The Foreign Service Journal, December 2021

THE FOREIGN SERVICE JOURNAL | DECEMBER 2021 71 AFSA NEWS Diplomats Engage Road Scholars in Washington and New York As AFSA celebrates its 25th year of collaboration with the Road Scholar lifelong learning organization, AFSA managed two programs on the East Coast to educate participants about the work of the Foreign Service. From Sept. 13-16, nine AFSA members led adult students through the “Inside American Diplomacy with the Foreign Service” program. Held at the Madison Hotel in Washington, D.C., the event featured subject matter experts giving presentations on the topic, “Challenges and Opportunities in Asia.” The program drew on the experiences of Ambas- sadors (ret.) James Zumwalt, Kurt Tong, Charles Ray and Richard Boucher, along with current and retired Senior FSOs Julie Nutter (AFSA policy director), Philip A. Shull (AFSA Governing Board member), Christopher Beede and Alexis Ludwig (chair of the FSJ Editorial Board). During 10 lectures across four days, students received a crash course on U.S. policy in Asia, examining issues from partnership with Japan and relations with Taiwan to the U.S.-China rivalry and commercial opportunities in Southeast Asia. Participants also ven- tured outside the classroom to explore the Museum of Chinese American History, which opened its doors just for Road Scholars, and tour the Tidal Basin to learn about the cherry trees, which were originally gifted to the U.S. by Japan in 1912. Later in the month, from Sept. 26 through Oct. 1, AFSA speakers visited the Chautauqua Institution in western New York to pres- ent a program on the 21st century’s pressing regional and thematic foreign policy issues. More than 100 partici- pants attended from all over the country to hear from AFSA President Eric Rubin and six retired senior FSOs: Philip A. Shull, Amb. Richard Boucher, Molly Williamson, Julie Moyes, Ambassador (ret.) James Zumwalt and Annie Pforzheimer. Topics included technol- ogy to address food inse- curity and climate change, the global implications of instability in the Middle East, the enduring value of inter- national exchange programs, and combating transnational crime in the Americas. Participants provided extremely positive feedback on the content of the week; in post-event evaluations, attendees scored the pro- gram at 91 out of 100. The Road Scholars program remains a highly successful outreach and con- stituency-creating vehicle. For more on AFSA’s programs and course offerings through Road Scholar see www.afsa. org/road-scholar. n Retirement Planning 5 to 10 Years Out In a Sept. 21 virtual presenta- tion, AFSA Retiree VP John Naland reviewed important issues that employees should consider five to 10 years before retirement to best position themselves for life after the Foreign Service. Mr. Naland, a former direc- tor of the State Department’s Office of Retirement, walked members through the steps they need to take to ensure they’re prepared for near- term retirement. He shared a detailed checklist outlining how pro- spective retirees can ensure a smooth transition, as well as websites and email addresses for more information. View the checklist at https://bit.ly/ ret-checklist. In his one-hour overview of Foreign Service retirement, Mr. Naland touched on the following topics: • What if you resign before you can retire? • Understanding your benefits • Growing your TSP: Roth IRAs vs. traditional, stocks vs. bonds • FEHB and Medicare B: whether to sign up at age 65 • Social Security: deciding when to start • Prior service credit • Divorce decree (if appli- cable) and retirement benefits • Leave classifications: what adds to your pen- sion, what’s use-or-lose • Post-retirement employ- ment: potential impact on pension “This is not official guid- ance,” Mr. Naland empha- sized in opening remarks. “Please do your own due diligence. The Foreign Service Institute retirement planning seminars are excellent, and AFSA’s website has State Department guidance. You can also hire a financial plan- ner or tax adviser to give you individual advice.” Mr. Naland’s presentation, which is AFSA’s fifth webinar concerning retirement in 2021, is available to members at afsa.org/video. You can also visit AFSA’s one-stop shop for retirement information at afsa.org/ retirement-services. n