News from the School of IAS

“Cry out Loud!” Multiracial Organizing and Documentary Cinema

IAS faculty member Alka Kurian presented two papers at the National Women's Studies Association Conference. In the first, she explored “Cry Out Loud,” a documentary film focusing on racism against Africans in India. Kurian investigated the parallels between racism and communalism in the U.S. and India that discriminate against minorities populations. She highlighted the need for multi-racial organizing between South Asian diaspora in the U.S. and other communities of color and collaboration with protest movements such as Black Lives Matter and Dream Defenders. She stressed that this type of analysis is all the more important during these deeply unsettling times when ...

November 29, 2017

Jefferson Ketchel named Snohomish Health District Administrator

On November 7, the Board of Health confirmed Jefferson Ketchel (’08, Policy Studies) as Administrator of the Snohomish Health District. Board Chair Adrienne Fraley-Monillas stated, “It was clear through our search that Jeff is the best person for the job, and we couldn’t be more pleased. He has a passion not just for public health, but this agency and the people of Snohomish County. Jeff has the board’s full support and confidence as we continue moving the health district forward as the community’s chief health strategist.”

November 29, 2017

Ryan Dzakovic awarded fellowship with U.S. Department of State

Alum Ryan (Blanco) Dzakovic (’15, Cultural Studies) is headed to Washington, D.C. for a year-long fellowship with the U.S. Department of State’s Veterans Innovation Partnership (VIP) Fellowship Program. VIP Fellowships support veterans’ transition to diplomacy and development careers by providing opportunities to serve within U.S. foreign affairs agencies. “Having the background in graduate studies prepared me for an opportunity at a caliber I thought I would never achieve,” Dzakovic said. Read Ryan’s story.

November 27, 2017

Nikki Neuen connects her talents to gender diversity

Nikki Neuen (’04, American Studies) is Associate Director for Gender Diversity Education and Support Services, where she focuses on infrastructure management, communications, grant writing, and everything else. “Our staff is so small, that we all help with everything – conferences, marketing, volunteer management, fundraising – you name it,” Nikki explains. Gender Diversity increases the awareness and understanding of gender diversity in children, adolescents, and adults by providing family support groups, education and training to professionals serving trans youth, and through their annual international conference, Gender Odyssey.

November 21, 2017

Avi Socha: LEPP major and State Department Intern

Law, Economics & Public Policy (LEPP) student Avi Socha is currently finishing up an exciting internship with the U.S. Department of State in Rome. The State Department, which accepts less than 10% of applicants nationwide, granted him Secret Security Clearance and a posting at the American Citizen Services Unit at the Rome embassy, working alongside the U.S. Consul General. As a LEPP student ...

November 20, 2017

Gender, Women & Sexuality Studies faculty have big presence at the National Women’s Studies Association (#NWSA2017) conference

The NWSA held its annual conference in Baltimore, Maryland this year. The conference’s theme was “Forty Years After Combahee: Feminist Scholars and Activists Engage the Movement for Black Lives” and was an inspiring weekend full of panels, round-table discussions, plenaries, meetings, receptions, networking, and socializing. Seven GWSS faculty presented and co-presented papers. GWSS faculty coordinator Julie Shayne organized a panel called ...

November 20, 2017

Alumni Shout Out!

EJ Juarez (’14, Cultural Studies) is now Partnerships and Government Relations Manager for The Seattle Public Library. Previously, he served as Executive Director of Amplify, an organization dedicated to recruiting, training, and electing progressive champions in Washington and Oregon. Emily Anderson ('09, Society, Ethics & Human Behavior) has joined ICEBRG, a community and network security firm, as General Counsel. Prior to, she worked at Microsoft as Senior Program Manager in Legal Privacy Compliance. On November 8, Sean Alley ...

November 16, 2017

Dan Berger publishes Rethinking the American Prison Movement

IAS faculty member Dan Berger has published Rethinking the American Prison Movement. The book, coauthored with Toussaint Losier (Assistant Professor of Afro-American Studies at the University of Massachusetts Amherst), provides a short, accessible overview of the transformational and ongoing struggles against America’s prison system throughout the 20th century. The book has been hailed as "necessary and important" ...

November 15, 2017

Center for Contemporary Asian Art in Sydney publishes an interview with Anida Yoeu Ali

IAS faculty member Anida Yoeu Ali was interviewed by the Sydney-based Center for Contemporary Asian Art (or 4A) about her practice and ongoing performance of The Red Chador in an ever-changing US political climate. Ali’s The Red Chador was curated into the Performance x 4A program at Art Central Hong Kong in March 2017. The Art Central performance of The Red Chador: Ban Me! was the first time that Ali staged this work in the context of ...

November 15, 2017