Amirah Nelson

Amirah Nelson joined World Learning in 2014, working on a portfolio of complex, long-term academic exchange programs for individuals from countries such as Kosovo, Malawi, and the West Bank and Gaza. She has managed all stages of the academic exchange program cycle, including outreach and recruitment of diverse host institutions, visa and logistical arrangements, stakeholder coordination, participant advising, and budgetary management. In addition, Nelson serves as Camp Director for the U.S. Department of State-funded Women in Science Girls STEAM Camp, a public-private partnership involving Intel, the United Nations’ Girl Up Campaign, Google, and NASA that brings together teen girls from around the world to connect them with mentors and like-minded peers, inspire them to pursue careers in the fields of Science, Technology, Engineering, Arts & Design, and/or Mathematics (STEAM), and enhance their leadership potential. Previously, Nelson worked in Indonesia, where she promoted citizen diplomacy and youth leadership as a Fulbright Scholar and assisted the Indonesian Directorate General of Higher Education in its efforts to address teacher shortages in remote and/or disadvantaged areas. She continues to maintain a connection to the country through her role on the Advisory Board of In Good Faith, a nonprofit organization working in Indonesia and the U.S. at the intersections of digital exchange, interfaith education, and countering violent extremism. Nelson holds a degree in economics and development studies from Smith College. She speaks English and Indonesian.  

Expertise: people-to-people exchanges; cross-cultural exchanges; academic scholarship recruitment and programming; youth leadership; girls’ education