The Foreign Service Journal, April 2011

48 F O R E I G N S E R V I C E J O U R N A L / A P R I L 2 0 1 1 A F S A N E W S AFSA NEWS BRIEFS Give to the AFSA Scholarship Fund! This month, our annual AFSA Scholarship Fund Appeal will be hitting your mailboxes. Please consider a donation to support the merit- and need-based financial aid scholarships that we provide to nearly 100 children of Foreign Service employees each year. Last year, through the gen- erosity of our members and other donors, we provided $180,000 in such aid. No membership dues fund any activity of the AFSA Scholarship Program. Your tax-deductible donation shows that you understand the value of education and investing in the future of our young people. Please use the postage-paid reply envelope enclosed with the mailing to return your reply card and contribution today. For more information, please visit www.afsa.org/scholar. Staff: Executive Director Ian Houston: houston@afsa.org Business Department Director of Finance Femi Oshobukola: oshobukola@afsa.org Controller Kalpna Srimal: srimal@afsa.org Assistant Controller Cory Nishi: cnishi@afsa.org Labor Management General Counsel Sharon Papp: papps@state.gov Deputy General Counsel Zlatana Badrich: badrichz@state.gov Labor Management Specialist James Yorke: yorkej@state.gov Labor Management Counselor Janet Weber: weber@afsa.org Senior Staff Attorney Neera Parikh: parikhna@state.gov Staff Attorney Raeka Safai: safair@state.gov Office Manager Christine Warren: warrenc@state.gov USAID Senior Labor Management Adviser Douglas Broome: broome@usaid.gov USAID Staff Assistant Patrick Bradley: bradley@afsa.org Member Services Member Services Director Janet Hedrick: hedrick@afsa.org Member Services Representative: vacant Administrative Assistant and Office Manager Ana Lopez: lopez@afsa.org Communications, Marketing and Outreach Retiree Counseling & Legislation Coordinator Bonnie Brown: brown@afsa.org Director of Communications Thomas Switzer: switzer@afsa.org Director of Policy Edward Dickens: dickens@afsa.org Executive Assistant to the President: vacant Scholarship Director Lori Dec: dec@afsa.org Scholarship Program Assistant Jonathan Crawford: crawford@afsa.org Road Scholar Administrator Bernard Alter: alter@afsa.org Marketing & Outreach Manager Asgeir Sigfusson: sigfusson@afsa.org Special Awards & Outreach Coordinator Perri Green: green@afsa.org AFSA HEADQUARTERS: (202) 338-4045; Fax: (202) 338-6820 STATE DEPARTMENT AFSA OFFICE: (202) 647-8160; Fax: (202) 647-0265 USAID AFSA OFFICE: (202) 712-1941; Fax: (202) 216-3710 FCS AFSA OFFICE: (202) 482-9088; Fax: (202) 482-9087 PRESIDENT: johnson@afsa.org STATE VP: hirschdm@state.gov RETIREE VP: rghoudek@aol.com USAID VP: fzamora@usaid.gov FAS VP: henry.schmick@fas.usda.gov FCS VP: keith.curtis@mail.doc.gov AFSA News Editor Amy McKeever: mckeever@afsa.org (202) 338-4045, ext. 516; Fax: (202) 338-8244 Foreign Service Journal FSJ: journal@afsa.org Editor Steven Alan Honley: honley@afsa.org Senior Editor Susan Maitra: maitra@afsa.org Associate Editor Shawn Dorman: dorman@afsa.org Ad & Circulation Manager Ed Miltenberger: miltenberger@afsa.org Art Director Caryn Suko Smith: journaldesign@comcast.net On the Web AFSA WEB SITE: www.afsa.org FSJ: www.afsa.org/fsj and www.fsjournal.org How to Contact Us: Governing Board: PRESIDENT: Susan R. Johnson STATE VP: Daniel Hirsch USAID VP: Francisco Zamora FAS VP: Henry Schmick FCS VP: Keith Curtis RETIREE VP: Robert Houdek SECRETARY: F.A. “Tex” Harris TREASURER: Andrew Winter STATE REPS: Carleton Bulkin Ako Cromwell Mary Glantz Mike Haughey Les Hickman Bruce Matthews Raymond Maxwell Joyce Namde Lynn Nelson Sharon White USAID REPS: Michael Henning Glenn Rogers FCS REP: Stephen Morrison FAS REP: Melinda Sallyards IBB REP: Al Pessin RETIREE REPS: Janice Bay Robert (Bill) Farrand Mary Ellen Gilroy Molly Williamson AFSA OFFICER ELECTION NOTICE The 2011 regularly scheduled AFSA Officer and Governing Board election is underway. Details about the election including the rules can be found at: www.afsa.org/afsa_elections.aspx. Members will receive candidates’ campaign literature in a number of ways. Campaigning through an employer e-mail by any member is prohibited with the exception of the three pre-approved candidate e-mail blasts. Ballots: Ballots will be mailed on or about March 28. If you do not receive a ballot by April 18, please contact the Election Supervisor (contact information below). Ballot Tally: On June 2, at 9 a.m., the ballots will be picked up from the post office inWashington, D.C. Only ballots received in the post office box will be counted. Election Information: Written requests for a duplicate ballot should be directed to Election Supervisor Alison Dunn at U.S. Department of Labor, OLMS, 800 North Capitol Street NW, Suite 120, Washington DC 20002-4244, fax: (202) 513-7301 or e-mail: afsaelectionsupervisor@dol.gov . Please include your full name, work location, current address, telephone number and the last four digits of your Social Security number. 22-Percent Increase in AFSA Scholarship Applications! AFSA Merit Awards for Foreign Service high school seniors just became even more competitive. For 2011, AFSA received 91 Academic Merit applications compared to 70 in 2010, and 16 Art Merit Applications compared to just 13 last year. This program, run under the oversight of the AFSA Committee on Education, offers awards totaling $43,000. This year, AFSA will award $2,000 as top prizes, up from $1,800 last year, but will not increase the total number of awards bestowed. Merit Award winners will be selected during the second week of April, with local winners and their families invited to attend a reception and ceremony on Fri., May 6. For more details, please visit www.afsa.org/scholar. AFSA received 106 need-based Financial Aid Scholarship applications for undergraduate study. We will have enough funds to help 60 to 65 students given the projected aid for this program of $175,000. JOSH