.linkedin.com/pulse/diversity-backlash-real-heres-how-avoid-carolyn-lawrence/.
30 Lisa M. Leslie, David M. Meyer, and David A. Kravitz, “The Stigma of Affirmative Action: A Stereotyping Based
Theory and Meta-Analytic Test of the Consequences for Performance,” Academy of Management Journal, 2014, vol.
57, no. 4, 964–989, at http://dx.doi.org/10.5465/amj.2011.0940.
31 Tessa L. Dover, Brenda Major and Cheryl R. Kaiser, “Diversity Policies Rarely Make Companies Fairer, and They
Feel Threatening to White Men,” Harvard Business Review, January 4, 2016, at https://hbr.org/2016/01/diversity-
policies-dont-help-women-or-minorities-and-they-make-white-men-feel-threatened.
32 “Executive Order on Combating Race and Sex Stereotyping,” September 22, 2020, available at
https://www.whitehouse.gov/presidential-actions/executive-order-combating-race-sex-stereotyping/.
33 M-20-34, issued by the Office of Management and Budget Director Russell T. Vought to heads of executive
departments and agencies on “Ending Employee Trainings that Use Divisive Propaganda to Undermine the Principle of
Fair and Equal Treatment for All,” September 28, 2020, available at https://www.whitehouse.gov/wp-content/uploads/
2020/09/M-20-37.pdf.
34 See “Why Diversity Training Has Been Suspended at USAID,” by Joanne Lu, National Public Radio, October 27,
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Diversity by Agency
The bulk of congressional attention on diversity in the U.S. foreign policy establishment has been
focused on the Department of State, whose diplomats are among the most prominent civilian
representatives of the United States abroad. The U.S. Agency for International Development
(USAID), the lead U.S. foreign assistance agency, has also been a recent focus of congressional
inquiries about diversity. The role of workforce diversity at other foreign-facing U.S. agencies,
including the U.S. Agency for Global Media, the Peace Corps, and others, has been less
examined. This section discusses workforce diversity, agency policies and actions, and some
unique considerations related to diversity at these agencies.
U.S. Resident Population vs. U.S. Civilian Labor Force
Many figures in this section compare agency workforces to the U.S. population and U.S. workforce using U.S.
Resident Population data reported by the U.S. Census Bureau and U.S. Civilian Labor Force reported in the Office
of Personnel Management’s Federal Equal Opportunity Recruitment Program report. The U.S. Civilian Labor
Force is calculated by the Bureau of Labor Statistics, and comprises an estimate of the population of “non-
institutionalized individuals 16 years of age or older” that is generally associated with the portion of the U.S.
resident population available for employment. This definition is distinct from the private sector workforce, in that
the Civilian Labor Force includes unemployed individuals.
Department of State
The Department of State is the lead U.S. foreign affairs agency. It carries out its mission through
a full-time permanent workforce (excluding contractors) that as of September 2020 totaled
approximately 77,000, including around 24,000 Foreign Service and Civil Service personnel who
have been the primary focus of efforts to measure diversity of the State Department’s
workforce.35 Successive Secretaries of State and other senior department officials, regardless of
Administration or political affiliation, have stated the importance of a diverse State Department
workforce. In 2002, Colin Powell, the first Black Secretary of State, remarked that “[t]o advance
America’s values and interests today, we must draw on the talents and the knowledge and
experience of the widest possible range of Americans. The diversity of our diplomats can help us
make the case all around the globe that the keys to a better future are … societies where citizens
are equal under the law, and in which their contributions are valued.”36

2020, at https://www.npr.org/sections/goatsandsoda/2020/10/27/927838397/why-diversity-training-has-been-
suspended-at
usaid?ft=nprml&f=1001&fbclid=IwAR1l1nO9HEh1ZACuFpQ5KbCm8v5gD38z9q4z16UZRh3u0uqrrR3atEP8ACo;
and “Diversity and Inclusion Training Suspended at the State Department,” by Aris Folley, The Hill, October, 25, 2020,
available at https://thehill.com/homenews/administration/522629-diversity-and-inclusion-training-suspended-at-state-
department.
35 See U.S. Department of State, Bureau of Global Talent Management, “Global Talent Management Fact Sheet As Of
09/30/2020,” at https://www.state.gov/wp-content/uploads/2020/10/GTM_Factsheet0920.pdf. Around two-thirds of the
State Department’s full-time permanent workforce comprises Locally Employed Staff (LES). LES are largely foreign
nationals working at overseas posts and are thus not reflective of the diversity of the U.S. population. Section 103 of
the Foreign Service Act of 1980 (22 U.S.C. §3903), as amended, authorizes the Secretary of State to appoint foreign
national employees and states that “foreign nationals who provide ‘clerical, administrative, technical, fiscal, and other
support at Foreign Service posts abroad’ shall be considered members of the Foreign Service.”
36 Secretary of State Colin L. Powell, “Remarks with Distinguished Guests at Ceremony Announcing Grant to Howard
University,” May 17, 2002, at https://2001-2009.state.gov/secretary/former/powell/remarks/2002/10287.htm.
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Similarly, former Secretary of State John
Kerry noted that, “[i]n order to represent the
Recent Allegations of Discriminatory
United States to the world, the Department
Personnel Practices at the Department
of State must have a workforce that reflects
of State
the rich composition of its citizenry. The
Fol owing the death of George Floyd in 2020, several
skills, knowledge, perspectives, ideas, and
former and current State Department officials expressed
experiences of all of its employees contribute
concerns regarding discriminatory personnel practices
they said they faced while serving at the department. For
to the vitality and success of the global
example, a Black former Foreign Service Consular
mission.”39 Current Secretary of State Mike
Adjudicator alleged that State Department leaders were
Pompeo noted in 2020 the importance of
not responsive when she sought assistance after U.S.
ensuring that the State Department’s
Customs and Border Protection (CBP) officers
repeatedly harassed her when she was attempting to
workforce reflects “the full glory and
cross the U.S. border from her post in Ciudad Juárez,
diversity of the United States of America.”40
Mexico, to El Paso, Texas. While the CBP has
investigated and disputed her allegations, other Black
Following the death of George Floyd and
former U.S. diplomats, including former U.S. Ambassador
ensuing protests in 2020, calls for the State
to Cambodia and Zimbabwe Charles Ray, have stated
Department to improve and expand its
that they faced similar treatment during their careers.37
diversity and inclusion efforts have
Black diplomats have also disclosed instances where they
intensified.41 Press reports indicate that some
endured what one former State Department official
characterized as “racism, hostility, and apathy,” including
State Department officials, including Black
cases where they were passed over for promotions in
diplomats and other diplomats of color,
favor of less experienced col eagues.38
expressed concern that senior department
officials have failed to provide a robust, actionable commitment to combat what they characterize
as pervasive prejudice and bias at the department.42 Both former and current State Department
officials, including many from underrepresented backgrounds, have shared related concerns
reflecting their experiences as employees at the State Department and proposed initiatives
intended to increase the diversity of the department’s workforce and combat discrimination (see
the text box above).

37 Tianna Spears, “I Was a U.S. Diplomat. Customs and Border Protection Only Cared That I Was Black,” Politico,
August 30, 2020, at https://www.politico.com/news/magazine/2020/08/30/black-us-diplomat-customs-border-
protection-cbp-detained-harassed-325676; Ambassador Charles Ray, “How U.S. Border Agents Mistreat Black
American Diplomats,” Washington International Diplomatic Academy, June 7, 2020, at https://diplomaticacademy.us/
2020/06/07/ray-border-agents-abuse-black-diplomats/.
38 Christopher Richardson, “The State Department Was Designed to Keep African-Americans Out,” New York Times,
June 23, 2020, at https://www.nytimes.com/2020/06/23/opinion/state-department-racism-diversity.html; Robbie
Gramer, “Fighting for U.S. Values Abroad, Black Diplomats Struggle With Challenges at Home,” Foreign Policy, June
11, 2020, at https://foreignpolicy.com/2020/06/11/u-s-black-diplomats-state-department-george-floyd-protests-trump-
pompeo-state-department-diversity-racial-injustice-police-violence-soft-power/.
39 U.S. Department of State, National Museum of American Diplomacy, “Does the Department of State reflect
America’s diversity?,” at https://diplomacy.state.gov/diplomacy/does-the-department-of-state-reflect-americas-
diversity/.
40 U.S. Department of State, “Secretary Michael R. Pompeo at a Press Availability on the Release of the 2019
International Religious Freedom Report,” June 10, 2020, at https://it.usembassy.gov/secretary-pompeo-at-a-press-
availability-on-the-2019-international-religious-freedom-report/.
41 Conor Finnegan, “State Department expands diversity fellowships amid pressure to better support diplomats of
color,” ABC News, September 3, 2020, at https://abcnews.go.com/Politics/state-department-expands-diversity-
fellowships-amid-pressure-support/story?id=72754381.
42 Robbie Gramer, “Fighting for U.S. Values Abroad, Black Diplomats Struggle With Challenges at Home.”
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Diversity Data
Throughout 2020, senior State Department officials and several Members of Congress have
remarked that, while the State Department has made progress on diversity and inclusion in recent
decades, significant work remains. A congressionally requested GAO report released in January
2020 stated that from FY2002 to FY2018, the share of racial and ethnic minorities among the
State Department’s full-time, permanent workforce had increased from 28% to 32%, while the
share of women had declined from 44% to 43%. Relative to the U.S. population, the proportion of
both women and ethnic minorities decreased in this period (Figure 1 and Figure 2). These
aggregate percentage changes reflected declines in the share of both minorities and women in the
Civil Service and increases in their representation within the Foreign Service workforce.43
Figure 1. Department of State Racial
Figure 2. Department of State Gender
and Ethnic Diversity, 2002-2018
Diversity, 2002-2018
% Deviation from the U.S. Resident Population
% Deviation from the U.S. Resident Population
(0=U.S. Resident Population Percentage)
(0=U.S. Resident Population Percentage)

Source: CRS Calculation, adapted from data from GAO, State Department: Additional Steps Are Needed to
Identify Potential Barriers to Diversity; U.S. Resident Population, U.S. Census Bureau, National Intercensal Tables:
2000-2010 (Tables 1 & 3) and National Population by Characteristics: 2010-2019; Office of Personnel
Management Federal Equal Opportunity Recruitment Program (FEORP) Report, Fiscal Years 2001-2017.
Note: See “Definitions and Data” text box for an explanation of “minority” and “nonminority.”

43 Government Accountability Office (GAO), State Department: Additional Steps Are Needed to Identify Potential
Barriers to Diversity, GAO-20-237, January 27, 2020, at https://www.gao.gov/products/GAO-20-237, pp. 16-17, 23-
27.
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A more detailed snapshot of the State
Figure 3. Department of State, Racial and
Department workforce in 2018 shows that
Ethnic Diversity, 2018
relative to the U.S. population, Black/African
American employees were overrepresented in
% Deviation from the U.S. Resident Population
the Civil Service and Whites overrepresented
(0=U.S. Resident Population Percentage)
in the Foreign Service, while
Hispanic/Latinos were underrepresented in
both employee groups (Figure 3). This
distinction is particularly relevant to U.S.
representation abroad, as Foreign Service
officers are generally stationed abroad and are
the most visible faces and voices of the U.S.
Government in many foreign counties, while
Civil Service positons are generally U.S.-
based.
GAO’s findings further indicated that the
proportion of racial and ethnic minorities and
women in the Civil Service and the Foreign
Service was negatively related to seniority
(Figure 4 and Figure 5). The report revealed
many instances where promotion rates were
lower for minorities and women, especially in

the Civil Service, although not all of these
Source: CRS calculation, adapted from GAO, State
instances were “statistically significant” in
Department: Additional Steps Are Needed to Identify
GAO’s view.44 GAO further cautioned that its
Potential Barriers to Diversity; U.S. Census Bureau,
National Intercensal Tables: 2000-2010 and National
findings “do not establish a causal
Population by Characteristics: 2010-2019.
relationship between demographic
characteristics and promotion outcomes,” as its analysis may have failed to capture “unobservable
factors” that may explain differences in promotion outcomes.45

44 Ibid., pp. 33-54.
45 Ibid., p. 5.
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Figure 4. Department of State Minority
Figure 5. Department of State Female
Workforce, by Rank, 2018
Workforce, by Rank, 2018

Source: CRS, adapted from data from GAO, State Department: Additional Steps Are Needed to Identify
Potential Barriers to Diversity.
Notes: Percentages calculated in-grade as the share of that grade composed of minority and female
employees. See “Definitions and Data” text box for the definition of “minority.”
Policies and Programs
The State Department’s Foreign and Civil Service workforces are subject to Title VII of the Civil
Rights Act of 1964 (P.L. 88-352) and the Rehabilitation Act of 1973 (P.L. 93-112), among other
statutes that guide federal action on fair workplace practices (see “Diversity as a Workforce
Goal”). The State Department’s Foreign Service workforce is also subject to Section 105 of the
Foreign Service Act of 1980 (22 U.S.C. §3905), which instructs that all members of and
applicants to the Foreign Service shall be free from discrimination “on the basis of race, color,
religion, sex, national origin, age, handicapping condition, marital status, geographic or
educational affiliation within the United States, or political affiliation,” and that all Foreign
Service personnel actions shall be made in accordance with merit principles. These statutory
requirements also apply to State Department Civil Service personnel, as well as personnel of both
USAID and USAGM, and are further described in the State Department Foreign Affairs Manual
regulations.46
In carrying out oversight of the State Department’s efforts to meet these statutory requirements,
Congress has identified several issues of potential concern. In 1987, for example, Congress
directed GAO to conduct an audit and inspection of the merit personnel system of the Foreign
Service. GAO’s report, issued in 1989, indicated that while the State Department largely
eliminated underrepresentation of women and most minority groups at the entry levels of the
Foreign Service Officer Corps, underrepresentation remained endemic in the mid- and senior-
level ranks (these observations are similar to GAO’s findings more than 30 years later that
proportions of both women and minorities in the Foreign Service and Civil Service were
generally smaller in the higher ranks).47 The State Department committed to implementing

46 U.S. Department of State, Foreign Affairs Manual, “3 FAM 1212 Equal Opportunity and the Merit System,”
available at https://fam.state.gov. While the regulations provided in 3 FAM 1212.1 that apply to both the Foreign
Service and Civil Service are discussed above, additional Civil Service-specific regulations are located at 3 FAM
1212.2.
47 GAO, State Department: Minorities and Women Are Underrepresented in the Foreign Service, GAO/NSIAD-89-
146, June 1989.
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GAO’s 1989 recommendations, which included carrying out renewed efforts to identify and
eliminate artificial barriers to the hiring and advancement of minorities and women in the Foreign
Service.48
One congressional action aimed at improving diversity at the State Department was the
establishment of diversity-focused fellowship programs. In 1990, Congress amended the State
Department Basic Authorities Act of 1956 (P.L. 84-885) to authorize the Secretary of State to
make grants to postsecondary educational institutions or students to increase knowledge of and
interest in employment with the Foreign Service, with a special focus on minority students.49
Pursuant to these authorities, the State Department launched the Thomas R. Pickering Foreign
Affairs Fellowship and the Charles B. Rangel International Affairs Program in 1992 and 2002,
respectively.50 On September 1, 2020, Secretary Pompeo announced that beginning in FY2021,
the State Department would increase the Pickering and Rangel Fellowships by 50%, which would
grow the number of new fellows each year from 60 to 90.51
The State Department has touted the success of the Rangel and Pickering programs, reporting to
Congress in 2017 that they “have been responsible for increasing the representation of diverse
groups in the Foreign Service by nearly 21% over a period of 20 years between 1993 and 2013.”52
The two programs offer incentives to potential fellows—including up to $42,000 annually for
tuition, room, board, books, and mandatory fees while completing a two-year master’s degree—in
exchange for a commitment to remain in the Foreign Service for a minimum of five years
following graduation.53 In addition, fellows are provided mentoring when preparing for the
Foreign Service Oral Assessment. Such arrangements may help alleviate any barriers within the
Foreign Service examination process that unduly hinder minority or women candidates (as noted
in the “Policy Issues” subsection, the State Department is currently investigating whether any
such barriers exist related to the examination process).
Within the State Department, both the Bureau of Global Talent Management and the Office of
Civil Rights oversee and implement efforts to improve diversity and inclusion. Figure 6 details
the key responsibilities of these offices, as well as other relevant entities within the State
Department.

48 GAO, State Department: Minorities and Women Are Underrepresented in the Foreign Service, p. 5.
49 See Section 150 of P.L. 101-246.
50 While the Rangel and Pickering Fellowships are very similar, a key difference between the programs is the internship
opportunities offered. For example, in the summer before their first year of graduate study, Rangel Fellows generally
intern in a congressional office. Congressional internships are currently not part of the Pickering Fellowship.
51 Secretary of State Michael R. Pompeo, “The State Department Expands Pickering and Rangel Graduate Fellowship
Programs,” press statement, September 1, 2020, at https://www.state.gov/the-state-department-expands-pickering-and-
rangel-graduate-fellowship-programs/.
52 Information submitted to Congress by the Department of State on June 12, 2017 pursuant to Section 410 of the
Department of State Authorities Act, Fiscal Year 2017 (P.L. 114-323).
53 For example, see http://rangelprogram.org/graduate-fellowship-program/.
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Figure 6. Diversity and Inclusion Responsibilities at the Department of State

Source: U.S. Department of State, Foreign Affairs Manual, “1 FAM 022.4 Director of the Office of Civil Rights
(S/OCR),” at https://fam.state.gov; House Committee on Foreign Affairs, Subcommittee on Oversight and
Investigations, “House Foreign Affairs Subcommittee on Oversight and Investigations Holds Hearing on State
Department Diversity and Inclusion,” September 22, 2020; U.S. Department of State, “Affinity Groups,” at
https://careers.state.gov/learn/diversity-inclusion/affinity-groups/; Melissa Ledesma-Leese, “GTM Diversity and
Inclusion Unit: Bringing the Department together,” State Magazine, September 2020, at
https://statemag.lab.prod.getusinfo.com/2020/09/0920office/.
Policy Issues
Recent congressional oversight activities have led to both policy recommendations and proposals
pertaining to diversity and inclusion matters at the Department of State. At a hearing on diversity
and inclusion at the State Department held by the House Foreign Affairs Committee’s
Subcommittee on Oversight and Investigations on September 22, 2020, Director General of the
Foreign Service Ambassador Carol Z. Perez and Director of the State Department’s Office of
Civil Rights Gregory Smith testified that the State Department had made significant progress in
recruiting a more diverse workforce. However, they acknowledged more work was needed to
foster a culture of inclusion at the department to better ensure the retention and advancement of
diverse personnel in both the Foreign Service and Civil Service.54 Director General Perez also
mentioned several initiatives the State Department was undertaking to improve inclusion, for
example
 establishing Diversity and Inclusion Councils at individual bureaus and posts to
facilitate department-wide implementation of diversity and inclusion programs,

54 House Committee on Foreign Affairs, Subcommittee on Oversight and Investigations, “House Foreign Affairs
Subcommittee on Oversight and Investigations Holds Hearing on State Department Diversity and Inclusion,”
September 22, 2020, at https://plus.cq.com/doc/congressionaltranscripts-6013542?0.
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 launching a new centralized exit survey process to better discern any systemic
reasons causing members of underrepresented groups to leave the State
Department, and
 implementing a Meritorious Service Increase pilot program that anonymizes
nominations for merit-based pay increases to make them more gender-neutral.55
Director General Perez also noted that the State Department is planning to release its Diversity
and Inclusion Strategic Plan for 2020-2022, which Secretary Pompeo has referred to as a
“comprehensive strategic framework” that will further guide department-wide diversity and
inclusion efforts.56
Members of Congress have generally expressed their support for the State Department’s
initiatives, agreeing that more work is needed to enhance the department’s ability to retain and
promote personnel from underrepresented backgrounds. Some Members and other observers,
however, have expressed concerns regarding certain aspects of the State Department’s policies.
For example, some have noted what they characterize as the State Department’s limited success
in recruiting diverse candidates through the conventional Foreign Service application and intake
process. Others have noted the possibility that assignment restrictions, which are measures
prohibiting employees that may be vulnerable to foreign influence or targeting and harassment by
foreign intelligence services from working in certain positions, may be unfairly limiting the
eligibility of Asian-American Foreign Service Officers to serve in Asia or work on Asia-related
issues.57 Other organizations and stakeholders have also shared their own views and
recommendations. These include the American Academy of Diplomacy, a group of former senior
ambassadors and leaders in U.S. foreign policy. The AAD has called on the State Department to,
among other actions, establish a senior level Chief Diversity and Inclusion Officer (CDIO) to act
as the Secretary of State’s principal advisor on diversity and inclusion matters and serve as a
voting member on committees tasked with recommending candidates for senior positions,
including ambassadorships.58 Some of these concerns are discussed in more detail in the “Issues
for Congress” section.
U.S. Agency for International Development
USAID is the primary agency implementing U.S. foreign assistance and international
development programs, and is a prominent representative of the United States in developing
countries in particular. The agency’s workforce comprises more than 10,000 people,

55 Ibid. See also U.S. Department of State, “GTM Diversity and Inclusion Unit,” State Magazine, September 2020, at
https://statemag.state.gov/2020/09/0920office/, and Jory Heckman, “State Department: ‘Everyone has a role to play’ in
workforce diversity strategy,” Federal News Network, April 15, 2019, https://federalnewsnetwork.com/hiring-
retention/2020/04/state-department-everyone-has-a-role-to-play-in-workforce-diversity-strategy/.
56 Secretary of State Michael R. Pompeo, “The State Department Expands Pickering and Rangel Graduate Fellowship
Programs,” press statement, September 1, 2020, https://www.state.gov/the-state-department-expands-pickering-and-
rangel-graduate-fellowship-programs/.
57 House Committee on Foreign Affairs, Subcommittee on Oversight and Investigations, “House Foreign Affairs
Subcommittee on Oversight and Investigations Holds Hearing on State Department Diversity and Inclusion,”
September 22, 2020; U.S. Department of State, Foreign Affairs Manual, “12 FAM 233.5 Assignment Restrictions,”
available at https://fam.state.gov.
58 Ambassador Thomas R. Pickering and Ambassador Ronald E. Neumann, “Academy Recommendations on State
Department Diversity and Inclusion,” press release, December 1, 2020, https://www.academyofdiplomacy.org/wp-
content/uploads/2020/12/Press-Release-on-State-DI.pdf.
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approximately two-thirds of whom serve at USAID missions overseas.59 Of the total workforce,
approximately 30% are U.S. direct hires—Foreign Service and Civil Service Officers, and
Foreign Service Limited staff—while the remainder are Foreign Service Nationals (~40%; non-
U.S. citizen employees hired by USAID Missions abroad) and contractors (~30%). USAID has
cited diversity and inclusion as an agency priority; its Office of Civil Rights and Diversity
(OCRD) is tasked with leading workforce diversity efforts and works closely with its Office of
Human Capital and Talent Management (HCTM), which manages the agency’s recruitment,
workforce development, and retention efforts.
Diversity Data
In June 2020, GAO completed an audit of USAID’s diversity efforts. The audit report identified a
number of challenges, including decreasing representation of racial or ethnic minority employees
as rank increased (Figure 7), lower promotion outcomes for mid-career employees who are racial
or ethnic minorities, and a lesser proportion of women in the higher ranks of both the Civil
Service and Foreign Service (Figure 8).60
Figure 7. USAID’s Minority Workforce,
Figure 8. USAID’s Female Workforce,
by Pay Grade, 2018
by Pay Grade, 2018

Source: CRS, adapted from GAO, USAID: Mixed Progress in Increasing Diversity, and Actions Needed to
Consistently Meet EEO Requirements.
Notes: Percentages calculated in-grade as the share of that grade composed of minority employees. See
“Definitions and Data” text box for a definition of “minority.”

59 USAID’s FY2019 Annual Financial Report (most recent available) reports the agency’s staffing level at 9,688, with
6,466 service at overseas missions. However, these top-lines do not include Institutional Support Contractors (ISCs),
which in FY2018 (most recent available), numbered more than 1,600. USAID, Agency Financial Report Fiscal Year
2019, p. 3; USAID Congressional Staffing Report, FY2018.
60 GAO, USAID: Mixed Progress in Increasing Diversity, and Actions Needed to Consistently Meet EEO
Requirements, 20-477, June 2020.
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A more detailed look at the USAID workforce
Figure 9. USAID’s Racial and Ethnic
in 2018 shows that, as at the State
Diversity, 2018
Department, Blacks/African Americans were
% Deviation from the U.S. Resident Population
overrepresented in the USAID Civil Service,
(0=U.S. Resident Population Percentage)
and Whites overrepresented in the USAID
Foreign Service, relative to the U.S.
population that year. Hispanic/Latino
employees were underrepresented in both
categories, and Asian Americans were
represented at about the same level as in the
U.S. population (Figure 9).
The GAO data also showed a decrease in
racial and ethnic diversity, but a slight
increase in the proportion of women in
USAID’s workforce, compared with the U.S.
resident population between 2002 and 2018.
Representation variance is notable among
different ethnic or racial groups. For example,
the agency’s proportions of Hispanic/Latino,
Asian, and other racial or ethnic minority
employees rose by 3, 3, and 1 percentage
point(s) respectively, while the proportion of

Blacks/African Americans fell by 5
Source: CRS Calculation, adapted from USAID:
percentage points in this period. When
Mixed Progress in Increasing Diversity, and Actions
Needed to Consistently Meet EEO Requirements;
disaggregating between the Foreign Service
U.S. Census Bureau, National Intercensal Tables:
and Civil Service workforce, USAID’s
2000-2010 and National Population by
Foreign Service increased its share of both
Characteristics: 2010-2019.
women and racial and ethnic minorities
between 2002 and 2018, while the share of both women and ethnic and racial minorities within
the Civil Service declined. Both trends brought the agency closer to reflecting the U.S. resident
population (Figures 10 and 11). According to the GAO, the proportion of African American Civil
Service employees at USAID fell by 10 percentage points in this period, while the proportion of
African American employees in the Foreign Service increased by 1 percentage point during the
same time period.61

61 Ibid., pp.18-19.
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Figure 10. USAID’s Racial and Ethnic
Figure 11. USAID’s Gender
Diversity, 2002-2018
Diversity, 2002-2018
% Deviation from the U.S. Resident Population
% Deviation from the U.S. Resident Population
(0=U.S. Resident Population Percentage)
(0=U.S. Resident Population Percentage)

Source: CRS Calculation, adapted from USAID: Mixed Progress in Increasing Diversity, and Actions Needed to
Consistently Meet EEO Requirements; U.S. Census Bureau, National Intercensal Tables: 2000-2010 and National
Population by Characteristics: 2010-2019; Office of Personnel Management Federal Equal Opportunity Recruitment
Program (FEORP) Report, Fiscal Years 2001-2017.
Note: See “Definitions and Data” text box for an explanation of “minority” and “nonminority.”
GAO made several recommendations related to USAID’s Office of Civil Rights and Diversity
(OCRD), which publishes the annual MD-715 Report describing EEO compliance at the agency,
including efforts to manage and resolve EEO complaints.62 Recommendations included
increasing capacity of the OCRD to respond to EEO complaints, analyzing workforce
demographic data, completing MD-715 reports in a timely manner, and increasing agency
leadership investment in OCRD activities. GAO was able to apply its analysis only to racial,
ethnic, and gender diversity. Analyses on other diversity efforts, including disability status and
gender identity, were not included due to data availability challenges.63
Agency Efforts to Increase Diversity
USAID employs a number of mechanisms aimed at increasing workforce diversity, primarily
within the agency’s Foreign Service (notably, there are no fellowship or recruitment programs
aimed specifically at improving diversity in the Civil Service).64 These include the following:

62 USAID did not publicly release its FY2018 MD-715 report. Both FY2019 and FY2017 reports are available on the
agency’s website, USAID, Management Directive 715 Report - FY2019, July 8, 2020. USAID MD-715 reports also
provide demographic information on the Civil Service and Foreign Service and USAID’s temporary direct hire
workforce but not on non-direct hire employees (e.g., Personal Services Contractors [PSC] and Institutional Support
Contractors [ISC]).
63 GAO reports that it did not conduct analysis of the numbers and percentages of USAID employees with disabilities
because USAID was involved in disability-related litigation during the audit period. Sexual orientation was not
included because the National Finance Center data do not include that information.
64 Legal issues or legal challenges that may arise with respect to these mechanisms are beyond the scope of this report.
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 Donald Payne International Development Fellowship. The Donald Payne
International Development Fellowship was established by USAID in partnership
with Howard University in 2012, with the intention of recruiting talent from
historically underrepresented groups into the Foreign Service for careers in
international development.65 From its establishment to 2016, the program
awarded approximately five fellowships each year (the highest number was six in
2016). In 2017, the State Department Authorities Act (P.L. 114-323) directed the
Secretary of State to “increase by 5 the number of fellows selected for the Donald
M. Payne International Development Fellowship Program.” Since then, ten
fellowships were awarded each year to students from universities and colleges
across the country, providing up to $48,000 annually for a two-year graduate
program in international affairs or a related subject. Following completion of the
fellowship and USAID Foreign Service entry requirements, Payne Fellows
become USAID Foreign Service Officers (FSOs). In 2021, the program expects
to expand once more, offering fellowships to 15 students.66 USAID funds the
program through its Operating Expenses account.
 Development Diplomats in Residence. Also focused on increasing diversity in
USAID’s Foreign Service, the Development Diplomats in Residence program
was established in 2016 and places senior Foreign Service Officers on college
campuses to promote, educate, and provide information about a career in
international development. Today there are two Development Diplomats in
Residence focusing on institutions serving students from underrepresented
groups both in the southeast region constituting Alabama, Florida, Georgia,
Tennessee, and Louisiana and California, Nevada, and Hawaii.67
 Pathways Internship Program. USAID’s Pathways Internships are paid
positions for students at various education levels.68 While the program was not
established with the explicit goal of increasing workforce diversity, according to
USAID, program participants have been increasingly diverse (in FY2018, racial
and ethnic minority representation was 69%), and the agency works closely with
third-party organizations to extend its recruiting reach.69

65 Remarks of USAID’s Chief Human Capital Officer Bob Leavitt during House Committee on Foreign Affairs,
Subcommittee on Oversight and Investigations, The State Department and USAID FY 2020 Operations Budget, 116th
Cong., 1st sess., July 11, 2019.
66 For more on the Donald Payne International Development Fellowship, see https://www.paynefellows.org/.
67 For more information on the Development Diplomats in Residence Program, see https://www.paynefellows.org/
graduate-fellowship-program/ddir/.
68 The summer 2020 solicitation for Pathways Interns ranged from GS-4 (completion of two full academic years of
post-high school study or associate’s degree) to GS-9 (completion of all requirements for a master’s degree or
equivalent degree). Job description accessed at https://www.usajobs.gov/GetJob/ViewDetails/557240800 on September
18, 2020.
69 According to USAID’s Chief Human Capital Officer, the agency engages with the Congressional Black Caucus
Institute, Congressional Hispanic Caucus Institute, Urban Alliance, Hispanic Association of Colleges and Universities,
and International Leadership Program for Asian/Pacific Islander students. House Committee on Foreign Affairs,
Subcommittee on Oversight and Investigations, The State Department and USAID FY 2020 Operations Budget, 116th
Cong., 1 sess., July 11, 2019.
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Policy Issues
Multiple hiring mechanisms affect
available data. Lack of comprehensive data
Figure 12. USAID Workforce, by Hiring
makes progress toward increasing diversity at
Mechanism
USAID impossible to measure on a broad
scale. USAID employs more than 20 hiring
mechanisms to build and maintain its
workforce and collects demographic data on
only a subset of those mechanisms. For
example, data are collected and analyzed
relating to USAID’s Direct Hire workforce,
including Civil Service, Foreign Service, and
Foreign Service Limited employees.
However, data are not collected on
contractors or on the agency’s Foreign
Service National (FSN) employees. For
FY2018, this means that USAID did not have
demographic data available for approximately
70% of its workforce (Figure 12). While the
FSN workforce may not be pertinent to the
goal of reflecting the U.S. population abroad,
other unreported workforce categories are
relevant.

Agency efforts to increase diversity are
Sources: USAID’s World Wide Staffing Pattern,
small in number and scope. While touted for
FY2018; ISC levels are from USAID’s FY2018
Congressional Staffing Report.
their efforts to increase the agency’s diversity,
Notes: Foreign Service Ltd. = Foreign Service
the Donald Payne International Development
Limited. Mechanisms in red were included in GAO’s
Fellowship, Development Diplomats in
diversity analyses; those in gray were not.
Residence, and Pathways Internship Programs
are narrowly focused and have minimal impact on USAID’s overall diversity. The Payne
Fellowship—the only of the three efforts that guarantees a position at the conclusion of the
program—brings on 10 fellows each year who will become FSOs if they complete the program.
Onboarding 10 new FSOs from ethnic minority groups may increase the diversity of the Foreign
Service by about 1%, or 0.1% of the total USAID workforce, annually depending on agency
growth. Both the Development Diplomats in Residence and Pathways Internship Programs aim to
improve recruitment pipelines, but their effectiveness is difficult to measure. Further, the Payne
Fellowship is the only effort that is directed by law, leaving the others subject to change
potentially without congressional input.
Diversity Efforts within USAID’s Programs
Apart from its internal workforce activities, USAID works to incorporate diversity promotion and inclusion in a
number of its foreign assistance activities. Perhaps the most documented of these efforts is the agency’s work to
integrate gender and women’s empowerment into all of its overseas programming. According to USAID’s gender
policy, released in 2020, “Our vision is of a prosperous and peaceful world in which women, girls, men, and boys
enjoy equal economic, social, cultural, civil, and political rights and are equally empowered to secure better lives
for themselves, their families, their communities, and their countries.”70 Operationally, USAID’s Automated
Directive System (ADS) Chapter 205 governs how USAID and its partners put this into practice. For example

70 USAID, DRAFT: 2020 Gender Equality and Women’s Empowerment Policy, August 19, 2020, p. 3.
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ADS 205 requires Mission Orders specifically on gender, Country Development Cooperation Strategies that
analyze and integrate gender considerations in project designs, and accountability measures for Implementing
Partners to comply with USAID gender policy. 71
Other agency diversity and inclusion efforts in programming are housed primarily in the agency’s Center for
Excellence on Democracy, Human Rights and Governance (DRG) and are largely not mandatory.72 DRG is meant
to be an “information hub” for other agency offices that may be seeking help in incorporating DRG issues into
their respective programs. The Human Rights division within DRG, in addition to other responsibilities, seeks to
offer expertise and resources on how to advance disability-inclusive development, remain sensitive to the needs of
indigenous communities, and protect LGBT individuals.73
Suggested conflict between USAID’s messaging in overseas programs and workforce
diversity efforts. While there is broad support for USAID’s activities that promote diversity and
inclusion overseas, some have suggested that USAID’s internal challenges with diversity and
inclusion and the current cultural debates surrounding equality in American society may
compromise the agency’s success in the field (see text box above). In June 2020, more than 1,000
USAID staff signed a letter to then-acting Administrator John Barsa indicating their pride in
USAID’s field work but deep concern that “USAID’s credibility and effectiveness abroad are
undermined by systemic racism and injustice at home.” Further, the letter called on USAID to
“improve hiring outreach, fix our broken talent pipeline, and ensure that incoming and current
nonwhite staff have equal opportunities and are paid and promoted equitably to their
colleagues.”74
U.S. Agency for Global Media
The U.S. Agency for Global Media (USAGM) is an independent agency with the mission “to
inform, engage, and connect people around the world in support of freedom and democracy.” The
agency carries out this work through a network of broadcasting platforms, employing
approximately 3,700 full-time personnel as of FY2020. Of this total, approximately 1,700 are
federal employees, working in Agency positions or for one of the two federal broadcasting
entities, the Voice of America (VOA) and the Office of Cuba Broadcasting (OCB). Three
USAGM-funded broadcasters, Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty (RFE/RL), Radio Free Asia
(RFA), and the Middle East Broadcasting Networks (MBN), as well as the Open Technology
Fund (OTF), employ approximately 2,000 nonfederal personnel in total. While the significant
majority of federal employees are individuals who are U.S. citizens or residents, for FY2020
USAGM designated approximately 240 federal USAGM employees as “Foreign Nationals.”
U.S. international broadcasting is guided in part by statutory provisions that deal with diversity as
a part of the overall mission of government-funded broadcasting to foreign publics. Section
303(b) of the United States International Broadcasting Act of 1994, as amended (Title III of P.L.

71 USAID, ADS Chapter 205.1, p. 4.
72 USAID has, for example, a DRG-authored document on integrating inclusive development across the program cycle
and in mission operations that notes that “inclusion is key to aid effectiveness” but that the guidance is not mandatory.
USAID DCHA/DRG/HR, Suggested Approaches for Integrating Inclusive Development Across the Program Cycle and
in Mission Operations, Additional Help for ADS 201, July 2018.
73 See, for example, USAID, Disability Inclusive Development 102, April 8, 2020; and USAID, Policy on Promoting
the Rights of Indigenous Peoples, March 2020.
74 Dan De Luce and Abigail Williams, “USAID staff demand action from agency leaders over ‘systemic racism,’” NBC
News, June 11, 2020.
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103-236; 22 U.S.C. s. 6202(b)) sets out the standards of U.S. international broadcasting, requiring
broadcasts to include, among other things,
[(b)](2) a balanced and comprehensive projection of United States thought and institutions,
reflecting the diversity of United States culture and society[.]75
Subsection (c)(2) of Section 303 impels VOA specifically to provide diverse views of the United
States:
[(c)](2) VOA will represent America, not any single segment of American society, and will
therefore present a balanced and comprehensive projection of significant American thought
and institutions.
In executive branch regulation, Title 22, Part 530 of the Code of Federal Regulations requires
USAGM to practice and enforce nondiscrimination “on the basis of handicap” in employment
and participation in programs and activities of the agency. The regulations include requirements
and procedures for enforcement of nondiscrimination and the consideration of complaints of
discrimination based on an employee’s handicap. USAGM is also governed by certain provisions
of the Department of State Foreign Affairs Manual for any Foreign Service personnel employed
by the agency, which include the requirement that its personnel programs “be administered
without discrimination on the basis of race, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, national origin,
age, disability, marital status, geographic or educational affiliation, or political affiliation.”76
Diversity Data
USAGM submits annual EEO reports to OPM. Figure 13. USAGM Workforce Included in
USAGM’s grantee broadcasters, RFE/RL,
EEOC Diversity Reporting, 2018
RFA, and MBN, as well as OTF, are
nonfederal entities and do not report their
diversity numbers to OPM.77 The diversity
numbers for USAGM in this report therefore
reflect solely the makeup of the federal
workforce, and not those of the agency’s
grantees (Figure 13).
USAGM’s most recent publicly available
annual EEO report includes data for FY2018
and reflects a total agency workforce minority
participation percentage of 51.49%, which is
significantly higher than some other agencies
and higher than the U.S. civilian workforce
overall. OPM data on USAGM diversity for

FY2018 differ slightly, reporting 52.9% of the
Source: CRS Calculation, adapted from data from
USAGM workforce as racial or ethnic
EEOC, Annual Report on the Federal Workforce: 2018;
and United States Advisory Commission on Public
minorities (Figure 14 and Figure 15). Data for
Diplomacy:
2018 show that relative to the U.S. population,

75 Emphasis added.
76 See 3 FAM 1212.2; see generally 3 FAM 1200.
77 CRS has asked for detailed breakdowns of workforce composition from the grantee broadcasters. RFE/RL has stated
that its workforce of 1,272 comprises 778 male personnel and 494 female personnel, for 38.8% female participation.
The broadcaster stated that it does not keep record of the race or ethnicity of its workforce. Neither RFA nor MBN has
been able to provide diversity numbers to CRS as of publication of this report.
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Black and Asian Americans were highly represented at USAGM, while White and Hispanic
Americans were underrepresented (Figure 16).
Figure 14. USAGM’s Racial and Ethnic
Figure 15. USAGM’s Gender
Diversity, 2002-2018
Diversity, 2002-2018
% Deviation from the U.S. Resident Population
% Deviation from the U.S. Resident Population
(0=U.S. Resident Population Percentage)
(0=U.S. Resident Population Percentage)

Source: CRS Calculation, adapted from data from EEOC, Annual Report on the Federal Workforce: 2005-2018;
U.S. Census Bureau, National Intercensal Tables: 2000-2010 and National Population by Characteristics: 2010-
2019; Office of Personnel Management Federal Equal Opportunity Recruitment Program (FEORP) Report, Fiscal
Years 2001-2017.
While USAGM has a relatively more diverse workforce in some racial or ethnic terms, it is less
diverse in other workforce characteristics. EEOC data for FY2018 show the agency has failed to
employ personnel with disabilities at the federal targeted rate of 2% of the overall workforce.
Females made up 39.6% of the total workforce, and Hispanic/Latino employees made up 7.1%,
both below the overall federal civilian workforce rates. While Black/African American personnel
made up 22.9% of the total USAGM workforce for FY2018, there were no Black/African
American employees in Senior Executive Service positions at USAGM. OPM data from that
same year show similar but not identical representation of female (41.3%) and Hispanic/Latino
(7.4%) employees.
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Policies and Structures Affecting
Figure 16. USAGM’s Racial and Ethnic
Diversity
Diversity, 2018
% Deviation from the U.S. Resident Population
In a policy statement on workforce diversity
(0=U.S. Resident Population Percentage)
and inclusion released on December 31, 2019,
then-USAGM Chief Executive Officer (CEO)
Grant Turner stressed that the agency’s
diversity “enables USAGM to provide
consistently accurate and compelling
journalism to millions of people around the
world.” Turner exhorted all employees to
reinforce this commitment to diversity in their
everyday work.78
USAGM maintains structures and programs
intended to increase and ensure diversity and
inclusion in its workforce and operations. The
agency’s EEO, Diversity & Inclusion
Advisory Council is responsible for
submitting the annual employment reports
required by EEOC Management Directive
715 (MD-715). The Advisory Council is also
tasked with informing management and

employees of their responsibilities under
Source: CRS Calculation, adapted from data from
EEOC, Annual Report on the Federal Workforce: 2005-
applicable EEO standards; keeping the
2018; U.S. Census Bureau, National Intercensal Tables:
agency updated on changes to EEO and
2000-2010 and National Population by Characteristics:
diversity and inclusion laws and regulations;
2010-2019.
identifying and providing recommendations
to remove barriers to workforce EEO, diversity and inclusion; and monitoring agency efforts to
improve compliance with applicable requirements.
USAGM’s Office of Civil Rights (OCR) is responsible for development and implementation of
the EEO program, handles the Agency’s EEO complaint process, and informs USAGM managers
of EEO requirements and procedures. OCR works with USAGM’s Human Resources Office on
HR management initiatives to improve diversity, reasonable accommodation, and upward
mobility for minority groups in the Agency. OCR is also tasked with ensuring that USAGM’s
nonfederal grantees, Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty (RFE/RL), Radio Free Asia (RFA), the
Middle East Broadcasting Networks (MBN), and the Open Technology Fund (OTF), comply with
federal nondiscrimination requirements for recipients of federal grant funds. OCR also conducts
outreach programs for staff to increase and maintain “harmonious and fair working conditions.”79
According to USAGM, all employees receive briefings and training on EEO policies, both at
orientation upon employment and through regular agency communications. This includes training

78 USAGM CEO Grant Turner, Diversity and Inclusion Policy Statement, U.S. Agency for Global Media, December
31, 2019, at https://www.usagm.gov/wp-content/uploads/2020/03/Diversity-and-Inclusion-Policy-Statement.pdf.
79 USAGM CEO Grant Turner, Equal Employment Opportunity Policy Statement, U.S. Agency for Global Media,
March 31, 2020, at https://www.usagm.gov/wp-content/uploads/2020/05/EEO-Policy-Statement-Signed-03-31-20.pdf.
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for all managers and staff on USAGM’s EEO and diversity policies, “which prohibit unlawful
discrimination and harassment and promote diversity and inclusion in the workplace.”80
Issues Affecting Diversity
EEO compliance. A December 2019 OIG report found that the USAGM CEO expressed support
for EEO standards and that in June 2018 USAGM adopted “a zero-tolerance policy regarding all
forms of harassment, harassing conduct, and discrimination.”81 USAGM generally met hiring
requirements, which include EEO standards. The OIG found, however, that USAGM was failing
to carry out some EEO-related training that concerned workplace harassment.82
Vetting of new hires and work visa expirations. Soon after USAGM CEO Michael Pack
assumed leadership of the agency in June 2020, reports surfaced that the agency would allow the
work visas for approximately 100 foreign USAGM employees to expire, requiring the
termination of their employment and their departure from the United States.83 According to
USAGM officials and Mr. Pack himself, the decision was linked to alleged problems with
USAGM’s suitability and security vetting for employees, problems that Mr. Pack has asserted had
possibly allowed foreign intelligence agencies to gain influence through Agency personnel,
endangering U.S. national security.84 (A previous July 2020 decision by the Office of Personnel
Management stripped USAGM of autonomous authority to determine personnel suitability for
sensitive positions.85) A significant reduction of foreign employees might reduce the diverse
makeup of the USAGM workforce. Changes to suitability and security standards in hiring could
also have an adverse effect on workforce diversity, as many candidates with foreign backgrounds
and contacts (among other things), even those who are U.S. citizens or permanent residents,
might be considered hiring risks.
Political priorities and diversity of reporting. Recent actions by CEO Pack to replace the
leadership of all of the USAGM-funded broadcasters, and to reportedly investigate the
journalistic integrity of several employees, have raised concerns about the politicization of

80 U.S. Agency for Global Media, Fiscal Year 2018 Federal Agency Annual Equal Employment Opportunity (EEO)
Program Status Report (Management Directive 715), p. 5, at https://www.usagm.gov/wp-content/uploads/2020/03/FY-
2018-Management-Directive-715-for-Website.pdf.
81 Office of Inspector General, U.S. Department of State, Targeted Inspection of the Governance of the United States
Agency for Global Media, April 2019, p. 16, at https://www.stateoig.gov/system/files/isp-ib-19-22_0.pdf.
82 Ibid.
83 See Pranshu Verma and Edward Wong, “Trump Appointee Might Not Extend Visas for Foreign Journalists at
V.O.A.,” The New York Times, July 9, 2020.
84 In an August 2020 interview, CEO Pack stated that state-run broadcasters in several countries had been “penetrated”
by foreign agents, stating, “It is a great place to put a foreign spy. I have to make sure that doesn’t happen—to stand up
for the national security interests of Americans.” Tristan Justice, “NPR Manipulates Federalist Interview With VOA
Executive On Behalf Of Government Employees Opposing Reform,” The Federalist, September 3, 2020, at
https://thefederalist.com/2020/09/03/npr-manipulates-federalist-interview-with-voa-executive-on-behalf-of-
government-employees-opposing-reform/. Critics of the decision not to renew visas stated that foreign USAGM
employees are hired when U.S. citizens and permanent residents cannot fill vital broadcasting roles providing news and
information to foreign publics. They argue that the visa decision itself could harm U.S. national security and interests,
as well as place foreign journalists in danger as they return to repressive societies where the government would not
look kindly on citizens who have been critical of such repression. They also assert that characterizations of foreign-
born journalists as potential “spies” compromise the trust foreign publics have in USAGM-funded broadcasts, and give
U.S. adversaries in authoritarian regimes fodder for attacks on USAGM broadcasters. See David Folkenflick, “Voice of
America Journalists: New CEO Endangers Reporters, Harms U.S. Aims,” National Public Radio, August 31, 2020.
85 U.S. Office of Personnel Management, Follow-Up Review of the U.S. Agency for Global Media Suitability Program,
July 2020.
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USAGM broadcasting. These actions may have implications for the diversity of political
perspectives reflected in USAGM-supported broadcasts, particularly at VOA, which is tasked
with “telling America’s story,” and explaining the policy positions and actions of the U.S.
government to foreign audiences. VOA is required to produce reporting that reflects “the diversity
of United States culture and society,” and some observers have expressed concern that USAGM
broadcasters’ reporting will face pressure to favor conservative viewpoints or narrow its focus to
promote certain U.S. government policy interests.86 On the other hand, some believe that the
USAGM broadcaster reporting will become more ideologically diverse, arguing that U.S.
international broadcasting currently has a decidedly liberal or progressive bias.87
Peace Corps
The Peace Corps was created with a vision of promoting world peace and friendship through a
cadre of trained volunteers to support community-based development projects in countries around
the world. Representing the United States abroad, including its tradition of diversity, is an explicit
part of the second of the Peace Corps Act’s three goals, “to help promote a better understanding
of Americans on the part of peoples served.”88 Agency analysts have argued in the past that this
mandate makes it especially important that the Peace Corps workforce, including the volunteer
force, reflect the diversity of the American population.89
The Peace Corps prioritized efforts to promote diversity in consecutive agency strategic plans,
dating back to at least 2000. The FY2018-2022 Strategic Plan is the first in the 21st century not to
include such a target.90

86 See, for example, Robert R. King, Turmoil at U.S. Agency for Global Media Undermines Information Policy for
North Korea, Center for Strategic and International Studies, July 14, 2020, at https://www.csis.org/analysis/turmoil-us-
agency-global-media-undermines-information-policy-north-korea (referring to North Korea broadcasts as well as
broader reporting).
87 See, for example, Mike Gonzalez, Time for Trump’s Choice, Not Obama’s, to Head America’s Global Broadcast
Operations, The Heritage Foundation, June 6, 2018, at https://www.heritage.org/political-process/commentary/time-
trumps-choice-not-obamas-head-americas-global-broadcast.
88 §2 of the Peace Corps Act, P.L. 87-293, as amended.
89 A 2010 comprehensive agency assessment, for instance, argued that this goal of increasing understanding of
Americans “is best achieved by a diverse cadre of Volunteers.” Peace Corps, A Comprehensive Agency Assessment,
June 2010, p. 109.
90 CRS review of agency Performance and Accountability Reports, 2000 to 2020.
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Diversity Data
Figure 17. Peace Corp’s Racial and
Figure 18. Peace Corp’s Gender
Ethnic Diversity, 2002-2018
Diversity, 2002-2018
% Deviation from the U.S. Resident Population
% Deviation from the U.S. Resident Population
(0=U.S. Resident Population Percentage)
(0=U.S. Resident Population Percentage)

Source: CRS Calculation, adapted from EEOC, Annual Report on the Federal Workforce: 2005-2018; U.S.
Census Bureau, National Intercensal Tables: 2000-2010 and National Population by Characteristics: 2010-2019;
Office of Personnel Management Federal Equal Opportunity Recruitment Program (FEORP) Report, Fiscal Years
2001-2017, Annual Peace Corps Congressional Budget Justifications, FY2003-FY2019.
Note: See “Definitions and Data” text box for an explanation of “minority” and “nonminority.”
Peace Corps volunteers, who serve overseas at the grassroots level for 27-month terms, are the
backbone of the agency’s overseas programming. Over 7,000 volunteers are supported by a U.S.
direct hire workforce of approximately 900 and a host country national staff of more than 2,800.91
Ethnic minorities made up about 15% of the volunteer force in 2008, rising steadily to over 30%
by 2018. In this same period, the diversity of Peace Corps federal employees (non-volunteers)
declined slightly in the years after FY2008 before rebounding in 2018.92 Since 2006, Peace
Corps’ federal employee workforce has consistently had a smaller share of racial and ethnic
minorities, and males, than the U.S. population or general labor force (Figure 17 and Figure 18).
Peace Corps senior staff includes a smaller proportion of ethnic or racial minorities than the
volunteer force and the agency’s total workforce. In 2017, 35.5% of Peace Corps staff in grades
GS-1 to GS-11 were ethnic or racial minorities, compared with 28.6% of staff in grades 14-15 and
14.3% at the Senior Executive level. Women composed 42.9% of the Senior Executive level
workforce, compared with 59% of the staff workforce total (Figure 19 and Figure 20).93

91 Staffing levels taken from Peace Corps, FY2019 Agency Financial Report, November 15, 2019, p. 8. Peace Corps
volunteers, by statute, are not considered federal employees except for specific purposes. §5(a) of the Peace Corps Act,
P.L. 87-293, as amended.
92 Peace Corps, Congressional Budget Justification FY2021, February 2020, p. 73. The Peace Corps reported an
increase in applicants of minority racial and ethnic groups from 21% in FY2007 to 36% in FY2017. While that data is
no longer regularly reported, figures from the volunteer force have remained stable since FY2017.
93 EEOC, Annual Report on the Federal Workforce: 2017.
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Figure 19. Peace Corps’ Minority
Figure 20. Peace Corps’ Female
Workforce, by Pay Grade, 2017
Workforce, by Pay Grade, 2017

Source: CRS, adapted from EEOC, Annual Report on the Federal Workforce: 2017.
Notes: Percentages calculated in-grade as the share of that grade composed of minority employees. Excludes
Peace Corps volunteer workforce. Peace Corps Executive workforce may comprise sample sizes of less than
30 individuals. See “Definitions and Data” text box for the definition of “minority.”
In 2018, Peace Corps volunteers and staff identifying as Asian closely reflected the U.S.
population, while Black/African Americans were overrepresented relative to the general
population in the staff ranks and underrepresented in the volunteer force. Hispanic/Latinos were
underrepresented in both workforce groups relative to their portion of the U.S. resident
population. (Figure 21). The volunteer force was more diverse than the employee workforce with
37% self-identifying as ethnic or racial minorities, higher than the agency average of 31.6%.94
The volunteer force and federal employee workforce at Peace Corps had a higher proportion of
women than the U.S. workforce. Women formed a majority of both the overseas volunteer force
(64.0%) and federal staff (58.4%) in 2018.

94 Peace Corps, Annual Performance Report FY2017, 2017, p. 14.
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Volunteer service has long attracted an
Figure 21. Peace Corp’s Racial and Ethnic
especially young recruitment pool, with 89%
Diversity, 2018
of volunteers younger than 30 in FY2019.95
The agency worked to achieve greater age
% Deviation from the U.S. Resident Population
balance in the volunteer force throughout the
(0=U.S. Resident Population Percentage)
2000s, but ultimately determined that the
short, two-year term of volunteers’ service
would inherently limit recruitment among an
older-age cohort, the members of which may
be more established in their careers.96 Peace
Corps staff more closely align with the U.S.
workforce, with 46.6% of U.S. direct hires
aged 45 and older, compared with 44.0% of
the U.S. civilian workforce.97
Beyond the demographics of the Peace Corps
workforce, the agency has also historically
tracked staff perceptions as to whether the
workplace is open and inclusive. The
FY2014-FY2018 performance plan
consistently fell short of its targets among
volunteers, host country nationals, and U.S.
employees for these targets. In FY2017, the

last year of reporting on that plan, 82% of
Source: CRS Calculation, adapted from EEOC,
U.S. employees, 68% of volunteers, and 91%
Annual Report on the Federal Workforce: 2005-2018;
of host country nationals reported that the
U.S. Peace Corp, 2018 Annual Volunteer Survey Results,
Global Tabular Report; U.S. Census Bureau, National
agency “is inclusive of diverse people,”
Intercensal Tables: 2000-2010 and National Population
missing the 90% target across these groups.98
by Characteristics: 2010-2019.
In FY2019, perceptions of inclusivity appear
Notes: For the category of Asian employees, the
to have worsened across each group—with
Peace Corps Volunteer Survey groups together “Asian”
68.5% of federal employees and 85% of host
and “Pacific Islander,” whereas EEOC data on the
country nationals agreeing that managers and
Peace Corps Non-Volunteer Workforce categorizes
supervisors “work well with employees of
“Pacific Islander” separately, included in the “Other”
different backgrounds,”99 and 60% of
category.
volunteers agreeing that “the organizational culture of the Peace Corps is inclusive of diverse
backgrounds.”100
Policy Issues
One contextual factor affecting the Peace Corps is the so-called “Five Year Rule,” which limits
most Peace Corps staff to a five-year contract. The intent of the rule, which dates to shortly after

95 Peace Corps, Congressional Budget Justification: Fiscal Year 2021, February 2020, p. 73.
96 For further information, see “Volunteer Expertise and Training” in CRS Report RS21168, The Peace Corps:
Overview and Issues, by Nick M. Brown.
97 Data from FY2019. U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, Labor Force Statistics from the Current Population Survey:
Age, accessed September 17, 2020, at https://www.bls.gov/cps/demographics.htm#age.
98 Peace Corps, Annual Host Country National Survey 2019, Q9; Peace Corps 2017 Performance Report, p. 14. Federal
employee data is from Federal Employee Viewpoint Survey data shared by the Peace Corps, November 5, 2020.
99 Ibid.
100 Peace Corps, 2019 Annual Volunteer Survey: Global Tabular Report, November 2019, p. 40.
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Peace Corps’ creation in 1961, is to continually bring in fresh perspectives to the agency. In
practice, such turnover may hinder diversity and inclusion recruitment programs. On the one
hand, the agency may see the effects of new hiring policies relatively quickly, given that staff
turnover is relatively high. On the other hand, the agency’s applicant pool may particularly
depend on the diversity policies of places they hire from, because the Peace Corps does not
cultivate a long-term workforce. The agency thus may struggle to hire racial or ethnic minorities
at the senior level if agencies it hires from have failed to cultivate diverse senior staff themselves.
The nature of Peace Corps jobs, and volunteer assignments in particular, may also be a factor
affecting diversity. As mentioned, the agency has tried with mixed success to recruit older
volunteers, but the agency found that the two-year assignments are most appealing to people early
in their careers and those without young children at home. The remote nature of many
assignments may also limit the participation of people with physical disabilities or certain health
conditions. Furthermore, Peace Corps formulates volunteer stipends to match local living
conditions, which are almost invariably below the U.S. minimum wage. That may limit efforts to
promote diversity by discouraging those with substantial financial commitments from joining.
Families who rely on a recent college graduate’s income may be a constraint on that graduate
serving overseas.101 Peace Corps has created several initiatives to balance these pressures. It has
touted Peace Corps Response, a short-term program designed for more experienced candidates, as
a vehicle for engaging older volunteers. It has also sought to establish a “strong, long-term,
ongoing collaborative relationship” with a historically black college or university (HBCU),
Howard University, and has run marketing campaigns targeted at HBCU audiences, featuring
HBCU alumni who are returned volunteers.102 Various student loan deferment options are meant
to mitigate financial hardship for young volunteers, but such programs are unlikely to be adequate
for all prospective volunteers.
Other Selected Agencies
Other U.S. agencies, such as the examples below, implement foreign policy and may be in a
position to promote U.S. policy and values with regard to diversity through their workforce
composition or may undermine it through inattention to such matters.
 The Millennium Challenge Corporation (MCC) funds and oversees
implementation of development compacts led by partner countries, deploying a
small number of U.S. direct-hire staff abroad. MCC appears to maintain a
relatively diverse workforce across all salary tiers: 38.1% of employees identify
as racial or ethnic minorities, with 37.5% of those making more than
$100,000/year identifying as such.103
 The Overseas Private Investment Corporation, which has recently become the
U.S. International Development Finance Corporation (DFC), supports
international projects but maintains a very small workforce presence overseas.
DFC’s workforce is diverse compared with some of its counterpart agencies, with

101 A 1986 study of the attitudes toward Peace Corps among Black students and parents found that both tended to see
no economic benefit to joining the Peace Corps and perceived Peace Corps volunteers as traditionally coming from
upper-middle class white families. See “Peace Corps: Meeting the Challenges of the 1990s,” GAO/NSIAD-90-122.
May 1990, at https://www.gao.gov/assets/150/149047.pdf.
102 Peace Corps, Federal HBCU Competitiveness Strategy Framework, FY21-22.
103 OPM, FedSCOPE¸ accessed September 17, 2020, at https://www.fedscope.opm.gov/.
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38.5% identifying as racial or ethnic minorities.104 DFC data suggest a
considerable compensation disparity, however: 26.6% of staff making more than
$100,000/year are racial or ethnic minorities, compared with 77.8% making less
than that.105
Issues for Congress
As Congress considers ongoing involvement in how the foreign affairs agencies pursue diversity
in their workforces, it may focus its efforts on a number of challenges and lessons learned that
have been identified through previous agency efforts and congressional oversight activity.
Data Challenges
A persistent challenge to diversity and inclusion efforts is the lack of available, consistent, and
complete data. GAO audits of the Department of State and USAID both found that inconsistent
data analysis and reporting hindered workforce planning efforts.106 The two primary sources of
diversity data across the federal workforce, the EEOC and OPM, gather data using different
reporting mechanisms, leading to different employee counts, and neither source provides
complete data for all of the agencies covered in this report. To aid future oversight efforts,
Congress may wish to ascertain the extent to which foreign affairs agencies are complying with
current reporting requirements, congressional directives, and agency policies on diversity. As part
of that discussion, Congress may consider whether data on contractors and other staff should be
part of agency reporting on workforce diversity.
Congress may also consider addressing obstacles to data collection. At the most basic level,
demographic identification is not mandatory—individuals opt in to providing demographic data,
whether race, ethnicity, disability status, etc. If enough employees choose not to share their
demographic information or are not prompted to share additional contextual information that may
prove useful, data are sufficiently incomplete that analyses are not helpful to agency planning
efforts. In some cases, agencies are working to address such challenges. For example, the State
Department overhauled its exit survey process effective May 1, 2020, amid longstanding
concerns that it lacked the capacity to capture systemic factors prompting personnel from
underrepresented groups to leave the department.107 Some Members of Congress have supported
legislative proposals for the State Department to conduct exit interviews with department
employees to capture data for this purpose. For example, Section 403 of H.R. 3352, (116th
Congress), which passed the House of Representatives and was received in the Senate in
September 2019, would have required the State Department to offer optional exit interviews to
State Department employees leaving the workforce.

104 Ibid.
105 OPM, FedSCOPE, accessed September 17, 2020, at https://www.fedscope.opm.gov/.
106 GAO, State Department: Additional Steps Are Needed to Identify Potential Barriers to Diversity, 20-237, January
27, 2020; GAO, USAID: Mixed Progress in Increasing Diversity, and Actions Needed to Consistently Meet EEO
Requirements, 20-477, June 23, 2020.
107 U.S. Department of State, Bureau of Global Talent Management, “Changes to the Department’s Centralized Exit
Survey System,” notice transmitted to State Department employees via e-mail, April 2020.
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Staffing and Leadership of Diversity and Inclusion Programs
Staffing levels within the agency offices that manage hiring and diversity efforts have reportedly
had a negative effect on agencies’ ability to analyze available data and inform workforce planning
efforts. USAID cited understaffing and/or high staff turnover in OCRD as hindering the agency’s
ability to meet its MD-715 report requirements and effectively process EEO complaints while
staffing challenges in HCTM slowed agency hiring.108 In addition, the State Department informed
Congress that in January 2019 only one staffer within the Global Talent Management (GTM)
Bureau was focused on diversity and inclusion efforts—as of September 2020, the number of
personnel working on these issues had increased to four.109 Maintaining staff in those offices may
play a role in the success of diversity and inclusion efforts.
In addition to increased staffing levels, backing from senior staff is regularly cited as necessary
for success in improving diversity, equity, and inclusion. While foreign affairs agencies’
leadership have repeatedly stated their support for these efforts, some in Congress have
questioned their commitment to action. For example, in a recent hearing on the Department of
State’s Diversity and Inclusion efforts, there was debate over whether or not the department
should make unconscious bias trainings mandatory. The department representative noted that
unconscious bias training experts urged them to keep the training optional, suggesting that a
mandatory requirement would be viewed as less valuable. Members expressed some skepticism
of this justification, including one who noted that not making the training mandatory conveyed “a
certain lack of seriousness.”110
Recruitment and Retention Concerns
Members of Congress and other observers continue to emphasize the need to ensure that
recruiting efforts attract applicants from underrepresented groups. For example, in testimony
before Congress in June 2020, retired Ambassador Gina Abercrombie-Winstanley remarked that
the Rangel and Pickering Fellowship Programs have become the near-exclusive entry point into
the Foreign Service for minority officers, and that more must be done to ensure such officers are
also able to enter the Foreign Service through the regular intake process.111 In this vein, Director
General Perez informed Congress in September 2020 that the State Department was reassessing
the Foreign Service application process to determine whether the department could improve it to
bring in greater numbers of highly qualified female and minority candidates.112
There is also a growing understanding that recruitment is just one aspect of increasing diversity.
Both executive branch officials from foreign affairs agencies and Members of Congress have
asserted that in order to ensure representation throughout agencies’ mid- and senior-level ranks,

108 U.S. Government Accountability Office, USAID: Mixed Progress in Increasing Diversity, and Actions Needed to
Consistently Meet EEO Requirements, 20-477, June 23, 2020.
109 House Committee on Foreign Affairs, Subcommittee on Oversight and Investigations, “House Foreign Affairs
Subcommittee on Oversight and Investigations Holds Hearing on State Department Diversity and Inclusion,”
September 22, 2020.
110 Ibid. Quote is from Rep. David Cicilline.
111 U.S. Congress, House Committee on Foreign Affairs, Subcommittee on Oversight and Investigations, “House
Foreign Affairs Subcommittee on Oversight and Investigations Holds Hearing on Diversity in the State Department,”
June 17, 2020, at https://plus.cq.com/doc/congressionaltranscripts-5933471?1.
112 House Committee on Foreign Affairs, Subcommittee on Oversight and Investigations, “House Foreign Affairs
Subcommittee on Oversight and Investigations Holds Hearing on State Department Diversity and Inclusion,”
September 22, 2020.
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they must invest in staff retention and inclusion efforts. Congress has approached this issue from
several angles. For example, several Members have expressed concerns that State Department
“assignment restrictions” have a negative impact on retention. These prohibit selected employees
from serving in certain countries, or working on programs where such countries are a primary
focus. This is due to an employee’s potential vulnerability to targeting and harassment by foreign
intelligence services and to lessen perceived foreign influence and/or foreign preference security
concerns.113 The State Department’s Asian American Foreign Affairs Association Employee
Affinity Group (EAG) and Members of Congress have expressed concern that assignment
restrictions may unfairly and disproportionately affect Asian-American employees, making it
more difficult for them to advance their careers and increasing the likelihood that they will leave
the department. Members of Congress have added that the discriminatory use of assignment
restrictions may also deprive the State Department of cultural expertise, language skills, and other
benefits that would improve implementation of U.S. foreign policy in East Asia. Thus far, GTM
has engaged on this issue with the Bureau of Diplomatic Security (DS), which is responsible for
implementing assignment restrictions, and DS has pledged to offer more transparency on this
matter.114
Foreign Relations Complications
In the foreign policy arena, workforce diversity may have implications for bilateral relationships,
and staff biographies may challenge locals’ sensibilities. In 2016, for example, the Obama
Administration faced criticism overseas after appointing an openly gay American, James
Brewster, as ambassador to the Dominican Republic. Local religious groups disparaged the pick,
saying the appointment signaled hostility to Christian values.115 Ethnic heritage may also create
tensions. U.S. Ambassador to Korea Harry Harris stated that he has faced criticism in Korea due
to his Japanese heritage, as some Koreans have compared him to Japanese colonial officials who
directed Japan’s occupation of the country for part of the 20th century.116
In addition to the personal biographies foreign affairs personnel bring to their roles, staff may be
expected to modulate their public images to account for fundamentally different views of
inclusion in the countries where they serve. Balancing this tension may include calculations about
staff effectiveness or even safety and security, particularly among agencies with large presences
outside comparatively cosmopolitan capital cities. Perhaps no agency is more sensitive to this
issue than the Peace Corps, whose country offices communicate these challenges to volunteers
quite explicitly. Peace Corps Uganda notes that “whistles and verbal harassment based on race or
gender” may be common, and Peace Corps Ukraine volunteers warn that racial epithets and
games involving Blackface are not uncommon.117 Peace Corps Morocco indicates that open

113 U.S. Department of State, Foreign Affairs Manual, “12 FAM 233.5 Assignment Restrictions,” available at
https://fam.state.gov.
114 House Committee on Foreign Affairs, Subcommittee on Oversight and Investigations, “House Foreign Affairs
Subcommittee on Oversight and Investigations Holds Hearing on State Department Diversity and Inclusion,”
September 22, 2020.
115 Anyi Lizardo and Rafael Romo, “Dominican religious group wants U.S. to remove gay U.S. ambassador,” CNN,
March 18, 2016, at https://www.cnn.com/2016/03/17/americas/dominican-republic-gay-us-ambassador/index.html.
116 Hyung-Jin Kim, “When it comes to US ambassador, South Koreans bash more than his stache,” Associated Press,
January 20, 2020, at https://www.navytimes.com/news/your-navy/2020/01/20/when-it-comes-to-us-ambassador-south-
koreans-bash-more-than-his-stache/.
117 Peace Corps Uganda, Diversity and Inclusion, at https://www.peacecorps.gov/uganda/preparing-to-volunteer/
diversity-and-inclusion/. Peace Corps Ukraine, Diversity and Inclusion, at https://www.peacecorps.gov/ukraine/
preparing-to-volunteer/diversity-and-inclusion/.
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identification as a homosexual may thwart community integration efforts, as may open
expressions of Jewish faith.118
Peace Corps country programs also assert that volunteers should seek moments to enhance cross-
cultural understanding, although they may be sanguine about the extent of such moments’ impact.
Peace Corps Uganda notes that verbal harassment may decline with effective integration,
although they also note that gender equality is “generally considered irrelevant in Ugandan
culture.”119 Peace Corps Morocco suggests that female volunteers have the opportunity to
demonstrate new paradigms for female leadership, even if they “should consider keeping a low
social profile.”120 Peace Corps Ukraine volunteers are similarly told that volunteers may turn
moments of discomfiture into teaching opportunities for host country nationals unfamiliar with
descendants of non-European cultures.121
With these concerns in mind, Congress may investigate how agencies are balancing local cultural
considerations against diversity and inclusion goals, and Members may evaluate the efficacy of
agencies seeking to advance inclusion priorities, in particular whether it may be perceived as
interfering in a country’s domestic political affairs. Congress may also weigh whether
appointments that elicit negative reaction among certain local groups may nevertheless advance
democratic values such as tolerance and inclusivity. Such appointments may even accord with
national government leaders’ aims, even as some local groups express disapproval.

118 Peace Corps Morocco, Diversity and Inclusion, at https://www.peacecorps.gov/morocco/preparing-to-volunteer/
diversity-and-inclusion/.
119 Peace Corps Uganda, Diversity and Inclusion, at https://www.peacecorps.gov/uganda/preparing-to-volunteer/
diversity-and-inclusion/.
120 Peace Corps Morocco, Diversity and Inclusion, at https://www.peacecorps.gov/morocco/preparing-to-volunteer/
diversity-and-inclusion/.
121 Peace Corps Ukraine, Diversity and Inclusion, at https://www.peacecorps.gov/ukraine/preparing-to-volunteer/
diversity-and-inclusion/.
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Appendix A. Data Sources
This report drew from several data sources, including the following:
Government Accountability Office (GAO). Data compiled in GAO’s two reports on the U.S.
Department of State and USAID are used in this report for analysis of these agencies in their
respective sections. GAO reporting includes the Department of State’s Foreign Service, which
generally is not included in annual, publicly accessible reporting on federal workforce data.
Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC). EEOC data are used in this report for
statistical analysis of the U.S. Peace Corps, the U.S. Agency for Global Media
(USAGM)/Broadcasting Board of Governors, and certain comparisons between agencies and the
federal workforce.
Office of Personnel Management (OPM). Data compiled by OPM are used in this report for the
purposes of comparisons to the relevant federal workforce and civilian labor force via OPM’s
Federal Equal Opportunity Recruitment Program (FEORP) annual reports.
U.S. Census Bureau. This report employs comparisons between foreign affairs agencies and the
U.S. population. Demographic statistics for U.S. resident population are derived from inter-
census data published by the U.S. Census Bureau.122
Agency Reports. Reports written by foreign affairs agencies assessing their priorities in
promoting workforce diversity—and their success in implementing those priorities—are included
within their respective sections.

122 U.S. Census Bureau, “National Population by Characteristics: 2010-2019,” July 1, 2019, available at
https://www.census.gov/data/datasets/time-series/demo/popest/2010s-national-detail.html.
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Appendix B. Glossary
AAD
American Academy of Diplomacy
DOS
U.S. Department of State
EAG
Employee Affinity Group
EEOC
Equal Employment Opportunity Commission
FAM
Foreign Affairs Manual
GAO
Government Accountability Office
GTM
U.S. State Department Office of Global Talent Management
HCTM
USAID Office of Human Capital and Talent Management
LGBT
Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender
MBN
Middle East Broadcasting Network
MD-715
Management Directive 715 (annual agency reports to the EEOC)
OCRD
USAID Office of Civil Rights and Diversity
OPM
Office of Personnel Management
OTF
Open Technology Fund
RFA
Radio Free Asia
RFE/RL
Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty
S/OCR
U.S. State Department Office of Civil Rights
USAGM
U.S. Agency for Global Media
USAID
U.S. Agency for International Development

Author Information

Marian L. Lawson, Coordinator
Cory R. Gill
Section Research Manager
Analyst in Foreign Affairs

Nick M. Brown
Emily M. Morgenstern
Analyst in Foreign Assistance and Foreign Policy
Analyst in Foreign Assistance and Foreign Policy

Edward J. Collins-Chase
Matthew C. Weed
Research Assistant
Specialist in Foreign Policy Legislation

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Disclaimer
This document was prepared by the Congressional Research Service (CRS). CRS serves as nonpartisan
shared staff to congressional committees and Members of Congress. It operates solely at the behest of and
under the direction of Congress. Information in a CRS Report should not be relied upon for purposes other
than public understanding of information that has been provided by CRS to Members of Congress in
connection with CRS’s institutional role. CRS Reports, as a work of the United States Government, are not
subject to copyright protection in the United States. Any CRS Report may be reproduced and distributed in
its entirety without permission from CRS. However, as a CRS Report may include copyrighted images or
material from a third party, you may need to obtain the permission of the copyright holder if you wish to
copy or otherwise use copyrighted material.

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