The Foreign Service Journal, December 2020

– CONSTRUCTIVE DISSENT – Christian A. Herter Award for a Senior Foreign Service Officer Julie M. Stufft Protecting Americans During a Pandemic O n detail to the National Security Council, Senior Foreign Service Officer Julie Stufft worked to protect American citizens abroad in the early days of the pandemic. She advocated policies that some senior officials initially viewed as unthinkable, but ultimately proved essential in limiting the spread of COVID-19. Many of these, such as global travel advisories, State and Centers for Disease Control and Prevention independence in issuing travel guidance, and advisories for all U.S. citizens against traveling on cruise ships, were even- tually adopted by the executive branch. At the NSC, Ms. Stufft served as special assistant to President Donald Trump and senior director for border and transportation security—the first State Department detailee to hold the position. As the most senior FSO working in a policy position in the White House, she courageously advocated, at the highest levels of the U.S. government, for the core mission of the Foreign Service: protection of, advocacy for, and clear and accurate guidance to U.S. citizens overseas. Widely respected at the NSC for her candor, professionalism and extensive consular experi- ence, Ms. Stufft was assigned in February by the vice president’s White House Coronavirus Task Force to lead agencies in recommending policies to limit risk of viral spread through international travel. She advocated policies that would define the pandemic response on travel. It was an onerous task to win favor for some of these policies, since restrictions on international travel would place heavy financial burdens on the cruise line, airline and other major industries. When the CDC determined that there was a high rate of viral spread on large cruise ships, reluctance among senior economic advisers to harm the industry caused the issue to be repeatedly shelved during task force discus- sions. Ms. Stufft pushed aggressively for joint State and CDC 2020 AFSAAWARD WINNERS FOCUS AFSA AWARDS: HONORING EXCELLENCE AND CONSTRUCTIVE DISSENT Julie Stufft. Award winner profiles compiled by Associate Editor Cameron Woodworth. All images are courtesy of the award winners, unless otherwise specified. 32 DECEMBER 2020 | THE FOREIGN SERVICE JOURNAL