Anat Maor, a professor of contemporary Israeli politics and a former member of the Knesset, has joined the Brooklyn College School of the Humanities and Social Sciences faculty for two consecutive semesters as the college’s first ever AICE (American-Israeli Cooperative Exchange Visiting Scholar).

“Brooklyn College is privileged to have Dr. Maor, who has written on many facets of Israeli women’s lives,” said Sara Reguer, the chair of the college’s Judaic Studies Department.

Maor, who received her Ph.D. from Tel Aviv University, has lectured on contemporary Israeli politics, social and economic policies in Israel, and gender studies at the Open University and Ruppin Academic Center in Israel since 2003. She has authored and edited several books, including Legislation and Politics: The Success of Private Legislation in Israel, Affirmative Action in Israel, and The Rising Power: The Promotion of Women in the Workplace.

As Maor’s approach is interdisciplinary, she is teaching two courses cross-listed by other departments and programs this fall, including Women’s Studies, Anthropology and Archaeology, and Political Science. “It is fitting that her two courses are Women in Israel—Achievements and Dilemmas, and Legislation and Politics in Israel,” says Reguer. “Professor Maor has also generously agreed to give public lectures, which will be open to faculty, staff, students, and the public.”

A member of the Knesset, the Israeli Congress, for the Meretz Party from 1992–2003, Maor served as Deputy Knesset Speaker, chaired the Science and Technology Committee and the Sub-Committee for Women at Work and the Economy, and headed the Lobby for Children. She initiated legislation for 41 bills that passed into Israeli law.

This is the first time the college has hosted a visiting scholar under the sponsorship of the (AICE), whose purpose is to increase the understanding of Israeli society and culture. Every year, AICE interviews 15–20 professors from prominent Israeli universities who are interested in teaching at an American college.

“I’m very excited to be back in New York,” said Maor, who lectured at Columbia University and New York University in 2012. “And I’m very thankful to have been given this opportunity. This is a very interesting campus with a diverse faculty and student body.”