I hold a Ph.D. and M.A. in Sociocultural Anthropology from the University of Chicago, and a B.A. in Sociocultural Anthropology and Middle East/South Asia Studies from the University of California-Davis. I specialize in the anthropology of religion, Islam, and secularism; the history of Europe and North Africa; the study of race, the War on Terror, and migration. Throughout my academic career, I have been awarded several competitive fellowships by the National Science Foundation, Ford...
I hold a Ph.D. and M.A. in Sociocultural Anthropology from the University of Chicago, and a B.A. in Sociocultural Anthropology and Middle East/South Asia Studies from the University of California-Davis. I specialize in the anthropology of religion, Islam, and secularism; the history of Europe and North Africa; the study of race, the War on Terror, and migration. Throughout my academic career, I have been awarded several competitive fellowships by the National Science Foundation, Ford Foundation, and Wenner-Gren Foundation.
As an instructor, I approach teaching not as a natural extension of expertise but as requiring reflexive awareness of how learning unfolds—shaped by students’ varied trainings, engagement styles, and complexity of course materials. This approach has guided my trajectory from a Teaching Assistant at the University of Chicago in 2018 to receiving a Prize Lectureship in 2025 for my independently designed course. To foster sustained engagement, I begin each class with students sharing their initial reactions to the readings. These brief moments created space to articulate disagreement, confusion, or critical questions, while also allowing me to gauge students’ comprehension. I also integrate an eclectic array of films, news clips, and photography to complement core readings and allow students to approach theoretical concepts from multiple angles.
Alongside teaching, I bring extensive experience in student mentorship across different academic levels. I have mentored students in research design and proposal writing through the Mellon Mays program. Each summer, I lead a 10-week research seminar for a cohort of undergraduates from Ivy League institutions across the US, guiding them through the full research lifecycle from proposal to ethnographic fieldwork. After graduating from the University of Chicago, I have continued my mentoring online through RISE Global Education, where I assist high school students from the U.S. and abroad in developing their independent research projects.
