The Foreign Service Journal, March 2008

56 F OR E I GN S E R V I C E J OU R N A L / MA R CH 2 0 0 8 A F S A N E W S AFSA Annual Report 2007 AFSA also participates in meetings of the State Department’s Disability Action Group, which meets periodically throughout the year. AFSA discusses changes to the Foreign Affairs Manual in line with the settlement agreement between AFSA and the State Department on the procedures for Limited Non-Career Ap- pointments overseas for non-FS employees. At American University, Amb. Wendy Chamberlin gives the inaugural presentation for the new series on U.S. diplomacy, spon- sored by a grant from the Adair Family Trust to the AFSA Fund for American Diplomacy. Over 110 faculty and students attend. AFSA/Elderhostel offers a new one-day pro- gram on Africa. Pres. Naland appears on CNN and the Jim Lehrer News Hour to explain how Foreign Service staffing gaps hurt the State Depart- ment’s ability to staff Iraq and other posts. In the following days, Naland and State VP Kashkett give numerous interviews on this issue. AFSA/FCS sends a memo on assignments to FCS management expressing concerns about domestic positions and certain urgent vacancy positions. AFSA subsequently files a grievance due to non-response by the agency. The Circulation Audit Board presents the results of its survey of the FSJ readership, determining that the total number of sub- scribers is 15,106. The CAB certification will enhance the magazine’s ability to attract advertising, which currently covers 70 percent of production costs. Mrs. Maria Elisa Freeman establishes a Perpetual Financial Aid Scholarship in mem- ory of her late husband Anthony G. Freeman. AFSA/USAID helps a former Peace Corps staffer currently working at USAID get credit for 2 1 / 2 years of federal work for his Service Computation Date. AFSA headquarters closes for renovation. Staff move to temporary offices in Rosslyn. DECEMBER AFSA awards $65,950 to 52 students in Financial Aid Scholarships for spring 2008. AFSA reiterates longstanding concerns about the security clearance suspension and revoca- tion process to newly appointed Under Secretary for Management Patrick Kennedy. AFSA public affairs efforts and retiree contri- butions result in a record 88 articles, letters and interviews defending the Foreign Service in leading media outlets nationwide during 2007, including The Washington Post , The New York Times, the Lehrer News Hour, NPR (including the Diane Rehm Show) and major TV networks. AFSA briefs Director General Harry Thomas, Under Secretary for Political Affairs Nicholas Burns and Under Secretary for Management Patrick Kennedy on its third annual member survey. AFSA officers meet withMedical Director Laurence Brown onM/MED’s plans for assisting members returning from unaccom- panied and dangerous posts. They emphasize the need to ensure early diagnosis and timely, appropriate treatment for those suffering fromPost-Traumatic Stress Disorder. AFSA assists a group of employees promoted to the Senior Foreign Service in 2006 who were not reviewed for performance pay on time-in-grade grounds. AFSA protests to the Recruitment and Evaluation Office of HR about the pro- cedures used for assessing the relevance of prior military experience to the work of a Diplomatic Security agent. AFSA programs over 500 speaker events during the year to explain the importance of U.S. diplomacy to some 31,500 attendees in 43 states andWashington, DC. Most of the speakers are Foreign Service retirees. Throughout the year, AFSA/Elderhostel offers 17 programs inWashington, D.C. (six week- long programs, 11 one-day programs), with a total attendance of 532. In addition, AFSA holds sold-out programs in St. Petersburg, Atlanta, Tucson, and two in Chautauqua. Speakers include Ambassadors Wendy Chamberlin, Beth Jones, Marc Grossman, Edward ‘Skip’ Gnehm, Ron Neumann and Jack Pritchard. Pres. Naland and State VP Kashkett meet with the under secretaries of State for man- agement and political affairs to discuss Foreign Service member concerns, including funding for diplomacy and ending the over- seas pay disparity. Naland meets with a senior official at the Office of Management and Budget to urge expanded funding for diplomatic engagement and development assistance. AFSA retiree coordinator drafts a successful motion for review of a decision denying PIT buyback credit to a spouse on the grounds she did not have prior FERS credit. The decision is overturned by the Merit SystemProtection Board. An AFSAnet message is sent out summarizing the initial results of a survey of FCS officers, with final results expected in January. Mr. Norton Bell, a fall Elderhostel attendee, establishes a $20,000 scholarship in his name via a tax-free distribution from an IRA. Mr. Eric Melby makes a $1,000 gift to his parents’ Perpetual Financial Aid Scholarship: the Everett K. and Clara C. Melby Memorial Scholarship. Active-duty FSO Stephen Hubler renews his Annual Financial Aid Scholarship for the third year in a row. AFSA/USAID conducts the second annual worldwide member survey to determine needs and opinions of USAID FSOs. It uses these to negotiate improved benefits and communicate important concerns tomanagement. Regular meetings with AFSA prompt Rep. Chris Smith, R-N.J., a key supporter of the Foreign Service, to offer two bills to solve the overseas pay disparity prob- lem. AFSA then lines up a key bipartisan group of members of Congress to support this legislation, including Rep. Chris VanHollen, D-Md., Rep. Mark Kirk, R-Ill., Rep. Frank Wolf, R-Va., Rep. JimMoran, D-Va., Rep. TomDavis, R-Va., Rep. David Scott, D-Ga., Rep. Don Payne, D-N.J., Rep. Mike Honda, D-Calif., and Rep. DianeWatson, D-Calif. Through the year, AFSA works with House Foreign Affairs Chairman Tom Lantos, D-Calif., Senate Foreign Relations Committee Chairman Joseph Biden, D-Del., and ranking Republican members Rep. Ileana Ros- Lehtinen, R-Fla., and Sen. Richard Lugar, R-Ind., on a number of issues, with particular emphasis on pay modernization. Y E A R I N R E V I E W