For the Record provides information about recent professional activities and achievements of University of Delaware faculty, staff, students and alumni.

Recent honors, appointments and presentations include the following:

Honors

Rudi Matthee, John and Dorothy Munroe Distinguished Professor of History, was invited to London in June by the BBC-Persian TV Service for a two-hour interview and discussion, held in Persian, as part of their weekly Pargār (Compass) program. The interview, in which Abbas Amanat of Yale University served as fellow discussant, was broadcast in two parts in July and August. The topic of the first part was the Safavid dynasty and the power of the Shi‘i clergy; the second part looked into the reasons for the decline and fall of the Safavid dynasty in the early 18th century.  

New appointments

College of Arts and Sciences Interim Dean John Pelesko has announced numerous leadership changes in the dean’s office for the current academic year, all effective Sept. 1. David C. Wilson has been promoted from associate dean to senior associate dean for the social sciences; Suzanne L. Burton, professor of music, has been named interim associate dean for the arts, following the retirement of Joann Browning; Murray Johnston, professor of chemistry and biochemistry, has been named interim associate dean for the natural sciences, succeeding Pelesko in that position; and Kathryn Meier, former director of communications, has been named chief of staff. Other dean’s office appointments, and their effective dates, include: Dee Smith, interim senior business officer, July 1; Janna Chavis, human resources manager, Aug. 6; and Juan Viera, college facilities planning director, Sept. 10.

Presentations

Rudi Matthee, John and Dorothy Munroe Distinguished Professor of History, presented “Long Before the Russians and the British: Exploring the Historical Roots of the Iranian Sense of Self,” and he participated in a round table discussion of Abbas Amanat’s recent book, Iran, A Modern History, at the 12th Biennial Conference of Iranian Studies, held at the University of California, Irvine, Aug. 15-17.

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