Joe Kenny

Joseph Kenny, Jr., B.A. 1976, grew up in a Philadelphia suburb and attended The Catholic University of America from 1972 to 1976, graduating with Bachelor degrees in economics and accounting. He reports that the years at CUA were some of the most memorable of his life.

“All good things must come to an end,” as Joe says, and in his senior year he was recruited by the U.S. General Accounting Office (GAO) where he worked after graduation for four years as an auditor and management analyst. During that time, he earned an MBA degree in finance and international business at The George Washington University, and married his college sweetheart, Sharon.

“My CUA education has given me critical analytical reading and writing skills, along with helping me to maintain and grow my lifelong faith in the Catholic Church and its mission to reach out to all of God’s children. I often believe that my life would have been very different, not as full and rich, if I had not had the opportunities to grow and learn at CUA.”

Living and working overseas interested both Joe and Sharon. He interviewed with Aramco and was offered a position in Dhahran in 1980. Sharon had grown up overseas, so this was a natural move. Together, the couple traveled extensively around the world, and made friendships during that time that endure to this day. When Sharon was offered a teaching assistantship at GW, they reluctantly returned to Washington, D.C.

Back in the Washington area, Joe went to work for the management consulting firm of Booz Allen Hamilton and Sharon became a full-time student and part-time professor. They also began a family with the arrival of their first son, Joseph. As they had always agreed that they wanted to live abroad again, in 1990, Joe applied to the U.S. Department of State to enter the foreign service. He persevered through the extensive testing and interview process and was eventually offered a seat in the entry class.

Joe’s overseas assignments have been in the U.S. embassies in Italy, Kuwait and Russia – all interesting and challenging. While Joe was serving in Rome, their son Patrick came along. Joe reports “The foreign service lifestyle appealed to our boys and they have become inclusive and global in their outlook and attitudes. In fact, occasionally when we are gathered around the dinner table in Bethesda, one of the boys will inquire when we are going back to Russia. We have enjoyed witnessing and participating in history-in-the-making while in Russia and the Middle East, and relished the sights and sounds of the myriad countries we visited in our time off.”

Joe has enjoyed diverse assignments at “main State” as well: teaching on the faculty of the Foreign Service Institute, working as the special assistant to the assistant secretary for resource management and CFO, serving as the executive director of the Bureau of Economic, Energy, and Business Affairs; and attending the National War College, where he earned a Master of Science in National Security Strategy.

Joe returned to Dhahran, not as an oil man, but as a diplomat. His present title is U.S. consul general. As the principal officer at post, he is responsible for the work direction, safety, and well-being of 22 U.S. Diplomats, six U.S. Marines, and 82 local staff.

He jumped at the chance to go back to Dhahran. He’s enjoyed reconnecting with friends and colleagues and making new acquaintances.

Dhahran is a very strategic foreign service mission since the city is the world headquarters for Saudi Aramco (and the location of most of the oil and gas fields and proven reserves), the commercial capital of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, and home to 13,000 American citizens. Joe’s consular district encompasses a large portion of the kingdom including the Rub Al-Khali (the Empty Quarter), the Al-Hasa Oasis—the world’s largest and some would argue the oldest oasis in continuous habitation—as well as the ports of Dammam and Jubail. It is in close proximity (over the causeway) to the neighboring Kingdom of Bahrain. Dhahran was the first U.S. diplomatic presence in Saudi Arabia and continues to represent U.S. interests in the Eastern Province of this large, resource-rich, desert kingdom. The political capital is Riyadh and the U.S. Embassy is there.

The Consulate General issues visas and passports, provides American citizen services, promotes U.S. trade and investment, pursues political and economic reporting, assists Saudi students preparing to study in the United States, and supports U.S. delegations and congressional visits. His employees attend official events and functions, and promote the U.S. experience and democratic principles. The Saudi work week is Saturday through Wednesday so the weekend falls on Thursday and Friday but since Washington is open for business those days, Joe's schedule is fluid.

Representing the United States is a great honor and one that this CUA alumnus says he would not trade. What’s next on his Foreign Service agenda?  The sky’s the limit. Well, almost.