Barack Obama
The Department of State circulated the following message and fact sheet on smart power and the Obama Administration's foreign policy goals this morning:
Writing in the Washington Post yesterday, Jim Hoagland commented on the Obama Administration’s use of the Internet and social networking for diplomatic purposes:
Establishing direct strategic presidential communication with the populations of other countries -- especially other countries ruled by hostile governments -- is a top foreign policy priority for the new administration…
President Obama signed the Edward M. Kennedy Serve America Act (also known as the Serve America Act, or S.277) yesterday afternoon at the charter SEED School of Washington, DC. The bill is a “landmark” and would greatly expand the nation's volunteer corps and start new programs to expand innovative social programs, help small charities get management advice, and make volunteerism more effective, according to the Chronicle of Philanthropy.
Secretary of State Hillary Clinton tackled a broad range of issues this morning—from Cuba to Gaza to Pakistan to China, from climate change to rogue regimes to terrorism to disease—at a hearing of the House Foreign Affairs Committee, “New Beginnings: Foreign Policy Priorities in the Obama Administration.” The hearing marked Secretary Clinton’s first appearance before Congress as Secretary of State.
Robert M. Shireman, president of the California-based Institute for College Access and Success and a consultant to the Department of Education for the past several months, was named Deputy Under Secretary of Education, the Chronicle of Higher Education reported today:
Congressional Quarterly reported today that applications for FY 2010 H-1B visas have slowed in comparison to previous years. Each April 1, U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) begins accepting applications for H-1B visas, a category of immigrant visas reserved for skilled workers and good for six years—65,000 are available for each fiscal year, with an additional 20,000 reserved for applicants with a master’s degree or more from a U.S. college or university.
President Obama held a roundtable yesterday with 100 university students (both Turkish and international exchange students) at the Tophane Cultural Center in Istanbul, Turkey. The President’s remarks included mentions of international educational exchanges, both between the United States and Turkey and in general:
The Chronicle of Higher Education reported this afternoon that Martha J. Kanter, chancellor of the Foothill-De Anza Community College District, is President Obama’s pick to be under secretary of education. From the Chronicle article:
Two recent articles in the Chronicle of Higher Education examine issues surrounding foreign scholars and students in the United States.
President Obama signed the 2009 Omnibus Appropriations Act yesterday, funding the federal government at $410 billion through September 30, 2009. In the omnibus, State Department Educational and Cultural Exchanges are funded at $538 million for FY 2009, as previously reported by the Alliance. Although the outline of the President's FY 2010 budget has been made public, no further details (including the funding level for exchanges) have yet been released.
