An historian of the Middle East and a sociologist who studies globalization and social change will join the Kroc Institute faculty this fall. A research program assistant came on board last January, and a director of academic programs joins the staff this summer. All four positions are new.

Asher Kaufman will be an assistant professor of history. He earned his Ph.D. at Brandeis University and has been teaching at Hebrew University, Jerusalem. From 2000 to 2004, he was a research fellow at the Harry S. Truman Research Institute for the Advancement of Peace, and headed its Middle East Unit in 2004-05. Kaufman is the author of Reviving Phoenicia: The Search for Identity in Lebanon (I.B. Tauris, 2004), a history of modern Lebanese national identity. He has also written articles on topics such as the evolution of Hizbullah (the Shi‘ite radical movement in Lebanon), Israeli policy in the Middle East, and various boundary disputes in the region. “Asher’s expertise in the history of the modern Middle East, the Arab-Israeli conflict in particular, will be a marvelous contribution to the Kroc Institute as we expand our undergraduate and M.A. programs and send graduate students to Tantur Ecumenical Institute in Jerusalem for internships,” said Director Scott Appleby.

Jackie Smith comes to the institute from the faculty of the Department of Sociology at the State University of New York, Stony Brook. Smith studies the impact of globalization on mass politics, social movements and democratization. She recently co-edited Coalitions Across Borders: Transnational Protest in a Neoliberal Era (Rowman & Littlefield, 2004). Smith has also authored or co-authored more than 35 peer-reviewed articles and book chapters, and her research has been funded by the National Science Foundation, the World Society Foundation, and the Aspen Institute. “We look forward to welcoming Jackie, who this fall will be teaching an undergraduate course on global issues and the United Nations, and a graduate/senior undergraduate course on transnational social movements,” said Appleby. Smith will be returning to Notre Dame, where she received an M.A. in peace studies degree (1992) and a Ph.D. in government and international studies (1995).

Jaleh Dashti-Gibson, a classmate of Smith’s in the 1992 peace studies M.A. program, has been named the institute’s first director of academic programs. “Jaleh comes to us after five years of distinguished service as an academic advisor in the First Year of Studies and concurrent assistant professor in the University Writing Program,” Appleby said. Dashti-Gibson received a Ph.D. in government and international studies from Notre Dame in 1998. She directed the university’s Balfour Hesburgh Scholars Program from May 2000 to January 2003. In her new post, she will oversee the graduate and undergraduate peace studies programs, including curriculum, recruitment, admissions, financial aid, and student advising.

Colette Sgambati is program assistant in research and policy. “Colette joined the Kroc Institute staff in January and immediately made life easier for Jerry Powers, George Lopez, John Darby and John Paul Lederach, each of whom she ably assists in conference planning, travel coordination and other aspects of academic administration,” Appleby said. Before joining the Kroc staff, Sgambati completed two years of Peace Corps service in Cameroon as an English teacher and AIDS educator. She received a bachelor of arts degree in French and European studies from Western Michigan University.

Top of Page

Home > Publications > Peace Colloquy > Issue 8, Summer 2005 > Faculty and staff continue to grow