ACLS Board of Directors

Joy Connolly, ACLS President Read More

Marwan M. Kraidy became the dean and CEO of Northwestern University in Qatar in July 2020.  Prior to assuming this position, he was the Anthony Shadid Chair in Global Media, Politics and Culture, and founding director of the Center for Advanced Research in Global Communication (CARGC) at the Annenberg School… Read More

Jimena Canales is an expert in nineteenth and twentieth century history of the physical sciences, working for a better understanding of science and technology in relation to the arts and humanities. She received an MA and PhD from Harvard University in the History of Science and a BSc in Engineering… Read More

Melani McAlister is a professor of American studies and international affairs at Columbian College of Arts and Sciences, The George Washington University. She specializes in the multiple “global visions” produced by and for Americans. In her writing and teaching, she focuses on the ways in which cultural and political history… Read More

Dana A. Williams is Professor of African American literature and Dean of the Graduate School at Howard University. Prior to serving as Dean, she served as Chair of English at Howard University for nine years. She has previously served as president of the College Language Association (the oldest and largest professional… Read More

James H. Averill retired in 2007 as partner from Wellington Management, an investment counsel firm based in Boston. He served in Wellington’s Radnor, PA office as a security analyst and portfolio manager on the Windsor Fund team for 23 years, specializing in financial companies. In a prior career, he taught… Read More

Dr. Edward E. Cohen is an economic historian specializing in the economy and society of Classical Athens and of Imperial Rome.  He is the author of many articles and books, including Ancient Athenian Maritime Courts; Athenian Economy and Society: A Banking Perspective; The Athenian Nation; Athenian Prostitution: The Business of… Read More

Lisa Fagin Davis received her PhD in Medieval Studies from Yale University in 1993. She has catalogued medieval manuscript collections at Yale University, the University of Pennsylvania, Wellesley College, the Museum of Fine Arts Boston, the Boston Public Library, and several private collections. Her publications include: the Catalogue of Medieval and… Read More

Roderick A. Ferguson is professor of Women’s, Gender, and Sexuality Studies at Yale University. He received his B.A. from Howard University and his Ph.D. from the University of California, San Diego. An interdisciplinary scholar, his work traverses such fields as American Studies, gender studies, queer studies, cultural studies, African American… Read More

Frances Daly Fergusson is president emeritus of Vassar College. She served as president of Vassar from 1986-2006. Fergusson previously was provost and vice president for academic affairs at Bucknell University from 1982-86. An architectural historian, Fergusson has her BA from Wellesley College and her MA and PhD from Harvard University. Read More

Theodore S. Gonzalves is a scholar of comparative cultural studies. He has taught in the United States, Spain, and the Philippines. He previously served as interim director of the Smithsonian Asian Pacific American Center. Currently, Gonzalves is a curator at the National Museum of American History, Smithsonian Institution, in Washington,… Read More

Michèle Lamont is Professor of Sociology and of African and African American Studies and the Robert I. Goldman Professor of European Studies at Harvard University. A cultural and comparative sociologist who studies inclusion and inequality, she has tackled topics such as dignity, respect, stigma, racism and stigma, class and racial… Read More

Desiree Pedescleaux serves as Dean of Undergraduate Studies and is an associate professor of the political science department at Spelman College. A member of the faculty since 1991, she teaches courses in National Government, Constitutional Law, Civil Liberties, and Urban Politics. Pedescleaux is a member of the American Political Science Association,… Read More

James Q. Whitman is Ford Foundation Professor of Comparative and Foreign Law at Yale University.  He holds a Ph.D. from the University of Chicago, where his dissertation was directed by Arnaldo Momigliano, as well as baccalaureate and law degrees from Yale.   Before beginning his teaching career, he was a judicial… Read More