I am an Associate Professor of Government and a Tutor in the College of Social Studies at Wesleyan University. I am also a core faculty member for the Middle Eastern Studies minor, and the Muslim Studies minor.
My research examines how political organizations respond to repression, political exclusion, and changing political opportunities, with a particular focus on Islamist movements and opposition groups in the Middle East and North Africa. My work explores political violence, disengagement from violence, organizational change, diaspora mobilization, and activism in exile.
My first book, The Violence Pendulum (Oxford University Press 2020), examines what drives Islamist organizations to shift between nonviolent and violent tactics. Drawing on a wide variety of archival materials, interviews and reports, the analysis traces the historical evolution of four key Islamist groups: the Muslim Brotherhood and al-Gama’a al-Islamiyya in Egypt, and Darul Islam and Jemaah Islamiyah in Indonesia.
My current project examines Islamist activism in exile, focusing on Tunisia’s Ennahda movement and the Egyptian Muslim Brotherhood.
I have published numerous articles on terrorism and disengagement from violence, negotiating with terrorist groups, and organizational dynamics in rebel groups and opposition movements.
I hold a BA in Political Science and Economics from Monmouth College, a Master’s degree from Arizona State University, and a PhD from Syracuse University.