Chethana Biliyar joined Amideast in May 2026 as Deputy Vice President of Operations. She brings more than thirteen years of operations experience spanning enterprise finance, IT, people operations, and multi-country coordination in both nonprofit and international development settings. Prior to joining Amideast, she served as Vice President of Operations at the Good Food Institute and spent nearly a decade with DAI Global managing USAID-funded programs across the Middle East and sub-Saharan Africa. Ms.

Jennifer Smith is Deputy Vice President for Academic and Professional Programs at Amideast, where she leads initiatives that expand access to education, strengthen workforce readiness, and advance economic development across the Middle East and North Africa. She oversees a broad portfolio including workforce development, Monitoring, Evaluation, Accountability, and Learning (MEAL), accessible education, and Education Abroad programs.

Josephine Clark Kennedy is Deputy Vice President for English Language and Teacher Development Programs at Amideast, where she leads the organization’s strategy, strategic growth, and technical direction for English language learning and teacher development programs across the Middle East and North Africa and beyond. She oversees initiatives related to English language education, teacher professional development, curriculum and assessment design, instructional design and digital learning, and institutional partnerships.

Ambassador (ret.) Greta C. Holtz joined Amideast in August 2023, following 35 years as a career diplomat with extensive experience in the Middle East and North Africa. She served as the U.S. Ambassador to Oman from 2012 to 2015, the Chargé d'affaires in Qatar from 2020-2021, and the Minister-Counselor for Provincial Affairs at the U.S. Embassy in Baghdad from 2009 to 2010.

Ms. Dana Al-Ajlani is currently Senior Director of Corporate Affairs at Eli Lilly, with close to 20 years’ experience in public and government affairs. She is a strong leader who held different positions in the corporate and nonprofit industries. 

Ambassador (Retired) Alina L. Romanowski advises clients in the areas of national security policy, federal government programs, geopolitical risk, and Middle East affairs. Prior to retiring from government service, Ambassador Romanowski served as U.S. Ambassador to Iraq from March 2022 to December 2024 and as U.S. Ambassador to the State of Kuwait from January 2020 to March 2022. Prior to her Ambassadorial appointments, she served as the Department of State’s Principal Deputy Coordinator for Counterterrorism, where she oversaw the coordination and integration of U.S.

Ambassador (ret.) Michael Ratney served for over three decades as a distinguished U.S. diplomat, most recently as the U.S. Ambassador to the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia. Amb. Ratney served as the U.S. Consul General in Jerusalem, as the Chargé d’Affaires of the U.S. Embassy to Israel, as well as postings in Baghdad, Beirut, Casablanca, Doha, Mexico City, Tunis, Bridgetown, and Washington DC. Over his career, Amb. Ratney has been at the center of high-profile diplomatic initiatives throughout the Middle East, including as U.S. Special Envoy for Syria.

Larry will be responsible for designing, developing, and implementing knowledge management strategies, structures, and best practices across Amideast’s global operations and programs. He will play an instrumental role in shaping and driving Amideast’s organizational approach to knowledge management and promoting a culture of continuous collaboration and innovation. Larry will lead the development of a knowledge management strategy to include digital tools, staff training, and policies to establish and to maintain an organization-wide knowledge management system.

F. Gregory Gause III is Professor of International Affairs and John H.

Mr. Jonathan McKay currently serves as the Vice President Product at Microsoft. Previously he was Head of Growth at OpenAI, where he was responsible for driving user and revenue growth for ChatGPT. His responsibilities also extend to the strategic allocation of the GPU fleet and developing product infrastructure to support GPU allocation, internationalization, and comprehensive A/B testing initiatives across ChatGPT platforms.