Julia Phelan Sylla is Director of Programs at Qatar Foundation International (QFI) where she leads the development and delivery of QFI’s grants and activities. She previously directed overseas programs for the National Security Language Initiative for Youth (NSLI-Y) Program at American Councils for International Education and was Program Director for the Critical Language Scholarship (CLS) Program at the Council of American Overseas Research Centers including oversight of intensive Arabic programs in Egypt, Jordan, Morocco, Oman, Tunisia and Yemen.