On Tuesday, September 2, 2014, Embassy Paris was pleased to welcome Congressman Charles Rangel, founder of the Charles B. Rangel International Affairs Program, which seeks to attract and prepare outstanding young people for careers as diplomats in the U.S. Foreign Service. The Rangel and Pickering Programs provide academic and professional preparation for outstanding candidates to enter the U.S. Department of State Foreign Service, representing America’s interests abroad. As of 2013, there are hundreds of Pickering and Rangel Fellows serving with distinction as Foreign Service Officers in U.S. embassies and consulates around the world.
During their visit, Congressman and Mrs. Rangel met with former Pickering Fellow Bisola Ojikutu, an officer in the Political Section at the Embassy covering African affairs. Bisola joined the Foreign Service in 2001 and served in Haiti, Brazil, Afghanistan, and in the Africa Bureau in Washington, D.C. She exemplifies the next generation of Foreign Service leaders cultivated by the Rangel and Pickering Fellowship programs.
