The Institute for Global Engagement announces it has hired a Chief Operations Officer to run its Washington, DC office. Dr. Paul Christopher Manuel previously served as the Executive Director of the New Hampshire Institute of Politics at Saint Anselm College, where he was a tenured Professor of Politics and International Relations. He was Chair of the Politics and International Relations Department at Saint Anselm College from 1993 to 2007, where he co-founded the New Hampshire Institute of Politics, and served as its Founding Research Director. He holds a Ph.D. in Government from Georgetown University, a M.A. in International Relations from Boston University, a M.T.S. in religion and politics from the Weston Jesuit School of Theology in Cambridge, Massachusetts, and a B.A. in political science, Summa Cum Laude, from Boston University. Manuel has served on the National Screening Panel for the US Graduate Fulbright Competition for the Spain and Portugal program and was an Affiliate at the Minda de Gunzburg Center for European Studies at Harvard University from 1998 to 2010, where he co-chaired the Iberian Studies Group. Manuel was a member of the Executive Board of the New England Political Science Association from 2006 to 2008, and was co-chair of the 2008 Annual meeting in Providence.

An accomplished author, Manuel is an expert on religion and politics. He is particularly well grounded in the histories, languages, and cultures of West Europe. In addition to his area specialization in Iberia, he has studied throughout West Europe, including stays at the Universidade de Coimbra (Portugal), the Institut d’Etudes Politiques in Paris, and at Campion Hall, Oxford University. He has received research support from the Fulbright Foundation, the National Endowment for the Humanities, the Pew Charitable Trust and the Center for the Humanities at the University of New Hampshire. In September 2006 Manuel was awarded the Saint Anselm College President’s Award – the highest award given by the College – in recognition for his many accomplishments in the areas of research, teaching, service and administration.

At IGE, Paul will be responsible for the daily operations of the IGE office. He will join the IGE staff in July, 2008. We are pleased and honored that he will be joining us.