Schools, universities, community groups, and professional organizations interested in requesting a speaker during International Education Week or at other times during the year may contact the following organizations:

Department of State
The Bureau of Public Affairs arranges for representatives of the Department to speak in the Washington, DC area. For more information, please call (202) 647-7129.

The Department also administers two programs which send U.S. diplomats to schools, universities, and community organizations throughout the United States.

Hometown Diplomats: Department employees volunteer their time on scheduled trips back to their hometowns to talk to local organizations, elementary and high schools, college alma maters, meet with state and local elected officials, and to participate in media interviews. For more information, contact:

Office of Public Liaison
Room 2206
Bureau of Public Affairs
U.S. Department of State
Washington, DC 20520-2204
(202) 647-8411

Diplomats-in-Residence: Each year, the Department of State assigns Senior Foreign Service Officers to the position of Diplomat in Residence (DIR) at certain colleges and universities throughout the United States. The DIR program is central to the effort to recruit the best and brightest to represent America's rich diversity to the world. More at http://www.careers.state.gov/resources/diplomats.html.

Peace Corps Speakers Match
Returned Peace Corps Volunteers (RPCVs) speak at many events and in classrooms year-round about the countries in which they've lived and their Peace Corps experience in general. To locate an RPCV in your community, register on the Speakers Match website, http://www.peacecorps.gov/wws/speakersmatch/. Speakers Match was developed by the National Peace Corps Association through a cooperative agreement with Peace Corps. Teachers can also visit the National Peace Corps Association's website at www.rpcv.org and go directly to NPCA Affiliate Groups, many of which have their own Speakers Bureaus. For further assistance, email wwsinfo@peacecorps.gov.

International Visitors
The Department of State and other organizations sponsor programs which bring international professionals to the U.S. Programs are coordinated by international visitor councils across the country. If you are interested in inviting international visitors into your classroom or hosting them for a home-stay in a real American home, contact your local affiliate of the National Council for International Visitors. More at www.nciv.org.

Association for International Practical Training
The Association for International Practical Training (AIPT), a non-profit cultural organization, hosts over 5,000 trainees from more than 90 countries in businesses and institutions throughout the U.S. AIPT can provide international exchange participants and their host employers along with AIPT staff as speakers. They speak on the cross-cultural experience, specific career options, and globalization. Speakers are available nationwide and can be arranged year round with at least four weeks lead time to organize the event. Requests should be sent to govrel@aipt.org. More at www.aipt.org.

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