No Indonesian Left Behind

What's going on here? FSI can't keep current instructor/s? More instructors needed? Communication gaps need to be filled? Extra hands needed for Obama visit in 2010? State Department is really doing more long-range planning about Indonesia? More Indonesia analysts in US government agencies (including CIA) finally going to use the flood of Bahasa Indonesia materials in their virtual or print originals?

I remember the years in the pre-internet age at the (now defunct) USIA when I was the only one in the 'foreign affairs community' reading Indonesian newspapers at my desk and scrubbing the ink from my hands afterward.


Hmm, no course in Indonesian listed on FSI's language page at http://www.fsi-language-courses.com/ . Go look. Hmm, there's a link to the How to Learn Any Language site at http://how-to-learn-any-language.com/e/index.html . Just looked. No Indonesian there either. Pitiful. Getting bored, I went to the FSI search-this-site page at http://fsi-language-courses.com/site_search.asp. Typed in keywords Indonesian, later Indonesia. Result:

Your Search - indonesia - did not match any files on this site. Suggestions:

• Make sure all words are spelled correctly.
• Try different keywords.
• Try more general keywords.
• Try fewer keywords.

Good luck, Indonesians.

For sure, you can always do-it-yourself. Starters -- http://www.learningindonesian.com/ or
http://www.seasite.niu.edu/Indonesian/ .

The following ad just appeared on Cornell's SEAP-L list --


Language And Culture Instructor: U.S. Department of State, the Foreign Service Institute, Arlington, VA

The Foreign Service Institute is currently recruiting a Language and Culture Instructors in Indonesian.

The Foreign Service Institute: The Foreign Service Institute is the Federal Government's primary training institution for officers and support personnel of the U.S. foreign affairs community, preparing American diplomats and other professionals to advance U.S. foreign affairs interests overseas and in Washington.

In your position as Language and Culture Instructor you will:

Teach speaking, reading, listening comprehension and writing (if required) skills to a full range of students at all levels of language proficiency

Requirements: Native or near-native fluency in Indonesian language and culture. Must have US work authorization.

Salary: $ 50,408.00 - 79,280.00 (starting salaries vary and may be based in part on superior academic achievement and/or previous work experience).

Application Deadline: Applications will be accepted Friday, June 05, 2009 to Friday, June 19, 2009.

Contact Information: (703) 302-6813, Maria Garza, FSIJobApplications@state.gov

To Apply: Go to www.usajobs.opm.gov (before June 19, 2009) for the detailed vacancy announcements and information on how to apply, job announcement FSI 09-24. In order to receive full consideration for the position, please read and follow the instructions carefully.

For more information and more job announcements, also check out: www.usajobs.opm.gov

Prawet Jantharat Ed.D.
FSI-School of Language Studies
Language Training Supervisor
(Burmese, Indonesian, Lao, Malay, Tetun and Thai)

Tel: 703-302-7292, Fax: 703-302-7055 jantharatp2@state.gov