F OCUS - American Foreign Service Association

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MILESTONES: TEN YEARS AT AFSA
A Renaissance Man: Steven Alan Honley
Steve Honley never expected to go
into journalism. However, his love
of foreign affairs and his innate talent
for writing and criticism have come
together fortuitously in his position as
editor of the Foreign Service Journal.
Steve grew up in Shreveport, La.,
where he attended Centenary College.
After earning a master’s degree in international
affairs from The George Washington
University, Steve entered the
Foreign Service’s 25th A-100 class in January
1985. He first served in Mexico
City, thrust to the front lines of consular
duty after one of the worst earthquakes
in Mexican history. Then it was off to
Wellington, from which he was able to
travel to the South Pole. He spent the
next nine years in Washington, first in
political-military affairs, then in the
Africa Bureau and finally, after a year of
BY FRANCESCA KELLY
Russian-language
training, in the Nuclear
Risk Reduction
Center. He resigned
in 1997 after burnout
caused him to search
for a different career.
Shortly thereafter, a friend who was
on the Foreign Service Journal Editorial
Board asked Steve to write an article on
short notice to fill in for an ailing author.
He happily complied, enjoying the experience
so much that he started writing
regularly for the magazine, while continuing
to work at the NRRC as a contractor.
When AFSA created a part-time
FSJ associate editor position in April
1999, he applied for and got the job. And
in July 2001, Steve moved up to the editor’s
chair of the Journal, a position he
has held ever since.
HONORING THE STUDY OF HARD LANGUAGES
AFSA Announces Sinclaire Language
Award Winners
BY BARBARA BERGER, COORDINATOR FOR PROFESSIONAL ISSUES
Proficiency in foreign languages is one of the most valuable and important skills in
today’s Foreign Service. AFSA’s Sinclaire Language Awards program honors language
students for outstanding accomplishment in the study of a“hard”language
and its associated culture. AFSA established this language-award program based on a
bequest from Matilda W. Sinclaire, a former Foreign Service officer. Candidates for the
award are nominated by the language-training supervisors at the Foreign Service Institute
School of Languages or by the language instructors at the field schools. They are
selected by a committee composed of volunteer AFSA members, a member of the Governing
Board who serves as chairman and the AFSA coordinator for professional issues.
Each of the winners receives a check for $1,000 and a certificate of recognition signed
by the AFSA president and the chair of the AFSA Awards Committee.
AFSA congratulates the 11 winners of this year’s Sinclaire Language Award, and commends
the School of Language Studies at FSI for its dedication in preparing students of
hard languages for the intense challenges of modern diplomacy.
This year’s winners are:
Anthony Baird Albanian
Brooke Spelman Mandarin Chinese
Lindsey Rothenberg Arabic
Candace Faber Polish
Patrick McNeil Estonian
Gary Westfall Tagalog
Timothy Kraemer Korean
Rachel Mueller Vietnamese
Dewey Moore Korean
Monica Boduszynski Vietnamese ❒
Sandrine Goffard Mandarin Chinese
Steve sees the Journal “as a vehicle for
fostering debate and raising public
awareness of how the Foreign Service
works.” He explains further, “I try to
draw on my own experience and what I,
as an FSO,would have liked the public to
know about the Foreign Service.” But,he
hastens to add, “that doesn’t necessarily
translate to being a cheerleader. There
are things that need reform,and the Journal
has a role in giving the FS community
a forum in which to air different
points of view and ultimately improve
the institution.”
Steve is well-known for his eagle eye
when proofreading documents. “Steve is
an amazing editor,”says FSJ Senior Editor
Susan Maitra. “A conscientious wordsmith
with an acute ear and mastery of
pith, he is responsible for the Journal’s
consistently high standard,while balancing
its professional and general foreign
policy content.” Editorial Board Chairman
Ted Wilkinson comments, “His
ability to get the best out of fractious authors,
to ask just the right questions in his
own informative VIP interviews, and to
build and manage a skilled staff have elevated
the magazine into the top ranks of
professional publications.”
As if that were not enough, Steve devotes
much of his free time to performing,
conducting and composing. He
plays both piano and organ, and possesses
an astonishing vocal range,switching
from bass to tenor to alto (sometimes
within a single composition) as needed.
Many State Department employees have
probably heard and seen Steve in action
with the T-Tones, State’s resident choral
group,for which he is both assistant conductor
and accompanist.
In addition, he has served for nearly
15 years as music director of the Beverley
Hills Community United Methodist
Church, and has performed with such
Washington-area choral groups as the
Friday Morning Music Club Chorale,
Carmina, the Ron Freeman Chorale,
Cantate and Chantry.
Though Steve self-deprecatingly says
that he is “a jack-of-all-trades and master
of none,” his colleagues and friends
know better. He is a true Renaissance
man. ❒
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