AWC Names Pamela Faber Shearman as Research Director and Catherine Bateman as Deputy

Afghanistan War Commission Co-Chairs Shamila N. Chaudhary and Dr. Colin F. Jackson today announced the promotion of Ms. Pamela G. Faber Shearman to the role of Research Director and Ms. Catherine (Kate) Bateman as Deputy Research Director.  In these roles, they support Commissioners by leading a non-partisan professional staff of analysts in drafting a comprehensive assessment of the 20-year war by August 2026, as Congress directed.  Ms. Shearman had been serving as Acting Research Director since September and Ms. Bateman as Senior Advisor since July.

“Pamela and Kate earned these promotions based on their proven leadership in empowering our research staff to achieve impressive progress during the Commission’s first year,” said co-chairs Chaudhary and Jackson.  “Under their stewardship, we’re confident the Commission will meet our mandate to produce a truly independent, objective, and rigorous report Americans can be proud of.”

Ms. Shearman joined the Commission’s staff as Deputy Research Director in January 2024.  Previously, she served as a Senior Research Scientist at the Center for Naval Analyses (CNA), a Federally Funded Research and Development Center, where she coordinated CNA’s Africa Security portfolio. As an experienced research leader, policy analyst, and national security advisor, she has conducted research projects on issues including counterterrorism, security force assistance, women, peace and security, and civilian harm mitigation in conflict.

Ms. Shearman holds an M.Phil. in International Development from St. Catherine’s College, University of Oxford, an MSc in International Relations from The London School of Economics, a BA in Political Science from Columbia University, and a BA in History from List College, The Jewish Theological Seminary.  She lives in Northern Virginia with her family.

In advancing from Senior Advisor, a role at the Commission she assumed in July 2024, to Deputy Research Director, Ms. Bateman carries forward more than 17 years of experience as a researcher and policy practitioner.  Her career has spanned the State and Defense departments, the U.S. Congress, an oversight agency, and think tanks.  For more than 10 years, she has worked in and on Afghanistan, including a tour at U.S. Embassy Kabul from 2010 to 2012.

Ms. Bateman was previously a senior expert on Afghanistan at the United States Institute of Peace; a project lead in the Lessons Learned Program at the Special Inspector General for Afghanistan Reconstruction; and a Council on Foreign Relations International Affairs Fellow. She has led major research initiatives on the Afghanistan conflict, including on U.S. negotiations with the Taliban, anticorruption, women’s rights, and reintegration of ex-combatants. Ms. Bateman’s published work has appeared in Foreign Affairs, Lawfare, The Hill, Proceedings, and The National Interest.  She holds a BA in English literature from Middlebury College, and an MA in international relations from the School of Advanced International Studies at Johns Hopkins University.

Background
In FY 2022, a bipartisan group of members of the U.S. Congress from majority and minority leadership and various committees (Foreign Affairs; Intelligence; Armed Services) appointed the following fifteen commissioners to the Commission: