Georgetown Celebrates Achievements Under Dean Nonneman

Colleagues, students, friends, and members of the community in Qatar gathered recently to celebrate five years of leadership from the dean of Georgetown University in Qatar, Dr. Gerd Nonneman, as he nears the end of his tenure heading the institution.

The reception, which was hosted by GU-Q’s in-house research institute, the Center for International and Regional Studies (CIRS), drew more than 130 guests, including dozens of senior members of the diplomatic community and leading figures in government, Education City, and Qatar Foundation.

“Dean Nonneman has worked so very hard for Georgetown over the past five years. He has shown boundless passion for the responsibility of the job, the goals of the country, and the mandate of this institution,” said the Director of CIRS, Dr. Mehran Kamrava. “And his energy and determination impacted us all. So this celebration was an opportunity not just for us at CIRS, but the entire university and the wider community to express our appreciation for what he’s done.”

In his remarks at the reception, Dr. Kamrava reflected on the dean’s reputation as a scholar of the region, noting that Dr. Nonneman has written some of the most referenced peer-reviewed work on Saudi Arabia’s foreign policy, the GCC region, and the international relations of the Middle East. “I also want to recognize his deep sense of commitment to the community, and how his open and approachable style of leadership has encouraged engagement from everyone, regardless of their seniority or position,” noted Dr. Kamrava. During his tenure, the Dean also nearly double the faculty and helped turn GU-Q into a globally visible research powerhouse.

Students, faculty and staff also reflected on his five years of leadership through a compilation video. Among other voices, this featured students representing the school’s diverse student body thanking the dean in their native language.

Dean Nonneman has served as dean of GU-Q since 2011. Before that, he served as Director of the Institute of Arab and Islamic Studies and the Center for Gulf Studies at the University of Exeter, and as Executive Director of the British Society for Middle Eastern Studies. A council member of the World Congress for Middle Eastern Studies and an established scholar of the region, Dr. Nonneman will be joining the GU-Q faculty in the fall as Full Professor of International Relations and Gulf Studies.

Dr. James Reardon-Anderson, who served as GU-Q’s founding dean and is currently the Senior Associate Dean of the School of Foreign Service on Georgetown’s main campus, will serve as the incoming dean.