Summary
S-CAR faculty, students and alumni focused on a far-ranging series of topics during March. Two students received Provost Awards, and a third was invited to be an editor for 2018 for the Kosmos Quarterly Journal. Two reports by our adjunct faculty alumni members deeply explore ongoing human rights crises in the Middle East. Seven newspaper articles, two TV and two radio interviews cover domestic issues such as Mennonite Holocaust History reconciliation, national political issues, and U.S. international relations. Four public presentations by our faculty here and abroad included Keynote introductions of US military generals and international workshop. Claudine Kuradusenge and Tompson Makahamadze defended their dissertations, while Laura Collins and Merri Davis defended their dissertation proposals.
Awards and Honors
Fakhira Halloun, PhD candidate, received the 2018 Summer Research Fellowship from George Mason University, March 5,2018.
Tamara S. Hamilton, MS student, was Appointed as Advising Editor for Kosmos Quarterly 2018 Journal on March 6, 2018.
Carol Daniel Kasbari PhD candidate, also received the 2018 Summer Research Fellowship from George Mason University on March 5, 2018.
Academic Publications
Journal Articles
Habtamu Dugo MS’12, and Joanne Eisen published an article on “The Politics of Genocide Denial in Ethiopia” in The Journal of Pan African Studies, volume 11, issue no. 4, for the March 2018 edition.
Reports
Mohammed Cherkaoui, PhD ’12, had a report on From Geneva to Sochi: The Revolving-Door Diplomacy of the Syrian Crisis published by the AlJazeera Center for Studies on March 26, 2018.
Alma Abdul-Hadi Jadallah, PhD ’06, and Adjunct Faculty, contributed a section on “Bahrain: A Suffocated Civil Society” for areport on Counterterrorism Measures and Civil Societypublished by theCenter for Strategic and International Studies, March, 2018.
S-CAR in the News
Newspaper / Magazine / Online Articles:
Soolmaz Abooali, PhD candidate, wrote an article entitled “Engaging mental health: a conflict analysis guide for professional athletes,” for S-CAR News, March 31, 2018.
Susan Allen in an op-ed piece, offered ideas on How to Get Relations with Russia on Track in The Washington Post, on March 9, 2018.
Bryant Harris wrote an article about Aya Hijazi’s, BA’09, work to help “Egyptian-Americans Launch Human Rights Push Ahead of Sisi Re-Election” in the Al-Monitoron March 14, 2018.
John Dale Grover, MS student,wrote an article entitled “Students get a taste of humanitarian aid work in 70-hour roleplaying simulation” for S-CAR News, March 29, 2018.
Rick Hampson wrote an article for USA Today about S-CAR early Professor James H. Laue, who was present at the assassination of Rev. Martin Luther King. “For Those Who Were at the Lorraine Motel, What Does It Mean to Be a Witness to Martyrdom?” was published on March 30, 2018 in honor of the 50th anniversary of the day of the assassination. James Laue was the first Lynch Professor of Conflict Resolution at George Mason University (1986-1993).
Talha Kose, PhD ’09, explored “Iraq and the Middle East 15 Years after the US Invasion” in an article for the Daily Sabahon March 22, 2018.
Buzz McClain, for the Mason Spirit 50th Mason Anniversary edition, highlighted S-CAR Adjunct Faculty and alumna Alma Jadallah, PhD ’06, in an article entitled “Bringing People Together” on March 1, 2018. Marie Seniw, S-CAR’s Director of Development, was quoted in the article.
Min Zaw Oo, PhD ’12, was interviewed by the Asian news organization 7Day Daily on March 22, 2018. The long article focused on Myanmar-China relations. (Note- the article is in Burmese).
Yerevan Saeed, PhD student, explored how “Thirty Years after the Halabja Genocide: Iraq Still Punishes the Kurds" for the The Washington Institute, Fikra Forum, on March 16, 2018.
Lisa Schirch, PhD ’99, reflected on “How Mennonites Reckon with Our History in the Holocaust” for the Anabaptist Historians, published on March 25, 2018.
Eric Young, undergraduate student, wrote a spotlight article about fellow undergraduate Nora Malatinsky for S-CAR News, March 30, 2018.
Television and Radio Presentations
TV
John Dale Grover, MS student, argued “The Case for Trump Meeting Kim Jong Un” on Washington D.C.’s Fox 5 News, on March 9, 2018.
Yerevan Saeed, PhD student, was on Voice of America on March 16, 2018 in a segment entitled “Yerevan Saeed Interview on 30th Anniversary of Halabja Genocide”.
Radio
Min Zaw Oo, PhD ’10, described how "I Applied to University from a Trench" in a BBC podcast on March 14, 2018.
Yerevan Saeed, PhD student,discussed how Turkish Forces Drive Kurds from Afrin; What Is American Policy? on Sputnik International Radio on March 19, 2018.
S-CAR Events, Presentations, and Public Lectures
Daniel Agbiboa presented his research paper entitled "Fighting Terror by Keeping the Peace in Nigeria: Boko Haram, Local Vigilantes and Counter-Insurgency" at the SAIS seminar series at Johns Hopkins University on March 7, 2018.
Tatsushi Arai, PhD 2005, led the first in a series of missions in March 2018 in north-eastern Nigeria for the International Organization for Migration (IOM), a UN migration agency, to conduct a multi-stakeholder survey aimed at establishing a model of former Boko Haram fighters' peaceful return and reintegration in their home communities.
Sarah Federman, PhD '15, presented at "Aller Simple: Corporate Accountability for Genocide: The case of the French National Airways", March 21, 2018, McGill University, Montreal, Canada.
Alan Gropman, Adjunct Faculty and Advisory Board Member, introduced General Wesley K. Clark at a forum with General Michael V. Hayden for a discussion on National Security Strategy. The event was hosted by the Schar School in Founder’s Hall Auditorium on March 5, 2018.
Susan Hirsch co-organized a conference titled “Religious Marriages in the Mediterranean” which was held at the University of Malta on March 20, 2018 and March 21, 2018.
Patricia Maulden was a workshop participant in a program entitled “Activity as Reconciliation: Lessons from Practice”. This project was sponsored by Centre for Research, Documentation, and Publication, London School of Economics, Kings College London. She also presented a conference paper on “Quilombos in Bahia, Brazil: Community Solidarity through Conflict Resolution Activities” for a conference on Art and Reconciliation: Conflict, Culture, Community at the University Program for Study and Research, University of Prishtina, Kosovo.
Dissertation Defenses
Claudine Kuradusenge “Fight against Labels, Fight for Self: The Exploration of Social Categorization on Diaspora Political Participation” on March 30, 2018.
Tompson Makahamadze “How do Legacies of Violence Affect Regime Stability? Nonviolent Protests and Regime Outcomes in Tunisia and Zimbabwe” on March 27, 2018.
Dissertation Proposal Defenses
Laura Collins “The Politics and Authority of Religious Organizational Engagement in Wartime: The Case of Central African Republic” on March 26, 2018.
Merri Davis “The Interplay of Trauma and Violence in Social Conflict Surrounding Historic Interpretations of Confederate Symbols and Memorials” on March 19, 2018.