NEENAH – A former Neenah social studies teacher will join the U.S. Department of State in its latest cohort of 110 diplomats.
Eric Thiede, a high school social studies teacher who has worked at Neenah High School for 13 years, received a job offer as a diplomat last October. According to the Neenah Joint School District, Thiede’s last day teaching was Jan. 3; he plans to move with his wife, Stacey, and his youngest son to Washington, D.C., by Jan. 13.
There, he will be sworn in alongside over a hundred other new diplomats, learn the location of his first diplomatic assignment in mid-February, train in Washington, D.C., for several months and move overseas towards the end of the year.
Eric Thiede, a former Neenah Joint School District social studies teacher, is moving to start training for his new position as a diplomat.
Few diplomat applicants ever receive a job offer. What does it take to qualify?
Thiede explained that his new role as a diplomat, or foreign service officer, is different from an ambassador. Ambassadors are appointed by the president of the United States, but foreign service officers are employed by the U.S. Department of State and support ambassadors in their work.
Thiede chose to work in consular services, which assist U.S. citizens abroad, conduct visa interviews, and facilitate international adoptions and student exchange programs.
According to the Department of State, any U.S. citizen between the ages of 20 and 59 can apply to be a foreign service officer — but that doesn’t mean just anyone can become one. The process of qualifying to receive a job offer is involved, including writing a personal narrative, taking the foreign service officer test, undergoing a medical exam and receiving a security clearance.
Thiede said that “less than 2% of applicants end up making it.” The process of applying and receiving the job offer took him two years.
Background as social studies teacher ‘fit’ foreign service role well
In many ways, Thiede said, his previous role as a social studies teacher “is a really good fit” for his new role.
His subject matter as a teacher “will get put to good use” as a diplomat, he said, and during his 25-year-long career, he said he’s also learned to work with different people and “come to consensus” with them.
He has also worked overseas, teaching in Scotland during his early career, and has traveled through different parts of the world. “New adventures and the chance to live in different spots” is part of the appeal of working in foreign service for him, he said.
So how does he and his family prepare to go live in an unknown destination?
“Doing a lot of research,” Thiede said. “What it’s like, knowing what to expect, education opportunities.”
Through the whole process of applying for foreign service, he said, he wanted to emphasize “how wonderfully supportive” his family, his students, their families and the district has been.
“We celebrated every step,” he added.
Rebecca Loroff is a K-12 education reporter for the USA TODAY NETWORK-Wisconsin. She welcomes story tips and feedback. Contact her at rloroff@gannett.com.
This article originally appeared on Appleton Post-Crescent: Neenah teacher Eric Thiede joins Dept. of State as a diplomat
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