Hometown: Scranton, Pennsylvania

Research interests: arts and culture, healthcare, business

Alyssa has a B.A. in International Studies from American University, where she also minored in Music and Arabic. She studied Arabic in Amman, Jordan, during her undergraduate career and then moved to the United Arab Emirates after graduating, where she lived for seven months and worked as a Youth Ambassador at the USA Pavilion at Expo 2020 Dubai. Alyssa is currently an Associate Director at the U.S.-U.A.E. Business Council, where she is responsible for a portfolio of companies in the bilateral healthcare, education, and entertainment sectors. She enjoys learning, reading, and writing about both historical and modern cultural and social trends in the MENA region, as well as listening to Hussain Al Jasmi on long runs.