Foreign Affairs

It’s a Friday morning and Harry K. Thomas Jr. ’78 is preparing for an afternoon visit to Capitol Hill to brief senators and staff on the security situation in the U.S. embassy in Khartoum, Sudan, following the Jan. 1 murder of a U.S. diplomat and his driver. Earlier in the morning, Thomas briefed Secretary of State Condoleeza Rice on a variety of matters he is working on, a practice he follows three times a week.

It’s not your ordinary job. “It’s never predictable,” Thomas says from his sixth floor office in the State Department in Washington, D.C., where he can see the “white tops,” U.S. Marine helicopters carrying the president and his staff, fly by.

As the director general of the Foreign Service and director of Human Resources, Thomas oversees the U.S. Department of State’s Bureau of Human Resources, which handles recruitment, assignment evaluation, promotion, discipline, career development, and retirement policies and programs for the department’s 57,000 Foreign and Civil Service employees.

Thomas will return to Holy Cross to speak with students about career opportunities in the State Department on Feb. 6 at 4 p.m. in Rehm Library. All interested students are welcome to attend.

“The Foreign Service traditionally gets young people to serve us, and we have people from all 50 states,” he says. “But, frankly, I’m dismayed that other institutions in New England have a higher number of students taking the Foreign Service exam compared to Holy Cross.”

That has Thomas stumped. “I’m not the first ambassador from Holy Cross,” he says. In fact, it was James K. Bishop ’60, who was working in the State Department that helped Thomas land his first job working in the department. Thomas has been there for 23 years, holding a range of jobs. Most recently he was a special assistant to the Secretary and Executive Secretary of the Department. From 2003-2005, he served as U.S. Ambassador to Bangladesh.

“I think maybe our message isn’t getting across, even though we have excellent Web sites, including Facebook for those interested in the Foreign Service,” he says.

Whatever the reason, Holy Cross students should consider a career serving the country, he says, especially since their education has prepared them well for that type of work.

“The liberal arts education that you get at Holy Cross makes students ideally suited to work with people from foreign countries,” he says.

Thomas will do anything he can to help Holy Cross students who are interested in working for the Foreign Service. Over the years, he has placed several students in internships across the world.

“Going to Holy Cross and graduating from there changed my life,” Thomas says. “I think it’s an outstanding institution. I would like to give the students that go to school there a glimpse of foreign policy even if they choose they want a different career.”

One final thought he’d like students to consider: duty, honor, country.

“You have the chance to represent the world’s finest diplomatic service and serve on the front lines of promoting our values, democracy and opportunities for all,” he says. “That doesn’t mean you agree with its policies but that you are a person of integrity — and that’s something that is reinforced by Jesuit education.”

Speaking of integrity, will he attend the Holy Cross men’s basketball game when they take on American?

“If they promise me that they will win,” he says, letting out a hearty laugh. Related Information:

Careers in the U.S. Department of State

Links to the Department’s business page and Careers in Foreign Affairs group on Facebook:

Facebook- U.S. Department of State Facebook- Careers in Foreign Affairs Group

Read a profile of Harry Thomas Jr. \'78 in Holy Cross Magazine

Career Planning Center