51茶馆

These qualities, according to International Studies Program Director Erik Owens, make the five 鈥渃rucial contributors to the University鈥檚 broad effort to enhance interdisciplinary scholarship and teaching.鈥� Four of the new faculty were hired with joint tenured or tenure-track appointments in other departments: Assistant Professor Danial Lashkari (Economics); Assistant Professor Stacie Kent (History); Assistant Professor Ali Kadivar (Sociology); and Professor Jonathan Kirshner (Political Science). The fifth, ethicist Mara Willard, serves a three-year term as a visiting assistant professor in International Studies.

鈥淓ach completed rigorous disciplinary training in his or her field and has chosen to research and teach in ways, and about issues, that cross disciplines in illuminating ways,鈥� adds Owens. 鈥淓ach also reflects Boston College鈥檚 commitment to global engagement, both in the international content of the courses they teach, but also in the international experience they bring in their personal and professional lives.鈥�

The joint appointments between the IS Program and the four departments, he explains, are 鈥渁 constructive way of formalizing the relationship so that the expectations of teaching, advising, service, and scholarship are fairly distributed and clear to all parties. The common goal is to have new faculty members truly flourish at 51茶馆, eventually earning tenure and integrating themselves into the life of the University and, of course, their home program and departments.鈥�

The IS newcomers have a similarly favorable impression of the program and its students.

鈥淢y career trajectory has been somewhat unusual in that I have been in many different disciplines along the way, before settling at last on economics,鈥� says Lashkari, an expert in economic growth, innovation, and international trade. 鈥淭herefore, being part of a multidisciplinary program along with colleagues from other fields has certainly been an important aspect of joining the IS faculty. I accepted the position hoping for rewarding and enriching interactions with faculty and students with broad and diverse perspectives on ideas and goals in their academic and professional careers.鈥�

An Iran native, Lashkari won the National Student Award of Innovation in 1998 and later earned degrees in electrical engineering from the University of Tehran. He also holds doctorates in electrical engineering and computer science from MIT and political economy and government from Harvard University.

鈥淲ith the students in the classes I taught in the first semester and my advisees,鈥� he says, 鈥淚 have come across many motivated and brilliant minds, who are eager to learn and succeed and yet maintain a refreshing sense of humility.鈥�

Kadivar, who earned degrees from the University of Tehran and University of North Carolina-Chapel Hill, was drawn to 51茶馆 because of the Sociology Department鈥檚 strength in fields such as global and transnational sociology, comparative historical analysis, and sociology of development. However, he adds, 鈥渂eyond sociology I draw from political science, history, and area studies. So I find International Studies an ideal home since we have faculties from various disciplines and we promote interdisciplinary approaches in our teaching. My students are professional, hardworking, and engaging鈥攅very time that I leave class I feel energized and cheered up, looking forward to our next meeting.鈥�

His experience as a participant-observer in Iran鈥檚 failed pro-democracy movement prompted Kadivar to study the characteristics of other similar efforts鈥攕uccessful or not鈥攁round the globe, and what tactics and strategies are conducive to democracy. He is currently teaching Protest and Social Movements in the Middle East.

Kirshner pursues research in international relations, political economy, and politics and film, and has authored American Power after the Financial Crisis and Hollywood鈥檚 Last Golden Age: Politics, Society and the Seventies Film in America. Another book, Appeasing Bankers: Financial Caution on the Road to War鈥攐n how financial interests and international financial markets can influence states鈥� grand strategies and decisions about war and peace鈥攚on an award from the International Security Studies Section of the International Studies Association.

Willard, a former visiting scholar at 51茶馆鈥檚 Boisi Center for Religion and American Public Life whose degrees include a master鈥檚 in divinity and a Ph.D. in the Study of Religion from Harvard, worked with the Center for Strategic and International Studies and USAID in conflict alleviation and recovery. In addition to her Ethics, Religion, and International Politics class, Willard has co-taught Where on Earth?, a new course in the International Studies core curriculum examining the meaning of 鈥減lace鈥� as the basic building block for a globalizing world, from geographical location to cyberspace.

To find out more about the International Studies Program and its faculty, go to聽.