The Foreign Service Journal, April 2014

54 APRIL 2014 | THE FOREIGN SERVICE JOURNAL AFSA NEWS Proficiency in foreign languages is a crucial attribute for all Foreign Service personnel. The American Foreign Service Association’s Sinclaire Language Awards program recognizes language students for outstanding accomplishments in the study of a level III or IV language and its associated culture. The Matilda W. Sinclaire Language Award program was established in 1982 by a bequest from Ms. Sinclaire, a former Foreign Service employee, to AFSA. The purpose of her bequest was to “promote and reward superior achievement by career officers of the Foreign Service of the United States while studying one of the ‘hard’ languages under the auspices of the Foreign Service Institute of the Department of State.” Any career-conditional Foreign Service member from the foreign affairs agencies (Department of State, U.S. Agency for International Development, Foreign Commercial Service, For- eign Agricultural Service, Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service and the International Broadcasting Bureau) is eligible. Language-training supervisors at FSI’s School of Lan- guage Studies, language instructors at field schools and p ost language officers nominate candidates for the award. Winners are selected by a committee that consists of volunteer AFSA members, representatives from FSI, a member of the AFSA Governing Board and the AFSA Awards and Plaques Commit- tee. Winners receive a check for $1,000 and a certificate of recognition signed by the AFSA president and the chair of the AFSA Awards and Plaques Committee. AFSA commends FSI’s School of Language Studies for its dedication in preparing language students for the intense challenges of modern diplomacy and congratulates this year’s 10 recipients of the Sinclaire Language Awards: Miriam R. Asnes Arabic Sonnet A. Frisbee Czech Paul F. Narain Greek Jacob M. Rocca Hebrew Timothy Shriver Hungarian Robert Silberstein Lithuanian Alan J. Smith Russian Adam T. Stevens Vietnamese Matthew Wilson Bulgarian Bryan G. Wockley Persian/Dari/Afghan Information on the Sinclaire Awards is available at www. afsa.org/sinclaire or contact Special Awards and Outreach Coordinator Perri Green at (202) 719-9700 or green@afsa. org. n 2013 Sinclaire Award Recipients Announced On Jan. 24, AFSA Vice President for Retirees Larry Cohen addressed more than 140 AFSA members and other guests of the Foreign Service Retirees Associa- tion of Florida at the group’s annual statewide luncheon in Sarasota. Cohen discussed some of the issues AFSA is cur- rently focused on, including chief-of-mission qualification guidelines for ambassadorial candidates. He also acknowl- edged members’ concerns regarding the Department of State’s When Actually Employed program and the difficulty retirees have in find- ing job opportunities. “The new registry is ineffective as AFSAVP Meets with Florida Retirees BY TOM SWITZER, SPEAKERS BUREAU DIRECTOR currently designed and is not a viable substitute for work- ing through bureau-managed registries,” he observed. Describing the state of play regarding the FiscalYear 2015 federal budget, Cohen commented, “The real battle shaping up is protection of active-duty Foreign Service personnel who may face reduced benefits and pay freezes,” Cohen said. “Ben- efits for current annuitants would not likely be impacted this round.” Cohen closed his remarks by praising the FSRA’s initiative to include eligible returned Peace Corps Volun- teers as association mem- bers. n AFSA Vice President for Retirees Larry Cohen addresses a Foreign Service Retirees Association of Florida meeting on Jan. 24. “Show Me Diplomacy” Photos Our goal is to show the last 90 years of the Foreign Service through your lens. Send us a photograph that represents diplomacy and the Foreign Service. We will create a presentation that will be shown at our next Happy Hour and post it on our website. Please provide one photo with your name, where and when the photo was taken. Submit your photo via e-mail as an attachment to 90afsa@afsa.org, use #90FS in Instagram and post-a-picture, or leave your photo as a comment on www.facebook.com/afsapage. NEWS BRIEF