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 to

Jordan Jordan, officially the Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan, is a country in the Southern Levant region of West Asia. Jordan is bordered by Syria to the north, Iraq to the east, Saudi Arabia to the south, and Israel and the occupied Palestinian ter ...

. He is now a faculty member at

George Washington University The George Washington University (GW or GWU) is a Private university, private University charter#Federal, federally-chartered research university in Washington, D.C., United States. Originally named Columbian College, it was chartered in 1821 by ...

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

Washington, D.C. Washington, D.C., formally the District of Columbia and commonly known as Washington or D.C., is the capital city and federal district of the United States. The city is on the Potomac River, across from Virginia, and shares land borders with ...

, 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; ) is a private research university in New Cairo, Egypt. The university offers American-style learning programs at undergraduate, graduate, and professional levels, along with a continuing education program. ...

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 social Fraternities and sororities, fraternities. The fraternity has 244 active undergraduate chapters and 152 alumni chapters across the United States and Canada and has ...

fraternity and Delta Phi Epsilon foreign service fraternity

Government service

Gnehm joined the

U.S. Department of State The United States Department of State (DOS), or simply the 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 o ...

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 the Earth, global intergovernmental organization established by the signing of the Charter of the United Nations, UN Charter on 26 June 1945 with the stated purpose of maintaining international peace and internationa ...

; 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 ( , ; , ) is the capital and the largest city of Jordan, and the country's economic, political, and cultural center. With a population of four million as of 2021, Amman is Jordan's primate city and is the List of largest cities in the ...

, and Embassy

Sanaa, Yemen Sanaa, officially the Sanaa Municipality, is the ''de jure'' capital and largest city of Yemen. The city is the capital of the Sanaa Governorate, but is not part of the governorate, as it forms a separate administrative unit. At an elevation o ...

; head of the U.S. Liaison Office,

Riyadh, Saudi Arabia Riyadh is the capital and largest city of Saudi Arabia. It is also the capital of the Riyadh Province and the centre of the Riyadh Governorate. Located on the eastern bank of Wadi Hanifa, the current form of the metropolis largely emerged in th ...

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

Damascus, Syria Damascus ( , ; ) is the capital and List of largest cities in the Levant region by population, largest city of Syria. It is the oldest capital in the world and, according to some, the fourth Holiest sites in Islam, holiest city in Islam. Kno ...

. He was Ambassador to

Kuwait Kuwait, officially the State of Kuwait, is a country in West Asia and the geopolitical region known as the Middle East. It is situated in the northern edge of the Arabian Peninsula at the head of the Persian Gulf, bordering Iraq to Iraq–Kuwait ...

from 1991 to 1994; Ambassador to

Australia Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country comprising mainland Australia, the mainland of the Australia (continent), Australian continent, the island of Tasmania and list of islands of Australia, numerous smaller isl ...

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 De ...

* 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 or pear cider is an alcoholic beverage made from fermented pears, traditionally in England (particularly Gloucestershire, Herefordshire, and Worcestershire), parts of South Wales, France (especially Normandy and Anjou), Canada, Austral ...

for support to U.S. forces during and after

Desert Storm , combatant2 = , commander1 = , commander2 = , strength1 = Over 950,000 soldiers3,113 tanks1,800 aircraft2,200 artillery systems , page = https://www.govinfo.gov/content/pkg/GAOREPORTS-PEMD-96- ...

Personal life

Gnehm is married to the former Margaret Scott of

Macon, Georgia Macon ( ), officially Macon–Bibb County, is a consolidated city-county in Georgia (U.S. state), Georgia, United States. Situated near the Atlantic Seaboard fall line, fall line of the Ocmulgee River, it is southeast of Atlanta and near the ...

. They have two children, Cheryl and Edward III.

Affiliations

* Member of the board of directors of the Arab Gulf States Institute in Washington

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 Directors general of the United States Foreign Service