May, 1998: Shimon Peres (center) receives an honorary doctorate from AU. On the left: Howard Wachtel, Center for Israel Studies founding Director. On the right: Cornelius M. Kerwin, then AU Provost, and current AU President.

American University mourns the passing of Shimon Peres, senior statesman and the last active member of Israel’s founding generation. Peres was known for a lifetime of searching for peace with Israel’s Arab neighbors. As architect of the Oslo Accords he was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize in 1994, along with then prime minister Yitzhak Rabin and PLO Chairman Yasser Arafat. In his lifetime of public service for Israel he served as president and prime minister, as well as minister of defense, foreign affairs, finance, and transportation. 

President Peres held a special place in our hearts here at AU. His devotion to peace, cooperation, and human dignity around the world served as an inspiration to our entire campus community, and his 1998 commencement speech inaugurated our Center for Israel Studies. Since his historic visit, the Center, the first of its kind in the United States, has enabled students from all over the world to explore Israel's diverse culture and society by bringing together Israeli and American scholars, writers, artists, and scientists to share their knowledge and face the challenges of the new global era.
 
For more on the legacy of Shimon Peres:

AU Professor Guy Ziv speaks to Bloomberg News

Professor Ziv’s book, Why Hawks Become Doves:
Shimon Peres and Foreign Policy Change in Israel

THE LEGACY OF SHIMON PERES
Monday, November 14, 4:00-5:30 p.m.
McKinley Building Theater

The AU Center for Israel Studies (CIS), School of International Service (SIS), and the Kennedy Political Union (KPU) are proud to host a roundtable discussion on the legacy of former Israeli President, Prime Minister, and Nobel Peace Prize laureate Shimon Peres, who passed away on September 28th. Peres, Israel's elder statesman, and a champion of Arab-Israeli peacemaking, inaugurated CIS in 1998.

The discussion will feature former Israeli Foreign Minister Shlomo Ben-Ami, former US Ambassador to Israel Daniel Kurtzer, and SIS Professor Guy Ziv, author of Why Hawks Become Doves: Shimon Peres and Foreign Policy Change in Israel. Space limited. RSVP required.

RSVP