Announcing the New Director of the Arab American Cultural Center

Dear Faculty, Staff, and Students,

We are excited to announce that the new director of the Arab American Cultural Center, Dr. Zeina Zaatari, effective January 8.

Dr. Zaatari earned her PhD in Cultural Anthropology from the University of California at Davis. For over 20 years, Dr. Zaatari has worked on gender and racial justice in Arab and Arab American communities in the academic and non-profit spheres. Most recently, she worked as Research Director at Political Research Associates, and as Regional Director for the MENA Program at Global Fund for Women. She has published many articles and book chapters on gender, sexuality, and social movements in the Middle East and North Africa. She has extensive experience working with youth, young professionals, journalists, and Arab American and Muslim communities. She currently serves as secretary of the Board of the Association for Women’s Rights in Development, is a core group member of the Arab Families Working Group, is a member of the International Advisory Board for Astraea Lesbian Foundation for Justice, and is an elected advisor for the MENA Coalition of Women Human Rights Defenders.

We would also like to express our deep appreciation to Dr. Nadine Naber, UIC professor of Global Asian Studies and Gender and Women’s Studies, who was the founding director of the Arab American Culture Center when it was created in Fall 2016. Under the able leadership of Dr. Naber and Program Coordinator Nesreen Hassan, the Center has launched educational and cultural programming for the UIC campus; support networks for international, undergraduate, and graduate students; research experiences for students interested in developing research that supports Arab American communities; and an Arab American graduation recognition for the UIC campus.

Please join us in thanking Dr. Naber and welcoming Dr. Zaatari to UIC!

Sincerely,

Susan Poser
Provost & Vice Chancellor for Academic Affairs

Amalia Pallares
Associate Chancellor & Vice Provost for Diversity

For more information, please contact:
Kelcie Gauen
kgauen3@uic.edu