PARTICIPANTS

Mark D. Gearan
Hobart and William Smith Colleges

President Mark D. Gearan’s appointment to Hobart and William Smith in 1999 made him one of the nation’s youngest college presidents. In the course of his tenure, he has reinforced the Colleges’ commitment to global understanding and study abroad opportunities, community service and service-learning, with the goal of providing these elements through contemporary facilities and state-of-the-art technology.

When named president, Gearan was serving as director of the Peace Corps in Washington, D.C., a post he assumed in 1995. Under his leadership, the Peace Corps experienced a resurgence of interest.

Prior to his Peace Corps directorship, President Gearan served at the White House as Assistant to the President and Director of Communications, as well as Deputy Chief of Staff during the Clinton administration. During the 1992 presidential campaign, he was Al Gore’s campaign manager, and the Deputy Director of President-elect Clinton’s transition team.

President Gearan serves on the Board of the Corporation for National and Community Service, he is Vice-Chair of the Annapolis Group and is on the Board of Directors of the National Association of Independent Colleges and Universities.

A native of Gardner, Mass., President Gearan earned his B.A. in government cum laude at Harvard University and his law degree at Georgetown University. He is also the recipient of 12 honorary degrees.

Paragraph Statement

Question: What do you think is the most important issue involving religion that confronts international NGOs?

I believe that international human rights NGOs have an important role to play by increasing their emphasis on problems facing religious minorities in certain states (e.g. Iran, Israel, Saudi Arabia) where the governing authorities are associated with a dominant religion. And perhaps more importantly in highlighting issues of discrimination against religiously observant women in a country such as Turkey where the government, although led by religiously observant men, is unable to protect the religious freedom of women who wear headscarves. In Turkey, the hardcore Kemalist opposition, the so-called ‘deep state,’ and a strongly patriarchal culture combine to prevent the realization of basic human rights for religiously observant Muslim women. In this regard, international human rights NGOs are challenged to focus on the appropriate interplay of secular governmental authority and freedom of religion. Some similar issues are present in several other countries, including France and China, where religious practices and organizations are stigmatized in various ways, and even suppressed on grounds of security or to uphold a secular national identity.

back to listing