The U.S. State Department said on Wednesday that it is revamping how it trains and evaluates future diplomats, removing questions aligned with diversity, equity and inclusion from its screening test and requiring training on “America First foreign policy” as part of a broader curriculum change.
The Foreign Service Officer test has been “overhauled,” according to the State Department, “adding questions on American history and logical reasoning while eliminating those intended to test alignment with the diversity, equity and inclusion agenda.”
The State Department said the changes are intended to emphasize merit and ensure long-term government careers for “promising officers.”
The onboarding program, A-100, will offer “substantive content on policy and tradecraft, which includes lectures on diplomatic history and America First foreign policy.”
It will also require reading that includes “speeches and writings from George Washington, John Quincy Adams, and James Monroe, selections from the Federalist Papers, and works from George Kennan, Angelo Codevilla and Samuel Huntington.”
“The Trump administration is modernizing the Foreign Service to prepare America’s diplomats to advocate for our national interest on a dynamically changing world stage,” said Deputy Spokesperson Tommy Pigott.
