Bradley Castner, ESL Instructor
Email: bradley.castner [at] auis.edu.krd
Office: A-F3-40
Brad joined PDI in August 2019 and has taught ESL at private university and language centers in South America and Russia before coming to AUIS. He earned a bachelor’s degree in Psychology and Human Services Administration from Lake Superior State University, his master's in Human Services Counseling from Liberty University, and his CELTA certification from Cambridge English Language Assessment, which is part of the University of Cambridge.
Alexander Jorgensen, ESL Instructor
Email: alexander.jorgensen [at] auis.edu.krd
Office: A-F3-40
Alex served at PDI 2018 – 2019 and then rejoined PDI in February 2021. Alex has taught ESL and IELTS preparation courses at a number of different universities and language centers in the US, China, Middle-East and Georgia before joining AUIS. He has earned a bachelor’s degree in English from the University of Wisconsin in the United States and his TEFL certification from VIA LINGUA in Czech Republic. Alex is currently studying his Master of Fine Arts in Creative Writing at the REGIS University in the US.
Omer Khan Shaheen, PMP and Project Management Instructor
Omer Khan has lived and worked in several countries such as; Pakistan, Canada, USA and Iraq. He has served in numerous academic and professional positions within different institutions including the American University of Afghanistan (AUAF), the American University of Iraq – Sulaimani (AUIS), and College of Aeronautics – New York, USA. He received a B.S. in Computer Science from National Textile College and Management Institute and a M.S. in Computer Science from College of Staten Island – City University of New York, USA.
Throughout his career path, Omer Khan has worked with and managed several multi-million-dollar projects. Omer Khan has taught Project Management courses for AUIS's Undergraduate and Executive MBA programs as well as Project Management Professional courses (PMP)® for PDI. He is a certified trainer for (PMP)®, CCNP, BCCPA, ICDL, COBIT, and TOT.
Erik Cox Merkt, Leadership, HR, and Marketing Instructor
Ph.D. University of South Carolina
M.S. University of South Carolina
Dr. Eric Merkt has over twenty years of work experience in teaching and in professional roles in various countries such as USA, Czech, Columbia, KSA, Egypt, Iraq and Afghanistan. He holds a B.A. in Philosophy, a M.A. in Religion, Master in International Business, and a Ph.D. in Organizational Behavior and Management.
Since joining AUIS in 2011, Dr. Eric has taught Executive MBA and undergraduate courses such as Business Ethics, Consumer Behavior, Principles of Marketing, Organizational Behavior, Organizational Management, Strategic Management, Human Resource Management, and International Management.
Silvia Pirrioni, Human Resource Management Instructor
Dr. Silvia received her bachelor's degree in Foreign Languages and Public Relations at the University of Udine in Italy in 2006. In 2013, she received a master's in Human Resource Management and Development with Distinction from the University of Manchester. In 2014 she was awarded a full scholarship to study for a Ph.D. at Nottingham Trent University. Her research investigated apprentices’ professional development in the engineering sector in England. During her doctoral studies, Dr. Silvia worked as lecturer in Management at Nottingham Business School.
Dr. Silvia has delivered the HR module on the MBA program at AUIS as a visiting professor as well as HR courses at PDI. She joined AUIS as an Adjunct Professor in 2020 teaching Principles of Management, Organizational Behavior and Human Resource Management. Dr. Silvia has worked as HR consultant in the private sector in Sulaimani and is a research member of the Centre of People, Work and Organizational Practice (CPWOP) at Nottingham Business School. Her research interests include employee development, human resource management and mental health in the workplace. She is now looking to further her research on HRM in the local region.
Kenneth J. Muschelewicz, Logistics and Project Management Instructor
Dr. Kenneth has lived and worked in the US for 20 years and has been working in Germany for the last 13 years. His expertise lies in Logistics, Supply Chain operations and Project Management within Europe, the US, and globally. Through his training courses, students get both academic and hands-on knowledge and skills that can be applied to their work.
Dr. Kenneth currently also teaches Project Management and Supply Chain for the Swiss Business School in Zurich. He has taught Supply Chain and Inventory & Warehouse Management courses for PDI at AUIS.
Anwar Ibrahim, Leadership and Operations Management Instructor
Anwar has lived and worked in the UK's non-for-profit sector for over 30 years. Anwar obtained a master’s degree in Operations Management in 2000 from the University of West London. He served as the Director of PDI from 2014 until 2020 and since 2016 has taught as an adjunct faculty member in the AUIS Business Department. His main areas of research interest are Business Operations, Strategic Development Processes, and Ethical Business Management.
Rava Khorshid, Leadership and Project Management Instructor
Rava Khorshid currently heads the Professional Development Institute (PDI) at American University of Iraq, Sulaimani (AUIS). Her main focus is to provide leadership and planning for the PDI Department to develop and enhance the scope and contribution of AUIS in the area of adult education and professional, lifelong training. Rava has also taught short courses in Leadership, Project Management and Business Development at PDI.
Rava holds a bachelor’s degree in Business Administration (majored in Marketing) and MBA from the Lahti University of Applied Sciences in Finland. She has 10 years of work experience with administrative, marketing, and business development duties.
Ahmed Al-Allo, PMP and Project Management Instructor
Project Management Professional (PMP)® Certification
Ahmed has lived in the UAE, Canada and Iraq, working in the field of Project Management for over 20 years. He received a B.S. in Civil Engineering from the University of Baghdad. He is a certified (PMP)® trainer since 2006 and has completed several other trainings within the Project Management and construction areas. Ahmed has taught Project Management courses for AUIS's Executive MBA program since 2012, as well as (PMP)® and Project Management courses for PDI.
Abdurrahman Ahmad Wahab, English Literature and Pedagogy Instructor
Ph.D. University of Toronto
M.S. University of Massachusetts Boston
Dr. Abdurrahman received his Bachelors of Arts in English from the Salahaddin University in Erbil - Iraq in 2003. He continued with professional development and completed his Master of Arts degree in English from the University of Massachusetts, Boston. Dr. Abdurrahman obtained his Doctor of Philosophy from the Department of Social Justice Education at University of Toronto. He has worked as a writing tutor at the University of Massachusetts, USA, and as an instructor at Tishk International University and Cihan and Ishik Universities in Erbil, Iraq.
Dr. Abdurrahman joined AUIS as a policy researcher and training specialist at the Institute of Regional and International Studies center. Dr. Abdurrahman has a number of published books, articles, and policy and evaluation papers.
