QAIC Announces the Addition of Two New Board Members

The Qatar America Institute for Culture (QAIC) is pleased to announce two new additions to its Board of Directors: founding Dean and former CEO of Carnegie Mellon University Qatar, Dr. Charles “Chuck” Thorpe, and former US Chargé d’Affaires to Qatar, Mr. William Grant.

Dr. Thorpe joins us with an extensive career in higher education and a background in computer science. Additionally, he became Assistant Director for Advanced Manufacturing and Robotics, Office of Science and Technology Policy, Executive Office of the President. In that role, he helped coordinate policy and budgets across the administration, and set directives for future initiatives at the National Science Foundation, the Department of Defense, the National Institutes of Health, the Department of Transportation, NASA, and the Department of Agriculture. He was part of the White House team that created the National Advanced Manufacturing Initiative.

Mr. Grant was a career diplomat for the US Department of State, working in both the Levant and Gulf regions of the Middle East. He spent more than 30 years as a US foreign service officer before retiring in 2020. Mr. Grant was the head of the US Embassy in Qatar from 2017 to 2020. While in Doha, he focused on a range of US priorities, including strengthening the US-Qatar military relationship, preventing the financing of terrorism, and supporting increased protections for foreign workers. He was an active advocate for American companies and educational institutions operating in Qatar. Currently, he is a consultant working with companies on their international operations.

We are delighted to welcome both Dr. Thorpe and Mr. Grant to the growing QAIC family and look forward to learning from their years of valuable experience.