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April 26, 2006 -- University of Virginia professor Farzaneh Milani, who serves as director of Studies in Women and Gender and teaches courses in Persian literature and women’s studies, was selected to be one of 20 Carnegie Scholars receiving grants of up to $100,000 to pursue Islam-centered research themes over the next two years. The 2006 class of scholars is the second class of Carnegie Scholars to focus on Islam. The range of their professional fields includes Islamic studies, law, religion, history, sociology, gender studies, politics, anthropology, human rights and comparative literature.
“I feel honored to be selected as a Carnegie Scholar. And very lucky, too, because I know there are many, many qualified people in the field,” said Milani. “I am excited about my project and very grateful to the University for having nominated me.”
In her role as a Carnegie Scholar, Milani will focus on the topic of the physical mobility of Islamic women, especially in Iran, and how it relates to issues of freedom in many different cultures.
Born and raised in Teheran, Iran, Milani earned a bachelor’s degree in French literature in 1970 from California State University at Hayward. She taught Persian language and literature at the University of California at Los Angeles before coming to the University of Virginia in 1986. She is a past president of the Association of Middle Eastern Women’s Studies in America and the recipient of the Alumni Teaching Award in 1998. Milani’s books include "Veils and Words: The Emerging Voice of Iranian Women Writers” and with Kaveh Safa "A Cup of Sin: Selected Poems of Simin Behbahani." She has written more than 60 articles, book chapters, introductions and afterwords in Persian and English and has lectured both nationally and internationally. She teaches courses in Persian literature and cinema, Islam, and cross-cultural studies of women.
The goal of the Carnegie Corporation’s new emphasis on Islam is to encourage the development and expansion of the study of Islam within the United States and to stimulate research on which to help build a body of thoughtful and original scholarship.
This year’s scholars were selected from the largest number of nominations to date. They represent an array of U.S. universities and institutions, indicating that Islamic Studies is a growing area of interest in American academia. The Corporation will concentrate the Carnegie Scholars Program on Islam over the next few years to help make the field more central to American research and instruction, significantly expanding the breadth of knowledge necessary to build leadership and guide national and foreign policy.
“Islam is a mosaic of many sects,” said Vartan Gregorian, president of the Carnegie Corporation. “It’s as diverse as humanity itself. In focusing our Scholars Program on Islam, we aim to expand the range of knowledge and understanding about Islam as a religion and about the cultures and communities of Muslim societies both in the United States and abroad.”
Speaking of the selection process, Neil Grabois, vice president and director of strategic planning and program coordination for Carnegie Corporation, said, “[It] is highly competitive. In as much as we want to encourage the study of Islam across the country, we look for intellectual risk-takers who will play a leading role in accomplishing this goal.” |
