First Graduate of the Roshan Graduate Interdisciplinary Program in Persian and Iranian Studies

Sept. 1, 2020

This summer, the Roshan Graduate Interdisciplinary Program in Persian and Iranian Studies at the University of Arizona celebrates Robin Brackett, its first graduate. For her master’s thesis, Brackett examined 300 years of friendly Iranian-Armenian relations through the memories, nationalism and shifting identities around the Blue Mosque of Yerevan.

Brackett’s thesis advisor, Anne H. Betteridge, Director of the UArizona Center for Middle Eastern Studies, remarked that the Roshan GIDP attracts excellent students.  “Robin Brackett is distinguished as an M.A. student for her creative research related to Iran in Armenia,” Betteridge said. “She approaches her studies and her research with intelligence, excitement, and uncommon grace. I value her truly interdisciplinary approach to her work, with its attention to Persian language, material culture, and political relationships.”

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Image of Robin Brackett

Robin Brackett

The Persian and Iranian Studies Program, offered by the School of Middle Eastern and North African Studies, stands out as one of the strongest and largest in the nation. In a long-standing relationship with Roshan Cultural Heritage Institute, the program has received nearly $3.5 million since 2003.

A grant from the institute in 2016 helped create the Roshan Graduate Interdisciplinary Program in Persian and Iranian Studies, which is housed in the Graduate College. Elahé Omidyar Mir-Djalali, Founder and Chair of Roshan Cultural Heritage Institute, said that one of the goals of the program is to create a pipeline of Persian and Iranian Studies scholars and Persian language teachers.

“Dr. Mir-Djalali’s big goal was to bring Persian and Iranian Studies to the forefront in this country,” said Virginia Healy, senior director of development in the College of Social and Behavioral Sciences. Healy added that the institute’s gifts to UArizona have focused on graduate student training and support.

Source: https://sbs.arizona.edu/news/first-graduate-roshan-graduate-interdisciplinary-program-persian-and-iranian-studies-examines