Venice Chill, Department of State Bio, Mondays

Arriving in the United States as a refugee after the breakup of the Soviet Union, Vyacheslav Kandyba (“Slav” for short) has worked as a journalist for more than decade for a number of general interest newspapers, a wire service, trade publications and music and culture magazines and websites. Along the way, Kandyba has been recognized for his work by peers and professionals. In college, Kandyba was awarded a competitive Los Angeles Times Scholarship and participated in Saturdays at the Times workshops at the newspaper, where he received mentorship and career guidance. He was also chosen as a delegate to travel to Israel as part of the 2002 Project Interchange Seminar in Israel for college newspaper editors. He penned a feature on his trip that won the Agness Underwood Outstanding

Reporting Award in the journalism department of his alma mater California State University Northridge. As a professional, Kandyba was a member of a two-reporter team that won first place in the public service category of the 2006 Associated Press Society of Ohio Awards for an investigative series published by Bucyrus Telegraph-Forum examining financial mismanagement in a small Ohio city. Outside of mainstream journalism, Kandyba is a respected writer covering hip-hop culture and rap music. He has contributed features, news and reviews since 2006 to some of hip-hop culture’s most respected media brands, including The Source, XXL, AllHipHop.com, HipHopDX.com and Vibe.

Currently, Kandyba is an independent freelance writer and graduate student at the University of Maryland University College, where he is completing a certificate in international trade in the fall of 2012. With keen interest in merging cultural movements, hip-hop in particular, with foreign policy, Kandyba hopes to continue working with NGOs and the federal government to advance U.S. national interest.