Personal Info
- Country of residence: United States
Information
Khalil Jahshan is a Palestinian-American Lecturer in International Studies and Languages at Pepperdine University and Executive Director of its Seaver College Washington DC Internship Program. He received a bachelor's degree in political science and French from Harding University in 1972.
Jahshan was born to a Palestinian Christian family in Nazareth, British Mandate of Palestine in 1948. He completed his elementary and secondary education there. In 1969, he traveled to the United States to pursue his college education.
A long-time activist on Arab-American issues, Mr. Jahshan served in 1982-83 as the Director of the national office of the Association of Arab-American University Graduates (AAUG) in Belmont, Massachusetts. In 1983, he relocated to Washington, D.C., and joined the Palestine Research and Educational Center as the Assistant Director as well as Assistant Editor of the Center's bimonthly publication, Palestine Perspectives. Mr. Jahshan joined the National Association of Arab Americans (NAAA) in June 1989 as Associate Executive Director for Public Affairs. Jahshan assumed the position of President of NAAA in December 1990. In this position, his responsibilities included directing the political efforts of the only full-time Arab-American foreign policy lobby based in Washington, D.C. Effective January 1, 2000, NAAA was merged with ADC. Between 1996 and 2003, Jahshan also served as Vice President of the American Committee on Jerusalem.
Over the years, Mr. Jahshan has served as chair of the Council of Presidents of National Arab-American Organizations, a Washington, D.C.-based umbrella group for all politically active Arab-American organizations, which represents a majority of the three million Americans of Arab ancestry. He also serves on the boards of directors and advisory boards of various Middle East-oriented groups, including ANERA, MIFTAH and Search for Common Ground in the Middle East.
Mr. Jahshan remains in continuous contact with Middle East leaders and with high-ranking foreign policy makers and other officials in Washington, both in the executive and legislative branches of the U.S. Government.
Mr. Jahshan is a frequent lecturer before foreign policy panels, academic groups, think tanks, and community gatherings on the Arab-Israeli conflict, the Palestine problem, Israeli politics, and U.S. foreign policy in the Middle East. In addition, he appears frequently on American and international television and radio to discuss American policies and Middle East issues.
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Achievements and Awards
Titles and positions:
- Member of the boards of directors and advisory boards of various Middle East-oriented groups, including ANERA, MIFTAH and Search for Common Ground in the Middle East
- 2000–2003 — Executive Vice President of the American-Arab Anti-Discrimination Committee and director of its government affairs affiliate, NAAA-ADC
- 1996–2003 — Vice President of the American Committee on Jerusalem
- 1990–2000 — President of the National Association of Arab-Americans
- June 1989–December 1990 — Associate Executive Director for Public Affairs of the National Association of Arab-Americans
- 1980–1982 — Teacher of Arabic at the University of Chicago Extension and at Northwestern University in Evanston, Illinois.
- Years in active
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