Edward William Gnehm Jr. (born November 10, 1944), also known as Skip Gnehm, is an American diplomat who most recently served as the

U.S. ambassador Ambassadors of the United States are persons nominated by the president to serve as the country's diplomatic representatives to foreign nations, international organizations, and as ambassadors-at-large. Under Article II, Section 2 of the U. ...

Jordan Jordan ( ar, الأردن; tr. ' ), officially the Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan,; tr. ' is a country in Western Asia. It is situated at the crossroads of Asia, Africa, and Europe, within the Levant region, on the East Bank of the Jordan Rive ...

. He is now a faculty member at

George Washington University , mottoeng = "God is Our Trust" , established = , type = Private federally chartered research university , academic_affiliations = , endowment = $2.8 billion (2022) , presi ...

Elliott School of International Affairs The Elliott School of International Affairs (known as the Elliott School or ESIA) is the professional school of international relations, foreign policy, and international development of the George Washington University, in Washington, D.C. It is ...

Education

Gnehm attended Albany High School and subsequently attended the

in Washington, D.C., where he earned a bachelor's degree in International Affairs in 1966. Gnehm completed his master's degree in 1968, and spent one year of his graduate studies at the

American University in Cairo The American University in Cairo (AUC; ar, الجامعة الأمريكية بالقاهرة, Al-Jāmi‘a al-’Amrīkiyya bi-l-Qāhira) is a private research university in Cairo, Egypt. The university offers American-style learning progra ...

under a post-graduate Rotary International Fellowship. He is a member of the

Sigma Chi Sigma Chi () International Fraternity is one of the largest North American fraternal literary societies. The fraternity has 244 active (undergraduate) chapters and 152 alumni chapters across the United States and Canada and has initiated more t ...

fraternity and

Delta Phi Epsilon Delta Phi Epsilon () may refer to: *Delta Phi Epsilon (professional), the professional foreign service fraternity and sorority *Delta Phi Epsilon (social) Delta Phi Epsilon ( or DPhiE) is an international Fraternities and sororities in North Ame ...

(The National Professional Foreign Service Fraternity).

Government service

Gnehm joined the

U.S. Department of State The United States Department of State (DOS), or State Department, is an executive department of the U.S. federal government responsible for the country's foreign policy and relations. Equivalent to the ministry of foreign affairs of other n ...

in 1969 and has forged a long and distinguished diplomatic career in the

U.S. Foreign Service The United States Foreign Service is the primary personnel system used by the diplomatic service of the United States federal government, under the aegis of the United States Department of State. It consists of over 13,000 professionals carryi ...

. His positions included: Director General of the Foreign Service and Director of Personnel for the Department of State; Deputy Permanent Representative of the United States to the

United Nations The United Nations (UN) is an intergovernmental organization whose stated purposes are to maintain international peace and security, develop friendly relations among nations, achieve international cooperation, and be a centre for harmoni ...

; Deputy Assistant Secretary of State, Bureau of Near East and South Asian Affairs; Deputy Assistant Secretary of Defense for Near East and South Asia; Deputy Chief of Mission, American Embassy,

Amman, Jordan Amman (; ar, عَمَّان, ' ; Ammonite: 𐤓𐤁𐤕 𐤏𐤌𐤍 ''Rabat ʻAmān'') is the capital and largest city of Jordan, and the country's economic, political, and cultural center. With a population of 4,061,150 as of 2021, Amman is ...

, and Embassy

Sanaa, Yemen Sanaa ( ar, صَنْعَاء, ' , Yemeni Arabic: ; Old South Arabian: 𐩮𐩬𐩲𐩥 ''Ṣnʿw''), also spelled Sana'a or Sana, is the capital and largest city in Yemen and the centre of Sanaa Governorate. The city is not part of the Governo ...

; head of the U.S. Liaison Office,

Riyadh, Saudi Arabia Riyadh (, ar, الرياض, 'ar-Riyāḍ, lit.: 'The Gardens' Najdi pronunciation: ), formerly known as Hajr al-Yamamah, is the capital and largest city of Saudi Arabia. It is also the capital of the Riyadh Province and the centre of the ...

; and Deputy Principal Officer, U.S. Interests Section,

Damascus, Syria )), is an adjective which means "spacious". , motto = , image_flag = Flag of Damascus.svg , image_seal = Emblem of Damascus.svg , seal_type = Seal , map_caption = , ...

. He was Ambassador to

Kuwait Kuwait (; ar, الكويت ', or ), officially the State of Kuwait ( ar, دولة الكويت '), is a country in Western Asia. It is situated in the northern edge of Eastern Arabia at the tip of the Persian Gulf, bordering Iraq to Iraq–Ku ...

from 1991 to 1994; Ambassador to

Australia Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a sovereign country comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands. With an area of , Australia is the largest country by ...

from 2000 to 2001; and Ambassador to

from 2001 to 2004.

George Washington University

Throughout his career, Gnehm has remained active at George Washington, having served both on the Board of Trustees, and as the vice president of the George Washington Alumni Association. Gnehm won the 2015 Harry Harding Teaching Award "for sustained excellence in teaching and extraordinary contributions to the education of Elliott School students." Continuing in the family tradition, Gnehm's son Edward attended George Washington University where he received his BA and an MBA.

Awards

* 1990 – Presidential Meritorious Service Award for public service as

Assistant Secretary of Defense Assistant Secretary of Defense is a title used for many high-level executive positions in the Office of the Secretary of Defense within the U.S. Department of Defense. The Assistant Secretary of Defense title is junior to Under Secretary of Defe ...

* 1991 – Presidential Meritorious Service Award for service as Deputy Assistant Secretary of State * 1992 – Distinguished Alumni Achievement Award, The George Washington University * Secretary of Defense Medal for Meritorious Civilian Service – awarded by Secretary of Defense Carlucci for service in the office of the Secretary of Defense *Secretary of Defense Medal for Meritorious Civilian Service – awarded by Secretary of Defense

Perry Perry, also known as pear cider, is an alcoholic beverage made from fermented pears, traditionally the perry pear. It has been common for centuries in England, particularly in Gloucestershire, Herefordshire, and Worcestershire. It is also mad ...

for support to U.S. forces during and after

Desert Storm The Gulf War was a 1990–1991 armed campaign waged by a 35-country military coalition in response to the Iraqi invasion of Kuwait. Spearheaded by the United States, the coalition's efforts against Iraq were carried out in two key phases ...

Personal life

Gnehm is married to the former Margaret Scott of

Macon, Georgia Macon ( ), officially Macon–Bibb County, is a consolidated city-county in the U.S. state of Georgia. Situated near the fall line of the Ocmulgee River, it is located southeast of Atlanta and lies near the geographic center of the state of G ...

; together they have two children, Cheryl and Edward III.

Affiliations

* Member of the board of directors of the

Arab Gulf States Institute in Washington The Arab Gulf States Institute is a Washington, D.C.-based think tank A think tank, or policy institute, is a research institute that performs research and advocacy concerning topics such as social policy, political strategy, economics, mil ...

References

External links

Edward Gnehm profile
provided by The George Washington University

provided by The Camden Conference 2005

(June 19, 1990) * ttp://clinton6.nara.gov/2000/02/2000-02-10-president-names-gnehm-as-us-ambassador-to-australia.html President Clinton Names Edward William Gnehm, Jr. as U.S. Ambassador to Australia(February 10, 2000) * {{DEFAULTSORT:Gnehm, Edward 1944 births Living people Ambassadors of the United States to Kuwait Ambassadors of the United States to Australia Ambassadors of the United States to Jordan People from Albany, Georgia Elliott School of International Affairs faculty Elliott School of International Affairs alumni George Washington University faculty People from Carrollton, Georgia United States Foreign Service personnel Directors General of the United States Foreign Service