Near Eastern Languages & Civilizations (NELC)

 

News

Human Rights First is next stop for fellowship winner Kathleen Norland

Third-year Penn Law student Kathleen Norland L’13 has been awarded the inaugural 2013-14 ACE Rule of Law & Human Rights Fellowship. This innovative post-graduate fellowship, given annually to a Penn Law student or recent graduate pursuing an international public-interest career, supports a year of work with Human Rights First, a preeminent legal advocacy organization.

After graduating in May, Norland will spend a year with Human Rights First, working primarily with the Refugee Protection Program, which advances the rights of refugees, including the right to seek asylum.

Norland, who founded the Penn Law chapter of the Iraqi Refugee Assistance Project, is a candidate for a joint-degree in Penn’s Department of Near Eastern Languages & Civilizations and will receive her Master's Degree in Arabic & Islamic Studies in August 2013. Dr. Joseph Lowry, Kathleen's advisor in NELC, said "She is an excellent student and her Arabic is superb. We're very happy for her."

“Kate’s strong background in refugee representation and advocacy, as well as her fluency in Arabic and deep knowledge of the Middle East, are a perfect match for this fellowship,” said Human Rights First President & CEO Elisa Massimino. “We feel privileged that Human Rights First will be where she launches what we feel confident will be a remarkably impactful career.”

The ACE Rule of Law Fellowship is funded by the ACE Charitable Foundation and ACE Limited General Counsel Robert Cusumano, a 1980 Penn Law graduate. It was established in 2012 to create new pathways for students to build careers in international rule of law and human rights. The fellowship reflects ACE’s leadership in supporting rule of law projects in the United States and around the world.

Human Rights First is an independent advocacy and action organization that builds bipartisan coalitions and teams up with frontline activists and lawyers to tackle human rights issues that demand American leadership. Its projects range from protecting refugees and combating torture to defending persecuted minorities and stopping atrocities.

Norland will work with Human Rights First’s Refugee Protection Program, which advocates for access to asylum and for U.S. compliance with international refugee and human rights laws. Each year, the program helps hundreds of individual refugees in the United States to win asylum through its pro bono Asylum Legal Representation Program.

The broader partnership established by Penn Law and Human Rights First also supports the development of curricular and extracurricular initiatives in human rights and the rule of law. Massimino will be the Penn Law Fellow-in-Residence from March 11 – 13, during which time she will work with students and faculty to explore current issues shaping the international human rights agendas.

A historical leader in teaching international and comparative law, the University of Pennsylvania Law School has built upon this foundation over the past several years to create an International Program offering unrivaled opportunities for students to gain firsthand experience with what it means to practice law in an international setting and to pursue careers that make a difference in the world.

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   Bensalem Himmich and Roger Allen

Dr. Roger Allen has been named the 2012 winner of the Saif Ghobash Banipal Prize for his translation of the Arabic novel A Muslim Suicide by Bensalem Himmich, published by Syracuse University Press. The judges' decision was unanimous. The award ceremony will be held at King's Place in London on February 4, 2013. More information on the prize, the nominees and the award ceremony can be found on The Banipal Trust for Arabic Literature website at http://www.banipaltrust.org.uk/prize/award2012.cfm. Congratulations, Dr. Allen!

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Congratulation to Dr. David Stern! He has been selected as the Radcliffe Institute fellow at Harvard University for the 2011-2012 academic year. Dr. Stern will work on his project, A History of the Jewish Book from Antiquity to the Present Day: The Biographies of 120 Books.

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We are proud to announce that Dr. Heather Sharkey has received the 2011 Charles Ludwig Distingued Teaching Award.  Established in 2004 by the College Alumni Society, the award was named in memory of the organization’s long-time president. It recognizes School of Arts and Sciences standing faculty members who show an extraordinary commitment to the engagement of students as active and interactive participants in the learning process.
Says Dr. Sharkey, "I'm particularly gratified by this award because it relies so heavily on students' nominations."
Congratulations, Dr. Sharkey!

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Paul M. Cobb, Associate Professor of Medieval Islamic History, has published a new book, co-edited with Antoine Borrut, entitled "Umayyad Legacies: Medieval Memories from Syria to Spain" (Leiden: E. J. Brill, 2010), a collections of papers on Islam's first dynasty from an international, interdisciplinary conference he organized in Damascus in 2006.

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Events

Commencement 2012

   Congratulations to our graduates!

Three students who received their degrees during the last academic year marched in the ceremony on May 14, 2012.
Melinda Nelson-Hurst earned her doctorate in Egyptology in December, 2011. She will be teaching at Tulane University beginning this fall.
Kate Liszka was awarded a PhD in Egyptology this month. She will begin a three-year Princeton post-doc in September.
Charlotte Rose earned a Master's degree in Egyptology last December. She is continuing in the program to earn her PhD.
Other students not in attendance are: Amina Chaudhry (MA), Omar Foda (MA), Amanda Hannoosh Steinberg (MA), Adnan Zulfiquar (MA), Aaron Hagler (PhD), Gretchen Head (PhD) and Ailin Qian (PhD).