Washington, DC, August 12, 2013 — Amideast is pleased to announce the appointment of Dr. Chris Shinn as its new country director for Tunisia. Dr. Shinn, who will be based in Tunis, brings to this position extensive experience in international education, including nearly a decade directing Amideast programs in the West Bank. He succeeds Quincy Dermody, who has become assistant country director for Amideast’s operations in Egypt.
Shinn joined Amideast in 2003 as a program officer for the Fulbright Foreign Student Program. He then became Amideast’s country director for the West Bank office in 2004, serving in that capacity until 2006. He remained in Palestine and became the Chief of Party for the Palestinian Faculty Development Program, a large project funded by USAID and the Open Society Foundations. In that position and as Chief of Party for two other important USAID initiatives—the Model Schools Network Program and the Leadership and Teacher Development Program—he contributed to building capacity in the Palestinian educational system and improving the quality of teaching at all educational levels, from K–12 through university.
