As the Director of Risk Management, Assets, and Facilities, Mr. Jay Makdissi is responsible for all aspects of risk management, including physical and technical security and safety at our U.S. and international facilities. 

Mr. Ayad Zein has been supporting the Fulbright Program in different capacities for 16 years. As Director of the Fulbright Program, he oversees Amideast staff at our Washington, DC headquarters and in the MENA region who support the Fulbright Foreign Student program and Amideast’s administration of the program.  

Ms. Oliver serves as Amideast’s Director of Advancement. In this role, Ms. Oliver manages the planning and implementation of a comprehensive advancement plan, including major and planned giving programs, foundation and corporate support, and donor relations.

As the Director of Communications, Ms. Betsy Laun Maalouf works closely with HQ program staff and our 11 field offices to manage Amideast’s branding and public outreach via publications, social media, the website, and special events and activities. 

She covered business, energy, and development news for publications focused on the Middle East and North Africa for nearly 25 years.  Since joining Amideast in 2005, she has discovered the rewards of managing communications for a mission-driven nonprofit organization focused on the MENA region. 

As Director of Finance, Rashid Khalfallah manages the regional finance function and overseeing the work of the field accounting staff to ensure accurate, timely and efficient processing of financial transactions and effective controls that prevent or timely detect errors and fraud. In addition, he is responsible for developing, implementing, and monitoring Amideast’s annual budget and periodic forecasting and providing critical analysis that supports major corporate decisions of the CFO, Senior Leadership Team, and the Board of Directors. Mr.

Ms. Juleann Fallgatter serves as Amideast’s Senior Director of Advising and Testing Services. She oversees the organization’s EducationUSA, career advising, and standardized testing activities. 

Ms. Elisabeth Dahl joined Amideast in 2006. In her current role as Senior Director of Business Development, she leads the proposal development process for Amideast’s HQ and field offices. In this role, she leads Amideast’s Business Development efforts and processes across Headquarters and Amideast’s eleven field offices.  

Previously she served in Business Development roles at Amideast and CARANA Corporation, K&M Engineering, and PADCO, Inc., focusing on United States government, donor, and private sector work. 

Dr. Elena Corbett serves as Amideast’s Senior Director of Academic Engagements and has oversight of Amideast’s Education Abroad department, which develops and implements all aspects of academic and experiential programming and support for US students and educators seeking opportunities to learn in the MENA region. She leads the team responsible for Amideast’s programming, customized and faculty-led programming for institutional clients, and implementation of the US State Department’s National Security Language Initiative for Youth (NSLI-Y) and Kennedy-Lugar YES Abroad programs. Dr.

Ms. Serena Boustany serves as the Controller of Amideast, overseeing the accounting department including financial reporting, general accounting, accounts receivable, accounts payable, payroll, and cash management. 

She joined Amideast in 2015, bringing 15 years of experience in the nonprofit world. Before entering the nonprofit sector, she worked for QinetiQ North America, serving as a senior program finance/budget analyst. she also worked in Lebanon for Arab Business Solution where she was the head of accounting.  

Mr. Andrew Bhattacharya is a compliance and operations professional with 25 years of experience with international actors including Red Cross/Crescent, the UN system, EU, US federal agencies, Peace Corps, and FHI360. He specializes in sanctions, procurement, and US federal regulations as well as staff training in those areas. He is a native New Yorker, near fluent Spanish and Russian speaker, and a board member of Kyrgyz Children’s Future, a 501(c)3 nonprofit operating in Kyrgyzstan. He has a BA from the College of William & Mary and an MBA from the University of Buffalo.