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Meltzer Schwartzberg Center for Israel Studies

In 1998, Shimon Peres inaugurated the first center for Israel Studies in the country at American University. The center sponsors frequent public programs, including conferences, discussions, lecture series, performances and exhibits, in addition to the Minor in Israel Studies.

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CIS Events

Upcoming Events

RSVP available at the start of the fall semester. 

  • September 24: Oren Kessler will be in conversation with Professor Michael Brenner about his new book, Palestine 1936
  • September 30: Sonenshine Lecture featuring Sarah Hurwitz, author of As a Jew, in conversation with Professor Pamela Nadell.
  • October 5: Adam Ferziger will be in conversation with Professor Lauren Strauss on his recent book, Agents of Change: American Jews and the Transformation of American Judaism.
  • November 15-16: Meltzer Trone Conference, titled "Reimagining Shared Society: Jewish and Palestinian Citizens of Israel Challenging Fear, Mistrust, and Polarization." 

Panel Discussion with Audience Q&A

Peace Talks without Leadership:
Israel 30 Years after Rabin's Assassination

Chuck Freilich (former Israel national security advisor and professor political science at NYU, Columbia, and Tel Aviv) and Aaron David Miller (senior fellow at the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace, formerly with the US State Department) in conversation with Guy Ziv (AU Professor of Foreign Policy & Global Security), October 29, 2025.

2025 Meltzer Trone Conference

Franklin Foer, The Diaspora Blues: 
Where American Jews Go from Here

Evening keynote with Franklin Foer, November 16, followed by a conversation with novelist Joshua Cohen, introduced by Professor Lauren Strauss.

From the 2025 Meltzer Trone Conference: American Jews and Israel: A Complicated Relationship — see full Meltzer Trone Conference Video Playlist.

2025 Helen & Daniel Sonenshine Lecture

1:19:53

Pigs and the World Jewish Conspiracy:
Meat and Jews in the Nazi Mind

On October 22, 2025, the Helen and Daniel Sonenshine Lecture featured John Efron and Joan Nathan in discussion with Center Director Michael Brenner.

View more videos from the Center for Israel Studies.

Bulletins

Associate Director Guy Ziv has a new article in War on the Rocks on how the Gaza War is reshaping Israeli civil-military relations. He argues that religious Zionists have suffered disproportionate casualties in the war, giving the community outsize influence over Israeli political leaders.

Ziv was also quoted in a Washington Jewish Week story regarding Netanyahu’s recent visit to Washington, recent developments in US-Israel relations, and the current situation in Iran/Gaza.

Michael Brenner published an article in Forward contemplating how his Holocaust survivor parents, who revered the United States as a symbol of democracy and safety, would be disheartened by the nation's current political climate. He also discussed the origins of Zionism on NPR's Throughline. 

Pam Nadell discussed her new book Antisemitism: An American Tradition at various book talks, including ones with the Center for Israel Studies, with Senator Ben Cardin at Politics and Prose, and in Pittsburgh with New York Times columnist Bret Stephens.

Guy Ziv spoke with LAist about the Israeli Supreme Court ruling on compulsory military service for the Ultra Orthodox.

Join the Center for Israel Studies

  • We invite AU students to learn more about us in the website, attend events, or Minor in Israel Studies and apply for the Waisman Scholarship.
  • We invite the public to be a part of the growth of our center by attending our programs and offering your support. Your commitment and generosity will ensure that CIS will continue to serve as a model throughout the nation in this growing field.

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