I graduated in 2003 with a double major in Near Eastern Studies and Economics and a concentration in International Relations. Confident that I wanted to pursue a career in academia, I started immediately my PhD studies at Brandeis University, where my dissertation explored the changing perceptions over time of a key battle (Qādisiyyah) during the Arab-Islamic conquest of Iran. This project, which won the Foundation for Iranian Studies Best Dissertation Award, actually began as a junior-year paper for Prof. David Powers’ Seminar in Islamic History—proof, perhaps, that an undergraduate assignment can really change your life!
Currently, I am Senior Lecturer (equivalent to Associate Professor) in the Department of Middle East Studies at Ben-Gurion University of the Negev, having taught previously at the University of Oklahoma and the Hebrew University of Jerusalem. Alongside teaching and research, I serve as the Associate Editor of the Journal of Persianate Societies and sit on the board of the Association for the Study of Persianate Societies. As a cultural historian, my work spans identity, memory, and narrative. My research focuses on Iranian and Persianate history, early Islamic historiography, the Bahaʾi community in Israel, modern Central Asian identities, and minorities across the Middle East.
I reside in Zikhron Yaʿaqov, a small coastal town in Israel, with my wife Sitora and our two daughters, Yasminah and Nozdonah—who happily claim most of my free time. In addition to serving on my town’s education council and municipal environmental committee, I also maintain my Cornell pride as chair of the Israel Cornell Club.
Looking back, my years as an NES major shaped my career more than anything else. I studied with nearly every member of the department at the time, each of whom not only provided me with critical foundations, but also broadened my horizons and fostered my intellectual curiosity that drives me still today. Many of those professors have since become colleagues, and I strive to carry forward the lessons they instilled by offering my students the same inspiration and encouragement that I once received. My advice to today’s NES majors is simple: take full advantage of your professors’ passion and dedication, for they will stay with you far beyond your years at Cornell.
