Student interest in the Middle East at GW has grown over the past decade and a half. We now teach four Middle Eastern languages (and our Arabic program is one of the largest in the country); our undergraduate major is healthy; our graduate MA program continues to attract strong applications; and the number of students who study or work in the region continues to be impressive. I sometimes worry that deteriorating conditions in the region as well as a changing domestic atmosphere will make the region seem forbidding and dangerous rather than fascinating to potential students. That has not been the case at GW, however. Our alumni network certainly has a role to play in that regard: many of you have offered to mentor undergraduates, attend capstone presentations, and meet with our current students in ways that give them important guidance on how to study the region and where to apply their knowledge and skills after graduation. Our current students—and the Middle East Studies faculty at GW—are very grateful to your past efforts. And we fully intend to call on them as long as you are willing to provide them.

(Note: This academic year, Nathan Brown returns to direct the academic program, while Mona Atia directs the Institute for Middle East Studies.)