Please join us in celebrating AASA Board member Professor Evelyn Alsultany as she’s been awarded the Harold R. Johnson Diversity Service Award from the University of Michigan, Ann Arbor. From the University of Michigan’s The University Record article:
Seven faculty members who have shown dedication to developing cultural and ethnic diversity at the University of Michigan have received the 2015 Harold R. Johnson Diversity Service Award from the Office of the Provost.
“It was an honor to learn about the extraordinary diversity work on our campus and in our community,” said Robert M. Sellers, vice provost for equity, inclusion and academic affairs. “The nominations received were simply outstanding and prove that our faculty continue to think creatively and work hard to help advance the university’s commitment to diversity as an essential part of our educational mission.”
Established in 1996, the award is given in honor of Harold Johnson, dean emeritus of the School of Social Work. The award provides $5,000 to recipients to further research, scholarship or student service opportunities.
Alsultany, associate professor of American culture, LSA, is a teacher and mentor for diverse undergraduate and graduate students on campus, and a scholar of cultural studies, critical mixed-race studies, gender and sexuality studies, Latino/a studies and Arab and Muslim-American studies.
Alsultany’s scholarship on race, mixed race, and the representations of Arabs and Muslims after 9/11 has been an important platform to discuss cultural, racial and ethnic diversity and has furthered interdisciplinary thinking.
Her co-edited book, “Arab and Arab American Feminism: Gender, Violence, and Belonging” (2011), earned the Evelyn Shakir Award. She recently received Honorable Mention in the 2014 Arab American Book Award for the co-edited book, “Between the Middle East and the Americans: The Cultural Politics of Diaspora” (2013). These books influenced academia and a national debate about racialized and gendered violence against Arab and Muslim Americans.
“Her commitment to expanding classes and resources for U-M students on Arab-American issues, particularly during our current historical period of persistent overt Islamophobia and anti-Arab sentiments, is sought by all students on their own personal journeys to understand their world and their place in it. Not only has she gained great respect from students but also from faculty,” said Yamil Avivi, an American culture doctoral candidate.
Alsultany played a key role in establishing an Arab and Muslim American Studies Program, which offers interdisciplinary undergraduate courses focusing on the Arab and Muslim American experience.
Please click this link to see the full press release from Michigan.
