22 U.S.C. § 2736c — Professional development opportunities and tools

(a) Expand provision of professional development and career advancement opportunities. (1) The Secretary may expand mission-supporting development opportunities, including (A) academic programs, (B) private-public exchanges, and (C) temporary detail assignments to relevant positions in (i) private or international organizations, (ii) State, local, or Tribal governments, (iii) other Federal branches, or (iv) professional international-affairs schools. (2)(A) The Secretary must offer, or sponsor employees for, a Senior Executive Service candidate-development program or another program teaching skills required for senior Department appointments. (B) In choosing participants, the Secretary must (i) ensure the program follows subpart C of part 412 of title 5, Code of Federal Regulations, or its successor, including merit staffing and assessment rules; (ii) consider expected senior-position vacancies; (iii) understand participation differences by gender, race, national origin, disability, and other demographic categories; and (iv) actively encourage participation across demographic categories, especially categories with consistently low participation.