The Foreign Service Journal, April 2007

66 F OR E I GN S E R V I C E J OU R N A L / A P R I L 2 0 0 7 A F S A N E W S AFSA NEWS BRIEFS Thrift Savings Update Thrift Savings Plan contributions will not be limited by a percentage of salary in 2007, but IRS limitations will still apply. The 2007 IRS limitation is $15,500, which is a maximum $596.15 contribution per pay period. If you will be age 50 or older during 2007, you may contribute up to $5,000 in additional “catch-up” contributions if your regular contributions for the year reach the $15,500 limit. If you are contributing the full amount, consider putting in a straight dollar amount from your pay check and not a percentage of your salary. That way, when your salary increases, you will not risk going over the limit during the year. If you reach the limit prior to pay period 26, your contributions stop and you lose any remaining matching contributions for the year. You cannot enroll or change the amount of your contributions to your TSP account on the TSP Web site. However, you can set up and change TSP contributions at www.employee express.gov . Your logon ID is your Social Security number, and you need to get a password. More details are at www.tsp.gov . Notice from HR Recruiting Division At the Director General’s initiative, HR is redesigning the process for selecting Foreign Service officers. The new process will be a “total candidate” approach that includes two new elements: a personal biographic narrative written by the candidate and a qualifications evaluation panel that determines which candidates move forward to the oral assessment. There will still be a test (somewhat shortened) and an essay, and the oral assessment will remain as it is. Further information on the new process is avail- able at careers.state.gov . Keep an eye on this Web site, for it will be updated as more information becomes available. AFSA Welcomes New Grievance Attorney Holly Rich has joined AFSA as a griev- ance attorney, replacing Charles Garten. She graduated fromHofstra University School of Law in 2005, where she received the Distinguished Service to the Law School graduation award as well as two awards from the New York State Bar Association, one for a commitment to labor and employment law and the other for a state-wide writing competi- tion. At Hofstra, Ms. Rich served as edi- tor-in-chief of the Labor & Employment Law Journal. After sitting for the New York bar exam, she moved to London for nearly a year to pursue a lifelong personal interest in learning about the art market. A recent D.C. transplant, she is thrilled to be at AFSA. She can be reached at (202) 647-7683 or richhe@state.gov . AFSA Receives Major Scholarship Gift In late January, a very generous gift of $750,000 was made to the AFSA Scholarship Fund from the estate of Brockman M. Moore. This is in addi- tion to the $157,000 gift from the Brockman M. Moore Charitable Remainder Trust that AFSA announced in the January AFSA News . The com- bined gift of $907,000 is the largest AFSA Scholarship Fund contribution ever received. Prior to this gift, the largest bequest to AFSA was $806,000 from the estate of Naomi M. Mathews. The gifts will fund financial aid and merit scholarships for Foreign Service children. Mr. Brockman passed away in 2005 and his wife, retired FSO Marcia Martin Moore, died in 1980. She was in the Foreign Service for 28 years, retiring in 1976. Upon the death of his wife, Mr. Brockman established a perpetual financial aid scholarship in her name. The couple had no children, and placed the highest priority on education. They served in Guatemala, Japan, Italy, Vietnam, England, West Africa and Austria. For more information about making a donation to the AFSA Scholarship Fund, please contact Scholarship Director Lori Dec at (202) 944-5504 or 1 (800) 704-2372, ext. 504, or send an e-mail to dec@afsa.org . Pull Out Those Old Scrapbooks ... Embassy Managua Seeking Photos Were you fortunate to serve in Nicaragua? Do you have any old photographs, pictures, slides or magazines from your tour there that you would be willing to share? On June 22, 1849, Ephraim George Squier arrived in Managua as the first official U.S. representative to Nicaragua. Since then, hundreds of U.S. Foreign Service officers, specialists and locally-employed staff have served there with distinction. Embassy Managua is putting together a collage to show the history of the mission that will be displayed in the new embassy building. Please help capture this rich histo- ry by sending photos of people, buildings and events from your time serving in Nicaragua. E-mail submissions, along with a brief description, to WyrickME@state.gov . Hard copies can be mailed to: U.S. Embassy Managua, Attn: Transition Coordinator, Unit 2702, Box 1, APO, AA 34021.