Title: Academically in Love—A Valentine Story from CCAS

By Coco Tait

In a bustling city where academia and a passion for the Middle East often intersect, two like-minded souls found each other at Georgetown University’s Center for Contemporary Arab Studies. Mark Berlin and Meghan Feely, who married on September 23, 2023 at Georgetown, began their journey together  as classmates in the MAAS program. Mark lightheartedly recalled the first time they met at new student orientation. “I rolled up in my Manchester United soccer jersey,” he said. “Everyone’s wearing nice clothes and I’m wearing my jersey because, of course, I am.” Meghan quickly joined in, “the orientation soccer jersey story never gets old. It is very on brand for him.” 

The two quickly bonded over not only their shared love for soccer but also their deep interest in the region’s politics and culture. They became friends and their connection grew stronger as they navigated classes and the inevitable ups and downs of academic life together. By their second year as grad students, Meghan and Mark were spending all of their time in one another’s company—whether in class, on the soccer field or studying together for the infamous MAAS comprehensive exams. However, they claimed to be just friends throughout their studies, an idea their classmates found amusing as they watched the blossoming romance unfold. In retrospect, Mark compared their situation to a scene in Seinfeld. “I think there is an episode where they mention that you always like the person you’re talking about the date with more than the person you’re actually going on that date with. I think that kind of held true for us.” Meghan agreed, noting how they would debrief one another after their dates. “We were just good friends and told each other everything.” Looking back, Meghan finds it funny that she never asked herself why she and Mark weren’t dating and says it was when she was watching him play soccer that she really fell for him. Their friendship took a significant turn at the end of their second year at MAAS when Meghan stayed at Mark’s apartment during the free week between exams and graduation. The arrangement was meant to be temporary, but instead the two decided to move in together. Even as their relationship grew more serious, says Meghan, it was their friendship that served as the foundation. Mark added that, like for many relationships, surviving COVID together made them even closer. Then during a trip to Rome in 2022, they decided to get married. 

Meghan and Mark shared that CCAS played a pivotal role in shaping their paths, both together and as individuals. They recalled how much they valued the support, mentorship, and friendship of staff and faculty like Professors Joseph Sassoon, Fida Adely, Rochelle Davis, and Assistant Director of Academic Programs Kelli Harris that extended beyond the classroom. “I think a lot of people go to whatever their dream schools are and they’re disenchanted very quickly,” said Meghan. “For me, it lived up to the expectations. It was just amazing.” She recalled some valuable advice she received from Professor Davis after she gave a presentation for her class. “I remember afterward she pulled me aside and said, ‘You have great ideas, but you just need to maybe write them down into bullet points and organize your thoughts.’” Davis told Meghan that she had learned this from her own experience with trying to wrangle her ideas and invited her to come by whenever she needed to talk things out. “Seemingly little things like that were kind of like the norm among the staff there,” said Meghan. “That is why we still feel so strongly about CCAS.” The small, close-knit community at CCAS fostered lasting friendships for Meghan and Mark that have continued even after graduation, with alumni gatherings and ongoing connections with former classmates. 

Mark is now a 5th-year Ph.D. candidate in Political Science at George Washington University and Meghan is a Foreign Service Officer with the U.S. Department of State. When the couple decided to marry five years after graduation, they knew they wanted their alma mater to be part of it. With plans for their ceremony to take place at Georgetown’s Dahlgren Chapel, they asked if they could hold their rehearsal dinner in the CCAS boardroom, an idea the faculty and staff enthusiastically welcomed. “Georgetown is special for us, obviously, because that’s where we met,” said Mark. But he added that it was CCAS in particular that set them up for success after graduation, citing the training that prepared him for his PhD program and the lasting friendships they made “There’s a reason we were even able to have the rehearsal dinner at CCAS, because there’s that relationship and everyone there is just unbelievably nice and welcoming,” said Mark.

At the time of this conversation, Mark and Meghan had just returned from a honeymoon in Greece where, after all the preparations for the wedding, they were finally able to relax and enjoy themselves. Their  story is a beautiful reminder of the enduring bonds that can be formed in the halls of academia, where intellectual curiosity, friendship, and love can intersect to create lasting memories and lifelong connections.

Coco Tait is the Events and Program Manager at the Center for Contemporary Arab Studies.