Affiliated Organizations
The Middle East Librarians Association was established in November 1972 at the sixth annual meeting of MESA (Middle East Studies Association), by 17 librarians (our “founding fathers and mothers”). Before this date there had indeed been specialist librarians whose principal concern was the development of library collections in support of research and teaching. But these 17 pioneers saw, five years after the establishment of MESA, that professionals devoted to the development of library collections for study and teaching about the Middle East needed to share information among themselves.
Soon after that date the first issue of MELA Notes, the association’s professional journal, was published. In later years, MELA has also established awards to recognize professional achievement over a lifetime and to support the development of young professionals interested in a career in Middle East librarianship. MELA now consists of approximately seventy members representing over 50 institutions from all over the world. MELA’s annual meeting takes place in conjunction with MESA, generally two days before, allowing MELA members who are also members of MESA to attend the annual meeting.
President: Anaïs Salamon
Secretary: William Kopycki
Membership - Annual Dues
Individual/Institutional/Foreign Members: $50
Lifetime Membership: $600
The Middle East Materials Project preserves collections in digital and microform format of unique, rare, hard to obtain, and often expensive research material for Middle East studies. It also preserves deteriorating printed and manuscript scholarly materials. The geographic scope of MEMP coverage includes Arab countries, Israel, Turkey, Iran, and related areas not covered by other cooperative materials projects.
Since its inception in 1987, MEMP has acquired more than 100 newspaper titles in Arabic, Turkish, and English, including a large collection of Sudanese and Turkish papers. Other projects include the microfilming of a large pamphlet file of materials on the Middle East at the Library of Congress and the microfilming of the Cosro Chaqeri Collection of Iranian Left-wing Materials.
Chair: Guy Burak
General Questions can be directed to: Samantha Abrams
Membership - Annual Dues: Membership in MEMP is open to any institution or nonprofit organization maintaining a library and whose interests coincide with the project.
Members in North America: $750
Members outside of North America: $500
Middle East Medievalists is an international professional non-profit association of scholars interested in the study of the medieval Middle East, expansively defined to include all geographies with prominent Muslim political, religious, or social presences, at some point between the rough parameters of 500-1500 CE.
MEM has two primary goals. The first is to increase the representation of medieval scholarship at scholarly meetings in North America and elsewhere by co-sponsoring panels. The other principal objective of MEM is to foster communication among individuals and organizations with an interest in the study of the medieval Middle East. MEM also hopes, in the future, to advance the study of the medieval Middle East by undertaking such projects as scholar exchanges, conferences, etc.
President: Stephennie Mulder
Secretary: Robert Haug
Membership - Annual Dues
Individual: $40
Institutional: $250
Lifetime: $750
The Middle East Outreach Council is a national network of educators dedicated to disseminating apolitical and nonpartisan information, resources and activities furthering understanding about the Middle East, including the Arab world, Israel, Iran, Turkey, and Afghanistan. MEOC’s target audience is non-specialists at the K-12 and college levels, although its services are also relevant to broader community needs. We have members around the country. Our services include the Middle East Book Award, an annual travel award for members to attend our annual meeting and workshop, and a member forum.
President: Craig Cangemi
Secretary: Joe Stanik
Membership - Annual Dues
Access Membership: Free
Educator Membership: $10
Outreach Professional: $25
Institutional: $150
The Middle East Research and Information Project was established in 1971 to educate and inform the public about contemporary Middle East affairs. MERIP provides critical, alternative reporting and analysis, focusing on state power, political economy and social hierarchies as well as popular struggles and the role of US policy in the region. MERIP seeks to reach academics, journalists, non-governmental and governmental organizations and informed citizens who want knowledgeable analysis and critical resources about contemporary political developments. Informed by scholarship and research, MERIP is a curated platform for critical analysis and discussion that brings informed perspectives to a broader audience.
A registered 501(c)(3) non-profit organization, MERIP publishes a quarterly print magazine, Middle East Report, as well as frequent articles, updates and educational primers on its website.
Executive Director: Mandy Terc
General Emails: [email protected], [email protected], [email protected]
Membership – Annual Dues: This year, MERIP has eliminated their longstanding paywall to allow anyone, anywhere to access our content free of charge. Become a donor today and discover the perks of MERIP membership.
Supporter: $50 +
Sustainer: $250 +
Stalwart: $1,000 +
The Ottoman and Turkish Studies Association, founded and incorporated as the Turkish Studies Association in 1971, is a private, non-profit, non-political organization of persons interested in Turkish and Ottoman studies. The objectives of the Association are to promote high standards of scholarship and instruction; to facilitate communication among its members through meetings and written exchanges of information; and to promote international, scholarly cooperation among persons and organizations concerned with Turkish and Ottoman studies.
The Association’s activities include the publication of the Journal with short research articles, reports of meetings and conferences, book reviews and communications from members. The annual meeting of the Association is held each November in conjunction with the Middle East Studies Association convention. Persons interested in Turkish or Ottoman studies are invited to membership.
President: Baki Tezcan
Secretary: Carole Woodall
Membership - Annual Dues
Regular: $50
Joint: $75
Retired/Students: $25
The Palestinian American Research Center was formed in 1998 to meet this need for an American institution that promotes Palestinian studies and exchange among scholars interested in Palestinian affairs. Until then, American researchers in the field did not benefit from the assistance provided by American research centers and Fulbright commissions in other parts of the world. Palestinian scholars have far fewer resources at home and less access to opportunities abroad than do American and other foreign scholars. And practical, policy-oriented research in the fields of public health, urban development, and environmental studies is critically important at this stage in Palestinian institutional development.
Overall, Palestinian, American, and foreign scholars have lacked the institutional infrastructure that provides fellowship funding, logistical support, access to local resources, and a network of academic contacts. PARC was established to fulfill these roles. The primary mission of the Palestinian American Research Center is to improve scholarship about Palestinian affairs, expand the pool of experts knowledgeable about the Palestinians, and strengthen linkages among Palestinian, American, and foreign research institutions and scholars.
President: Julie Peteet
Executive Director: Penelope Mitchell
Office Manager: Daniel Lynn
Membership - Annual Dues
Student: $20
Individual: $35
Individual Sponsoring: $36-$199
Individual Supporting: $200-$999
Institutional: $100
Institutional Sponsoring: $250
Institutional Supporting: $500
Individual and Institutional Patron: $1,000 and above
Palestine Individual: $10
Palestine Institutional: $50
Minority Serving Institutions: $50
The aims of the Society for Armenian Studies are to promote the study of Armenian culture and society, including history, language, literature, and social, political, and economic questions; to facilitate the exchange of scholarly information pertaining to Armenian studies around the world; and to sponsor panels and conferences on Armenian studies. The programs of the Society include publication of a Newsletter on the Society’s activities and on current research on Armenia; publication of the Journal of the Society for Armenian Studies, encouragement, sponsorship and publication of research on all facets of Armenian culture and society; and such other activities as the SAS council may from time to time determine.
President: Bedross Der Matossian
Executive Secretary: Katarina Terzyan
Membership - Annual Dues
Regular: $50
Student/Retired: $25
Supporting: $100
Institutional: $500
The Southeast Regional Middle East and Islamic Studies Society - a professional society for specialist or non-specialist educators and other individuals whose professional activities actively engage the Middle East and Islam. The organization was founded in 1977 to provide scholars in the southeastern United States with an opportunity to meet regularly with colleagues to share research findings and teaching concerns. SERMEISS is an affiliated organization of the Middle East Studies Association of North America (MESA).
The SERMEISS 10-state region includes Alabama, Florida, Georgia, Kentucky, Mississippi, North Carolina, South Carolina, Tennessee, Virginia, and West Virginia.
President: Annie Tracy Samuel
Executive Director: Buket Oztas
Membership - Annual Dues
Full: $25
Associate: $20
Institutional: $200
The Sudans Studies Association is the foremost academic organization of scholars and educators interested in the study of the region from all over the world. Its goal is to promote and foster the research and study of the region, facilitate communication and cooperation among its members, nature new generations of scholars and encourage the publication of matter pertaining to Sudan studies.
The Sudans Studies Association is:
- An independent non-profit membership association dedicated to advancing Sudan Studies as a scientific discipline and profession
- Sponsor and host of an annual meeting that brings scholars from North American and other parts of the world
President: Lako Tongun
President-Elect: Bakry Elmedni
Executive Director: Souad T. Ali
Secretary: Fatima Abdelwahab
Membership - Annual Dues
Regular/Non-Profit: $50
Student: $30
Profit-making bodies: $500
The Syrian Studies Association is an international association organized to encourage and promote research and scholarly understanding of Syria in all periods and in all academic disciplines. The SSA is a non-profit, non-political association affiliated with MESA (The Middle East Studies Association of North America). Their goals are to promote the highest standards of scholarship and instruction, facilitate communication among our members, and to encourage dialogue between Middle Eastern, Western and all scholars of the Middle East. They award several prizes for the best written work on Syria, publish a newsletter about the latest developments and writing in our field, invite one or more Syrian scholars to MESA each year, sponsor academic panels at scholarly conferences, and provide information about how to study Arabic in Syria.
President: Edith Szanto
Membership - Annual Dues
Regular: $25
Student: $10
Institutional: $100
The Academic Research Institute in Iraq was established to promote scholarly research on and in Iraq and ancient Mesopotamia. The Institute, a consortium of American universities and museums, intends to establish a multidisciplinary American scholarly research center in Iraq when conditions permit. TARII raises funds for graduate and post-graduate fellowships for Americans to work on Iraq in as broad a range of disciplines as possible. It also has a fellowship program for Iraqi academics to aid them in carrying out research in Iraq. TARII initiates its own research projects and fosters joint projects between American and Iraqi academics. Like similar American overseas research centers, TARII has as its primary focus the humanities and social sciences, as well as closely related natural sciences.
President: Peter Wien
Executive Director: Amanda Long
Secretary: Arbella Bet-Shlimon
General Email: [email protected]
Membership - Annual Dues
Individual: $45
Student: $30
Institutional: $300