APPLY | PARC Tanya Baker-Asad Scholarship for Gazan Women Pursuing PhDs

The Palestinian American Research Center announces the PARC Tanya Baker-Asad Scholarship for Gazan women pursuing PhDs in the humanities and social sciences. The Scholarship was established in honor of the late Tanya Baker-Asad, an anthropologist, a feminist, and a strong supporter of the Palestinian cause. A woman of great integrity and compassion, and with a strong sense of justice, Tanya Baker-Asad was a researcher and a teacher who remained steadfast in her commitment to improving the lives of women, particularly those living under conditions of hardship and political repression. The Tanya Baker-Asad Scholarship was established by Baker-Asad’s husband, Talal Asad. 

Applications due July 15, 2024
Awards announced August 15, 2024

Scholarship awards from $5,000 up to $25,000, with up to 5 awards given this cycle

Qualified applicants should either be enrolled or in the process of enrolling in a doctoral program in the humanities or social sciences at an accredited university anywhere in the world. The maximum Scholarship award for the academic year 2024-2025 is $25,000. The Scholarship may be used for any expenses related to the pursuit of the degree (e.g. tuition, research expenses, dissertation write-up support, living expenses).

Information about the fellowship competition:

  • Applicants must be women of Palestinian heritage from Gaza.

  • Applicants must be scholars enrolled, or in the process of enrolling in a PhD  program at an accredited university anywhere in the world. 

  • Fields of study include, but are not limited to, anthropology, sociology, economics, history, philosophy, religious studies, political science, psychology, geography, literature, languages and linguistics, archaeology, art history, media studies, and film studies.

  • The Scholarship can be used for any expenses related to the pursuit of the degree (e.g. tuition, research expenses, dissertation write-up support, living expenses).

  • Previous awardees are not eligible though previous applicants are encouraged to apply.

Applications include the following:

  • Application form

  • Personal statement (maximum 1,000 words)

  • Research statement (maximum 1,000 words)

  • Academic transcripts (BA, MA, and PhD if currently enrolled)

  • Curriculum Vitae

  • Budget (maximum of $25,000)

  • Other funding support

  • Information page from passport, laissez-passer, or travel document

  • Two letters of recommendation

Evaluation criteria:

  • Primary criterion is the overall excellence of the application

  • Clear and compelling statement of purpose

  • Qualifications demonstrate the potential to undertake or continue a PhD

  • Strong support from recommenders

The Tanya Baker-Asad Scholarship is supported by the Tanya Baker-Asad Fund

ATTEND | 75 Years of an Ongoing Nakba: The Question of Knowledge Production 05/20-23/24

To mark the 60th anniversary of the founding of the Institute for Palestine Studies in 2023 — which coincided with the 75th anniversary of the Nakba — the Institute for Palestine Studies is hosting its annual conference, titled “75 Years of an Ongoing Nakba: The Question of Knowledge Production.” The conference is set to open on Monday, May 20, in Beirut, with the participation of researchers, academics, and historians from Palestine and around the world. Additionally, sessions will take place in Birzeit, New York, and online. Originally slated to be held in late 2023, a new date for the conference was set, incorporating new content and themes. 

This conference comes at a crucial moment for the Palestinian cause, given the relentless Israeli onslaught on Gaza, which has lasted over 200 days and has targeted every pillar of Palestinian life. This is why the Institute for Palestine Studies sees the commitment to continue scholarly and research work as a vital form of resistance against the Zionist project. The Institute also believes that the current war is a part of the ongoing Nakba. 

The primary goal of this conference is to reassess the decades of intellectual and scholarly production about the Nakba — published in Arabic, English, French, and Hebrew — by examining the body of work comprehensively. The aim is to explore new perspectives on understanding this pivotal and foundational event in Palestinian history. 

The Nakba isn't merely a historical issue: it's a pressing concern of the present and future, as the Zionist project continues in its attempts to erase the memory of the Nakba, which is a cornerstone of the national identity of the Palestinian people. Today, more than ever, Palestinian people understand the importance of keeping the memory of Nakba alive and teaching it in schools, universities, and beyond. This is vital for fostering unity, navigating current challenges facing the national movement, and injecting renewed vigor into Palestinian political resistance. 

The conference is organized in collaboration with several research institutions in Palestine and worldwide, including Birzeit University, the American University of Beirut, Saint Joseph University of Beirut, the Orient-Institut Beirut, the Arab Council for Social Sciences, and the Center for Palestine Studies at Columbia University - New York.

Organized by the Institute for Palestine Studies, in partnership with Birzeit University, Center for Palestine Studies at Columbia University, ​​​The Palestine Land Studies Center (PLSC) at the American University of Beirut, Arab Council for the Social Sciences, Département d'Histoire-Relations Internationales de l'Université Saint-Joseph de Beyrouth, Orient-Institut Beirut (OIB).

ATTEND | (Anti-) Colonialism and its Afterlives Conference on 4/27-28/24

The Critical Perspectives program at the New School for Social Research, New York, invites you to a two-day conference, (Anti-)Colonialism and its Afterlives. 

The event features leading scholars from around the world and aims to broaden the intellectual and political criticism of colonial modernity by exploring themes ranging from: Popular Politics, Marxism, Palestine/Israel, Abolitionism, Migration, and Ecology. The plenary keynote session, on April 28, is a roundtable discussion with speakers who have made significant contributions to the traditions of anti-colonial thought broadly understood.The keynote will be followed by an open reception. 

For more information and to register for the conference, click here. The conference will take place on April 27-28 at 6 E. 16th Street, Wolff Conference Room (D1103), and is co-sponsored by The Zolberg Institute, the University Student Senate, the Rosa Luxemburg Stiftung NYC, the Janey Program, and the departments of Politics and Sociology at NSSR.

CONGRATS | Gil Hochberg Receives 2024 Lenfest Distinguished Faculty Award

CPS congratulates faculty member Gil Hochberg for receiving a 2024 Lenfest Distinguished Faculty Award.

She was chosen for her René Wellek Prize-winning monograph, Becoming Palestine: Toward an Archival Imagination of the Future, and her leadership in fostering constructive student and faculty conversations on Israel and Gaza as chair of the Department of Middle Eastern, South Asian, and African Studies.

Gil Hochberg is the Ransford Professor of Hebrew and Comparative Literature, and Middle East Studies - Department of Middle Eastern, South Asian, and African Studies and a member of the Center for Palestine Studies Faculty Collective.

For more info, click here.