Thomas Jefferson Star for Foreign Service

Award

Thomas Jefferson Star for Foreign Service

Type| Medal
Awarded for| "Death or a serious illness or injury that results in death, permanent incapacity or disability"
Presented by| United States Department of State
Eligibility| Foreign Service, Civil Service
Status| Currently awarded

Ribbon

Precedence
Next (higher)| Award for Heroism
Award for Valor (obsolete)
Next (lower)| Distinguished Honor Award

The Thomas Jefferson Star for Foreign Service is an award of the United States Department of State. It is presented to employees of State, USAID, and civilian contractors assigned to diplomatic and consular facilities for events that lead to death or serious illness or injury.[1] It is roughly comparable to the U.S. military's Purple Heart, but since the criteria for the award is so strict, nearly all of them are awarded posthumously.

The award consists of a gold medal set and a certificate signed by the secretary of state and the president of the United States.

The initial regulations limited the issuance of the Thomas Jefferson Star for Foreign Service, originally known as the Foreign Service Star, only to members of the U.S. Foreign Service personnel system who were killed or seriously injured. The rules were later changed to allow for members of other personnel systems killed while working on behalf of a foreign affairs agency.

There had been controversy about the name of the award, which suggested that only diplomats serving under the Foreign Service personnel system were eligible. As a result, Secretary of State Colin Powell proposed changing the name of the award from the Foreign Service Star to simply the Thomas Jefferson Star, naming it for the Founding Father who served as the first secretary of state. The American Foreign Service Association and the Foreign Affairs Council resisted the proposal while many others strongly supported it. In the end, the words "Foreign Service" were maintained as part of the name.[2]

## Eligibility[edit]

Any civilian employee of any agency, including Foreign Service Nationals (appointed under Section 303 of the Foreign Service Act), non-family member U.S. citizen employees hired at post (appointed under Section 303 and appointed under Section 311 (a) of the Foreign Service Act), and U.S. citizens and foreign nationals serving under a Personal Services Contract or Personal Services Agreement (if eligibility for the award is authorized in their contracts), are eligible for the Foreign Service Star Award as long as the employee is:

(1) Under the administrative direction of State or USAID;
(2) Employed at, or assigned permanently or temporarily to an official mission abroad, or while traveling abroad on official business; and
(3) Killed or incurs a serious illness or injury which requires hospitalization or similar treatment and which results in incapacity or disability that prevents the employee from performing his or her official duties or adversely affects his or her ability to obtain medical clearance, while the employee:

(a) Is performing official duties;
(b) Is located on the premises of a U.S. mission abroad; or alternatively,
(c) By reason of the individual's status as U.S. Government employee.

## Criteria[edit]

a. Selection of award recipients will be based on:

(1) The nexus between the death, illness or injury and the act of serving abroad in an official capacity. The death, illness or injury must be linked to the official duties of the employee. This may be by reason of location at the U.S. mission, by reason of the employee's status as a U.S. Government official, or by reason of the fact that the employee is performing, or en-route to perform official duties; and

(2) The seriousness of the illness or injury. An illness or injury is "serious" if it requires hospitalization or similar treatment and results in incapacity or disability that prevents the employee from performing his other official duties or adversely affects his or her ability to obtain medical clearance.

b. Examples of employees meeting the selection criteria include, but are not limited to:

(1) The United States as the target of hostile action:

(a) Mission as target while performing official duty, hostile fire kills or wounds a U.S. civilian employee who is accompanying U.S. peacekeepers abroad;
(b) Employee as target, but not while on official duty, a commercial airliner flying abroad is hijacked and an employee, by reason of his or her status as a U.S. Government official, is subjected to mistreatment resulting in death, injury or serious illness.

(2) Accidents occurring in a hostile environment or crisis situation:

(a) Employee is killed or wounded by "friendly fire" launched to counter or respond to hostile action.
(b) Employee is killed or wounded in an automobile or airplane accident caused by a hostile action or crisis situation.
(c) Employee is killed or wounded by a land mine, trap, bomb or chemical/biological agent, even if not targeted at the employee or the United States.

(3) Natural disasters linked to service:

(a) Employee is killed or wounded while away from the mission, but while performing official duties, e.g., an earthquake abroad causes a building to collapse, killing several employees who are negotiating an arms control treaty; or
(b) Employee is killed or injured at the mission, e.g., a flood strikes a U.S. Embassy compound, killing and injuring dozens of employees.

(4) Nothing in this Foreign Affairs Manual shall limit the discretion of the Secretary to recommend the Foreign Service Star Award for an otherwise eligible and deserving employee.

## Nominating and approval procedures[edit]

Nominations for the Thomas Jefferson Star for Foreign Service must be initiated by the chief of mission or by an assistant secretary, cleared by the medical director, as appropriate, and then submitted to the Department Awards Committee for review and recommendation to the secretary. The secretary shall make final recommendations to the president.

## Effective date[edit]

The effective date for the Thomas Jefferson Star for Foreign Service shall be August 7, 1998.

An employee or surviving next of kin may petition the Department Awards Committee to consider individuals who are eligible and deserving of the Thomas Jefferson Star for Foreign Service notwithstanding the fact that the illness, injury or death occurred prior to the effective date.

## Military use[edit]

Active duty military are not eligible to receive this award.

## Recipients[edit]

* Diane Berry Caves, public health professional, DHHS Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Port-au-Prince, Haiti, January 12, 2010, earthquake[3]
* Kathey-Lee Galvin, foreign service officer, Department of State, Port-au-Prince, Haiti, January 12, 2010, earthquake
* John Granville, democracy officer, USAID, Juba, Sudan, July 14, 2008, attack[4]
* Abdelrahman Abbas Rahama, foreign service national, USAID, Juba, Sudan, July 14, 2008, attack[4]
* Steven Farley, member of US Navy Reserve, U.S. Department of State, Sadr City, Iraq, June 24, 2008, terrorist attack[5]
* Kellie Lartigue-Ndiaye, country director, DHHS Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Togo, Mali, December 21, 2007, vehicle accident[6]
* Margaret Alexander, deputy mission director, USAID, Kathmandu, Nepal, September 23, 2006, helicopter crash[7]
* Bijnan Acharya, environmental officer, USAID, Kathmandu, Nepal, September 23, 2006, helicopter crash[7]
* Stephen Eric "Sully" Sullivan, foreign service special agent, U.S. Diplomatic Security Service, Mosul, Iraq, September 19, 2005, terrorist attack[8]
* Edward Seitz, foreign service special agent, U.S. Diplomatic Security Service, Baghdad, Iraq, October 24, 2004, mortar attack[8]
* Paul Converse, auditor, Office of the Special Inspector General for Iraq Reconstruction, Baghdad, Iraq, March 30, 2008, terrorist attack [9]
* Mustafa Akarsu, security, Turkish embassy employee, Ankara, Turkey, February 1, 2013, terrorist attack [10]
* Sean Smith, information management officer, Benghazi US Consulate, terrorist attack[11]
* Joyce Ann Reed, information management office manager, US Department of State, Nairobi, Kenya, August 7, 1998, Al Qaeda East African Bombings.[12]
* Worley (Lee) Reed, special agent / security engineering officer, US Department of State, Nairobi, Kenya, August 7, 1998, Al Qaeda East African Bombings.[12]
* J. Christopher Stevens, U.S. Ambassador to Libya killed in a terrorist attack.

## See also[edit]

* Awards of the United States Department of State
* Awards and decorations of the United States government
* United States Department of State
* U.S. Foreign Service

## References[edit]

1. ^ "3 FAM 4825 Thomas Jefferson Star for Foreign Service". US Department of State. January 31, 2003. Retrieved December 13, 2015.
2. ^ Goodwin, Brent Stuart (March 6, 2001). "Powell May Reverse Hard Times". American Diplomacy. University of North Carolina–Chapel Hill. Retrieved May 12, 2012.
3. ^ "2010 Public Health Preparedness Report". Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. January 12, 2010. Retrieved May 12, 2012.
4. ^ a b "USAID Speeches: Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice at USAID Memorial Service: 07/14/08". Archived from the original on October 27, 2011. Retrieved March 20, 2011.
5. ^ Rubin, Alissa J.; Al-Husaini, Mudhafer (June 25, 2008). "Baghdad Blast Kills Four Americans". New York Times. Retrieved October 19, 2012.
6. ^ "Kellie Lartigue-Ndiaye '88 Receives Thomas Jefferson Star Award". bonnect.rhodes.edu. Retrieved May 12, 2012.
7. ^ a b "USAID Press Release: USAID Memorial Service for Colleagues in Nepal" (Press release). United States Agency for International Development. 2006. Archived from the original on September 7, 2009.
8. ^ a b "U.S. Department of State Awards". State.gov. Retrieved May 12, 2012.
9. ^ "Converse Honored for Iraq Service". Corvallis Gazette-Times. May 16, 2008. Retrieved October 26, 2012.
10. ^ "Honored for Protecting the Embassy". Hurriyet. March 2, 2013. Retrieved March 2, 2013.
11. ^ "The Amazing Life of Sean Smith, the Masterful Eve Gamer Slain in Libya". Gawker Media. April 25, 2013. Retrieved May 1, 2013.
12. ^ a b "Lake Wales Couple Helps Found Group to Aid Terror Victims | TheLedger.com". Archived from the original on May 7, 2015. Retrieved July 22, 2022.

* v
* t
* e

Thomas Jefferson

* 3rd President of the United States (1801–1809)
* 2nd Vice President of the United States (1797–1801)
* 1st United States Secretary of State (1790–1793)
* U.S. Minister to France (1785–1789)
* Delegate to the Congress of the Confederation (1783–1784)
* 2nd Governor of Virginia (1779–1781)
* Delegate to the Second Continental Congress (1775–1776)
* Delegate, Fifth Virginia Convention (1776)

Founding
documents of
the United States|

* A Summary View of the Rights of British America (1774)
* Olive Branch Petition (initial draft; 1775)
* Declaration of the Causes and Necessity of Taking Up Arms (1775)
* Declaration of Independence (1776)
* Committee of Five
* authored
* physical history
* "All men are created equal"
* "Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness"
* "Consent of the governed"
* Virginia Statute for Religious Freedom, 1777 draft and 1786 passage
* Freedom of religion
* Land Ordinance of 1784
* Land Ordinance of 1785
* Northwest Ordinance (1787)

French Revolution|

* Co-author, Declaration of the Rights of Man and of the Citizen (1789)

Presidency|

* Act Prohibiting Importation of Slaves
* Louisiana Purchase
* Lewis and Clark Expedition
* Corps of Discovery
* timeline
* Empire of Liberty
* Red River Expedition
* Pike Expedition
* Cumberland Road
* Embargo Act of 1807
* Chesapeake–Leopard affair
* Non-Intercourse Act
* First Barbary War
* Native American policy
* Burr conspiracy
* Marbury v. Madison
* West Point Military Academy
* State of the Union Addresses
* 1801
* 1802
* 1805
* Cabinet
* Federal judicial appointments

Other noted
accomplishments|

* Early life and career
* Franco-American alliance
* Founder, University of Virginia
* history
* Ratification Day
* Anti-Administration party
* Democratic-Republican Party
* Jeffersonian democracy
* First Party System
* republicanism
* Plan for Establishing Uniformity in the Coinage, Weights, and Measures of the United States (1790)
* Kentucky and Virginia Resolutions
* A Manual of Parliamentary Practice (1801)
* American Creed
* Jefferson disk
* Swivel chair

Jeffersonian
architecture|

* Barboursville
* Farmington
* Monticello
* gardens
* Poplar Forest
* University of Virginia
* The Rotunda
* The Lawn
* Jefferson Hall
* Virginia State Capitol
* White House Colonnades

Other writings|

* The Papers of Thomas Jefferson
* Notes on the State of Virginia (1785)
* Proposals for concerted operation among the powers at war with the Pyratical states of Barbary (1786)
* European journey memorandums (1787)
* Indian removal letters
* The Life and Morals of Jesus of Nazareth (c. 1819)
* Jefferson manuscript collection at the Massachusetts Historical Society
* Founders Online

Related|

* Age of Enlightenment
* American Enlightenment
* American Philosophical Society
* American Revolution
* patriots
* Member, Virginia Committee of Correspondence
* Committee of the States
* Founding Fathers of the United States
* Historical reputation
* Jefferson and education
* Religious views
* Jefferson and slavery
* Jefferson and the Library of Congress
* Jefferson Pier
* Pet mockingbird
* National Gazette
* Residence Act
* Compromise of 1790
* Sally Hemings
* Jefferson–Hemings controversy
* Betty Hemings
* Separation of church and state
* The American Museum magazine
* Tufton Farm
* Governor's Palace (Williamsburg, Virginia)
* Virginia dynasty
* Ward republic

Elections|

* Presidential elections
* 1796
* 1800
* 1804

Legacy and
memorials|

* Bibliography
* Jefferson Memorial
* Mount Rushmore
* Birthday
* Thomas Jefferson Building
* Jefferson Territory
* Thomas Jefferson Center for the Protection of Free Expression
* Jefferson Lecture
* Jefferson National Expansion Memorial
* Thomas Jefferson Star for Foreign Service
* Statues
* Karl Bitter statues
* Hempstead statue
* Louisville statue
* University of Virginia statue
* David d'Angers statue
* Jefferson Literary and Debating Society
* Thomas Jefferson Foundation
* Jefferson Lab
* Monticello Association
* Jefferson City, Missouri
* Jefferson College
* Thomas Jefferson School of Law
* Thomas Jefferson University
* Washington and Jefferson National Forests
* Peaks and mountains
* Jefferson Rock
* Other placenames
* Jefferson–Jackson Day
* Currency depictions
* Jefferson nickel
* Two-dollar bill
* Louisiana Purchase Exposition gold dollar
* Mount Rushmore Anniversary coins
* 250th Anniversary silver dollar
* U.S. postage stamps
* Memorial to the 56 Signers of the Declaration of Independence

Cultural
depictions|

* The Patriots (1946 play)
* Ben and Me (1953 short)
* 1776
* 1969 musical
* 1972 film
* Jefferson in Paris (1995 film)
* Thomas Jefferson (1997 film)
* Liberty! (1997 documentary series)
* Liberty's Kids (2002 animated series)
* John Adams (2008 miniseries)
* Jefferson's Garden (2015 play)
* Hamilton
* 2015 musical
* 2020 film
* Washington (2020 miniseries)
* Wine bottles controversy
* Cultural depictions of Sally Hemings

Family|

* Martha Jefferson (wife)
* Martha Jefferson Randolph (daughter)
* Mary Jefferson Eppes (daughter)
* Harriet Hemings (daughter)
* Madison Hemings (son)
* Eston Hemings (son)
* Thomas J. Randolph (grandson)
* Francis Eppes (grandson)
* George W. Randolph (grandson)
* John Wayles Jefferson (grandson)
* Frederick Madison Roberts (great-grandson)
* Peter Jefferson (father)
* Jane Randolph Jefferson (mother)
* Lucy Jefferson Lewis (sister)
* Randolph Jefferson (brother)
* Isham Randolph (grandfather)
* William Randolph (great-grandfather)

* ← John Adams
* James Madison →

* ← John Adams
* Aaron Burr →

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